Mobile Communications with Home Energy Management Systems

In previous articles we have addressed the topic of reducing home energy consumption by applying good insulation, installing double-paned glass and weather stripping; installing alternative energy technologies such as solar panels, and simply lessening the use of energy by turning off basic electronics and air conditioners when not needed. An important part of managing the use of energy includes knowing how much energy one is actually using, information that may not be evident on a monthly electric bill.

With the aid of federal stimulus money, there has been a noticeable increase in the installation of smart meters in homes. Though less than 10 percent of all homes in the U.S. have installed these meters, they are becoming a foundational element to most electric utilities’ energy efficiency programs. For less than $200 a homeowner can install a smart meter that will improve the amount and quality of information regarding energy usage, including the:

• Usage and rates down to the hour and even minute
• Amount of electricity used by each appliance
• Optimization of appliances regarding periodic vs. event-driven operation
• Degree to which an appliance is running within spec or simply malfunctioning

With these meters installed there exists the possibility of using mobile home energy management systems technology to assist homeowners in better monitoring their home energy consumption and taking a more proactive role in reducing its use.

Home Energy Management Systems via Mobile Communications

Provided a homeowner has a smart meter installed, there are a variety of products that allow for monitoring home energy use remotely, but few that incorporate the capability to manage its use remotely – e.g. turn appliances on or off or run the air conditioning. The following products are presented to illustrate this emerging capability:

• Thermostat-sized digital displays that use ZigBee routers to communicate with an installed smart meter. These displays allow the homeowner to track energy usage, learn about changing electricity rates and home consumption, down to the hour; and compare consumption to others of the same demographic.
• Various iPhone applications that allow users to monitor the amount of energy produced from their solar panels; and others that allow for the remote control of various control devices in a home, such as lights, water heaters and thermostats.
• Sensor systems that validate the connection and proper usage of electrical meters to an apartment building’s common use electrical appliances.

The theory behind these various home energy management and monitoring systems is that homeowners, seeing a more direct relationship between turning on a device and its energy usage will drive energy conservation behavior; that in fact, with this added insight, consumers will search for ways to improve the efficiency of installed appliances and heating and air conditioning systems. According to Google, a major player in developing these capabilities, studies indicate that savings in the range of 5 to 15 percent can be anticipated.

To further reinforce the anticipated benefits of these systems, a more collaborative relationship will likely develop between the power companies and their customers. Industry advocates of these capabilities project that with time-of-use pricing and greater visibility of home appliances use, emails or text messages will be exchanged between customers and their utility provider suggesting alternative times for using a specific appliance.

There are still a lot of issues to resolve before the full potential of these capabilities and applications are realized:

• The products and applications themselves need to be commercialized and fully tested to match the performance expectations and economics of a typical homeowner.
• Standard formats for collecting and reporting usage data need to be defined.
• Methods for communicating data through smart meters will require standardization.

There are many possibilities and just as many obstacles to achieving success in implementing these solutions, not the least being the willingness of utilities to provide data to third-party developers of technology. But, few doubt that the necessary convergence will occur and the time is near for effective mobile and remote energy management.