Re: Digital Tools Help Users Save Energy, Study Finds

[Ryan White <poogiefunk@xxxxxxxxx>]

On Fri, 18 Jan 2008 04:04:21 -0500, Robert Green wrote:

>> It's a project on tap for 2009, we come at this from a very different
>> perspective. The company I work for writes difficult custom software
>> solutions using, mainly, the MSoft Enterprise Server OS and tools.
>
> I hope they actually write custom software for difficult applications and
> not difficult software!
>
> (-:

lol They write for the military.

> When I went looking on the net, I found some very interesting initiatives
> out there:
>
> http://topics.energycentral.com/centers/datamanage/view/detail.cfm?aid=1495
>
> There an interesting two-part article that examines the advanced metering
> infrastructure and smart grid strategies of 14 U.S. utilities here:
>
> The methods the use for collection are remarkably similar to the HA
> protocols many of us are familiar with.  RF appears to be the dominant
> choice although it's often used in combination with BPL or PLC interfaces.
> Here's the breakdown:
>
> RF is planned to support AMI Systems at Con Edison, Pacific Gas & Electric,
> Southern California Edison, and Xcel Energy.
>
> Portland General Electric and PG&E plan to use PLC technology to retrieve
> meter data and a fixed RF network for collecting and transmitting daily gas
> usage data. PG&E has opted to use a wide area network to control and manage
> interval data transmitted to its information systems for billing and
> customer viewing.
>
> Some plan to use wireless mesh technology to allow meters to pass along
> reads from other meters.  Mesh networks also appears to be better suited for
> some urban areas than traditional RF-configured systems because they
> eliminate problems coming from a single receiver point.
>
>> We are in cahoots with a very aggressive and advanced thinking residential
>> real estate developer who is pushing the alternative energy envelope on
> the
>> community and residential unit level.
>
> Cahoots?  Maybe I'm waaaay off base, but I've never heard of anyone being
> "in cahoots" in a good way.  Worse, still, I am sure we've had this
> conversation before . . .  Deja hoots?

Cahoots is in terms of the present secrecy, Non Disclosures and all that
garbage.

>> The 2009 is a "living lab" project, an upscale home that we can test,
>> install, retest, deinstall, etc. One of the primary goals is the
> monitoring
>> aspect or the integration of the monitoring capabilities of others where
> it
>> can be displayed  and negotiated easily for the homeowner.
>
> I can tell you what I've discovered even within my brief research on the
> subject.  Any significant advances will have to come very slowly because
> good power management means knowing the total load and certain large
> component loads.  Even with a smart panel, unless every major appliance is
> on its own circuit, the granularity of the readings is likely to be coarse.

Would agree, power is only one part, automated climate, higher level
security (boundary, property, site, personal, home), single user
touchscreen interfaces, self-opening doors, voice recognition for
automation instruction/usage, and concierge services which allow the
control of highly automated homes from outside (remotely) by homeowner
request instead of homeowner directly accessing the controls themselves.

> The last time I looked into this, there was a single "smart" power center
> that could report on the load passing through the breaker panel but I
> haven't even been able to find that unit.  Until all appliances (from irons
> to slab AC units) come with some sort of self-reporting current consumption
> data, the reading granularity of power consumption in the home is bound to
> remain gross.

Correct and their approach is that the market (ultra-luxury) is more
interested in energy sourcing, independence, long term cost savings, and
the potential obsolescence of very expensive homes if they do not get on
the hA and alt energy bandwagons.

> The best users can hope for is smart utility-supplied billing
> meters that can report the current consumption of electricity to the
> homeowner, as well as the power company.  My utility has already petitioned
> to buy remote reporting meters and consumers will pay for most of them,
> according to the filing.
>
> --
> Bobby G.

Thanks, can't find any argument with that.