RFI Occupancy Sensors and Controls | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (DOE ARPA-E) issued this notice as a Request for Information (RFI) titled "RFI Occupancy Sensors and Controls" (DE-FOA-0001580). The key point is that it is not a grant competition and it is not accepting applications for funding. Instead, ARPA-E is collecting technical and market input strictly to help shape and plan potential future programs. Any information submitted is intended for internal program planning and will be used without attribution, and ARPA-E emphasizes that no Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) exists at this time.

The RFI focuses on next-generation occupancy sensing technologies that could materially reduce heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) energy use across U.S. buildings. ARPA-E is looking for ideas that move beyond incremental improvements and instead represent disruptive, novel approaches that are early in the research and development cycle. The goal is to enable building control systems to make smarter, more automated heating and cooling decisions based on accurate, actionable knowledge of occupancy, ultimately cutting energy use and emissions while still maintaining occupant comfort. A major theme is that better occupancy data can allow HVAC systems to condition only the spaces that need it, when they need it, rather than relying on static schedules or coarse assumptions.

ARPA-E is also interested in practical considerations that would determine whether advanced occupancy sensing can scale nationally, especially in existing buildings where retrofit constraints dominate. The agency highlights the need for sensors that are extremely low cost, easy to retrofit into current buildings, and compatible with existing HVAC and building automation equipment. In other words, even if a sensing concept works in a lab, ARPA-E wants feedback on what would make it viable in the real world: installation complexity, interoperability with current controls, and the ability to demonstrate reliable performance at an acceptable total deployed cost.

Another major area of interest is how these sensors integrate into building control systems and how their value can be validated outside of controlled test environments. ARPA-E explicitly seeks input on integration practices with current building control systems and on real-world validation techniques to prove both functionality and cost. While the agency is not looking for strategies that merely bolt existing, mature technologies into buildings, it does want informed perspectives on how genuinely new sensing approaches could be proven, measured, and de-risked in operational settings where building layouts, occupant behavior, privacy concerns, and maintenance realities can make or break adoption.

The RFI invites perspectives from a broad set of disciplines, reflecting how multidisciplinary occupancy-based HVAC optimization really is. ARPA-E lists areas such as sensor development, distributed sensing systems, automated buildings, HVAC control systems, control algorithm development, and human factors, and it also welcomes input from end users and implementers. That includes HVAC system fabricators, building managers, energy utilities, and similar stakeholders who understand procurement constraints, service and maintenance burdens, commissioning practices, and the performance metrics that matter in commercial and residential building operations.

From an administrative standpoint, the RFI is categorized under discretionary opportunities and lists potential funding instruments like cooperative agreements and grants, but those labels are part of the standard opportunity record and do not change the central message: this specific posting is information-gathering only. The eligible applicant field is effectively unrestricted (open to any entity type, subject to any clarifications), which aligns with the intent to hear from a wide range of technical experts and market participants rather than a narrow applicant pool. The posting and creation dates are April 8, 2016, and the response deadline is May 6, 2016. An "award ceiling" and "expected awards" appear in the record, but ARPA-E makes clear that this notice is not a funding opportunity and should not be treated like one.

Overall, this RFI is ARPA-E testing the landscape for breakthrough occupancy sensing and occupancy-informed control concepts that could unlock significant HVAC energy savings, particularly in retrofits across the existing building stock. The agency is seeking candid, forward-looking input on what new sensor capabilities are possible, what performance and cost targets would matter, how these systems could realistically be deployed and integrated, and what kinds of field validation would credibly demonstrate impact and support future program design.

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