Apparatus and method for energy management based on estimated resource utilization

• US 10,203,712 B2
• Filed: 05/03/2016
• Issued: 02/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Enel X North America, Inc. (ENEL SPA)
• Original Assignee: Enel X North America, Inc. (ENEL SPA)
• Inventors: Al-Mohssen, Husain, Main, Elizabeth J., Bassa, Angela S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Karim, Ziaul
• Application Number:
  US15/145,015
• Publication Number:
  US 20170322576A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,015 Days
• Field of Search: 700296-300
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 13/04 involving the use of models or simulators
• CPC Class Codes: G05F 1/66 Regulating electric power

Abstract

An apparatus for controlling consumption of an energy resource includes devices, a network operations center (NOC), and control nodes. The devices are within the facility. The NOC is external to the facility, and generates run time schedules that coordinate run times for the each of the devices to control consumption while maintaining local environments and desired level of performance, and adjusts the run time schedules based upon resource utilization levels generated by the NOC, where the resource utilization levels are exclusively generated based on the consumption of the energy resource and outside temperature. The control nodes are coupled together via an energy management network that is operatively coupled to the NOC, and transmit sensor data and device status to the NOC for generation of the run time schedules, and where the control nodes execute selected ones of the run time schedules to cycle the devices on and off.

Claims

1. An apparatus for controlling consumption of an energy resource by a facility, the apparatus comprising:

a plurality of devices, disposed within the facility, each consuming a portion of the energy resource when turned on, and said each capable of performing a corresponding function to maintain a desired level of performance by cycling on and off;

a network operations center (NOC), disposed external to the facility, configured to generate a plurality of run time schedules, wherein said plurality of run time schedules coordinates run times for said each of said plurality of devices to control the consumption of the energy resource while maintaining corresponding local environments and said desired level of performance, and configured to adjust said plurality of run time schedules based upon resource utilization components and resource utilization levels generated by said NOC, wherein said resource utilization components and said resource utilization levels are exclusively generated based on the consumption of the energy resource and outside temperature, and wherein said NOC generates said resource utilization components for the facility by processing a first data set comprising energy consumption and outside temperature data for the facility, said energy consumption and outside temperature data taken at a prescribed time increment over a first plurality of days, and generates a normalized first data set by employing said resource utilization components to remove effects of resource utilization of the facility from said first data set, said resource utilization components comprising;

a lower bound of energy consumption as a function of outside temperature;

a normalized resource utilization profile component as a function of said prescribed time increment;

a marginal energy consumption component as a function of outside temperature; and

a daily resource utilization level component for each of said first plurality of days; and

a plurality of control nodes, disposed within the facility, each coupled to a corresponding one of said plurality of devices, wherein said plurality of control nodes is coupled together via an energy management network that is operatively coupled to said NOC, and wherein said plurality of control nodes transmits sensor data and device status to said NOC via said energy management network for generation of said plurality of run time schedules, and wherein said plurality of control nodes executes selected ones of said run time schedules to cycle said plurality of devices on and off.

2. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said NOC generates said resource utilization levels for the facility by employing said resource utilization components to process the consumption of the energy resource.

3. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said prescribed time increment comprises one hour.

4. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said prescribed time increment comprises five minutes.

5. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, where said first plurality of days comprises 365 days.

6. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said NOC progressively revises said resource utilization components by additionally processing the consumption of the energy resource.

7. An apparatus for controlling consumption of an energy resource by a facility, the apparatus comprising:

a plurality of devices, disposed within the facility, each consuming a portion of the energy resource when turned on, and said each capable of performing a corresponding function to maintain a desired level of performance by cycling on and off;

a network operations center (NOC), disposed external to the facility, configured to generate a plurality of run time schedules, wherein said plurality of run time schedules coordinates run times for said each of said plurality of devices to control the consumption of the energy resource while maintaining corresponding local environments and said desired level of performance, and configured to adjust said plurality of run time schedules based upon resource utilization components and resource utilization levels generated by said NOC, wherein said resource utilization components and said resource utilization levels are exclusively generated based on the consumption of the energy resource and outside temperature, and wherein said NOC generates said resource utilization components for the facility by processing a first data set comprising energy consumption and outside temperature data for the facility, said energy consumption and outside temperature data taken at a prescribed time increment over a first plurality days, and generates a normalized first data set by employing said resource utilization components to remove effects of resource utilization of the facility from said first data set, said resource utilization components comprising;

a lower bound of energy consumption as a function of outside temperature;

a normalized resource utilization profile component as a function of said prescribed time increment;

a marginal energy consumption component as a function of outside temperature; and

a daily resource utilization level component for each of said first plurality of days;

a plurality of control nodes, disposed within the facility, each coupled to a corresponding one of said plurality of devices, wherein said plurality of control nodes is coupled together via an energy management network that is operatively coupled to said NOC, and wherein said plurality of control nodes transmits sensor data and device status to said NOC via said energy management network for generation of said plurality of run time schedules, and wherein said plurality of control nodes executes selected ones of said run time schedules to cycle said plurality of devices on and off; and

one or more sensor nodes, coupled to said energy management network, configured to provide one or more global sensor data sets to said NOC, wherein said NOC employs said one or more global sensor data sets in determining said run times.

8. The apparatus as recited in claim 7, wherein said NOC generates said resource utilization levels for the facility by employing said resource utilization components to process the consumption of the energy resource.

9. The apparatus as recited in claim 7, wherein said prescribed time increment comprises one hour.

10. The apparatus as recited in claim 7, wherein said prescribed time increment comprises five minutes.

11. The apparatus as recited in claim 7, where said first plurality of days comprises 365 days.

12. The apparatus as recited in claim 7, wherein said NOC progressively revises said resource utilization components by additionally processing the consumption of the energy resource.

13. A method for controlling consumption of an energy resource by a facility, comprising:

via a network operations center (NOC) external to the facility, generating a plurality of run time schedules, wherein the plurality of run time schedules coordinates run times for each of a plurality of devices to control the consumption of the energy resource while maintaining corresponding local environments and a desired level of performance, and adjusting the plurality of run time schedules based upon resource utilization components and resource utilization levels generated by the NOC, wherein the resource utilization components and the resource utilization levels are exclusively generated based on the consumption of the energy resource and outside temperature, and where in the NOC generates the resource utilization components for the facility by processing a first data set comprising energy consumption and outside temperature data for the facility, the energy consumption and outside temperature data taken at a prescribed time increment over a first plurality of days, and generates a normalized first data set by employing the resource utilization components to remove effects of resource utilization of the facility from the data set, the resource utilization components comprising;

a lower bound of energy consumption as a function of outside temperature;

a normalized resource utilization profile component as a function of said prescribed time increment;

a marginal energy consumption component as a function of outside temperature; and

a daily resource utilization level component for each of said first plurality of days;

controlling the each of the plurality of devices via corresponding control nodes, wherein the each of the plurality of devices consumes a portion of the energy resource when turned on, and wherein the each of the plurality of devices is capable of performing a corresponding function to maintain said desired level of performance; and

coupling the corresponding control nodes together via an energy management network that is operatively coupled to the NOC, and employing the energy management network to transmit sensor data and device status to the NOC for generation of the plurality of run time schedules.

14. The method as recited in claim 13, wherein the NOC generates the resource utilization levels for the facility by employing the resource utilization components to process the consumption of the energy resource.

15. The method as recited in claim 13, wherein the prescribed time increment comprises one hour.

16. The method as recited in claim 13, wherein the prescribed time increment comprises five minutes.

17. The method as recited in claim 13, where the first plurality of days comprises 365 days.

18. The method as recited in claim 13, wherein the resource utilization components are progressively revised by additionally the consumption of the energy resource.