APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR SMART ENERGY MANAGEMENT BY CONTROLLING POWER CONSUMPTION

• US 20110153107A1
• Filed: 09/08/2010
• Published: 06/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Inventors: Lee, Ki-Sung, Jung, Woo-Sug, Doh, Yoon-Mee, KIM, Kwang-Soo, Kim, Hyun-Hak, Park, No-Seong, Hong, Seung-Ki, Heo, Tae-Wook, Jun, Jong-Arm
• Application Number:
  US12/877,288
• Publication Number:
  US 20110153107A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/295
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00002 characterised by monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00004 characterised by the power network being locally controlled
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00026 involving a local wireless network, e.g. Wi-Fi, ZigBee or Bluetooth
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/14 The load or loads being home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2825 Reporting to a device located outside the home and the home network access arrangements H04L12/2856; for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025; telephonic communication systems adapted for combination with telemetering systems H04M11/002
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 40/70 Smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the energy generation sector
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/50 Systems or methods supporting the power network operation or management, involving a certain degree of interaction with the load-side end user applications
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/20 End-user application control systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/222 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/242 Home appliances

Abstract

Disclosed are an apparatus and a method for smart energy management by controlling power consumption. Power consumption information is collected from one or more electrical device groups with a smart meter and electrical devices connected through gateways. When the method estimates that the power consumption will be larger than a threshold value, a control command is outputted to a load controller connected through the gateway and power consumption of electrical devices that belong to the electrical device using group is remotely controlled. According to an embodiment of the present invention, an energy company that produces and supplies energy can supply energy depending on a consumer'"'"'s demand by using current facilities because the present invention can collect remotely energy consumption, analyze energy consumption patterns, and control automatically the energy consumption of electrical devices installed in a customer'"'"'s area. The consumer who consumes energy can save the energy consumption and the charge of the energy consumption.

Claims

1. A smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption, comprising:

a data collection module that is connected with one or more electrical device groups through gateways to collect power consumption information of the electrical device using groups;

a consumption pattern analysis module that analyzes the power consumption information to acquire a power consumption pattern of the electrical device using groups;

a consumption estimation module that estimates power consumption for a predetermined period on the basis of the power consumption pattern of the electrical device using groups; and

a control command generation module that outputs a control command to limit power consumption of the electrical device using groups.

2. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 1, wherein the control command generation module outputs the control command for a electrical device using group of which the estimated power consumption is larger than a threshold value.

3. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 1, further comprising:

a communication control module controlling transmission and reception of a signal to and from the electrical device using group through the gateway.

4. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 1, wherein the gateway includes:

an energy service portal (ESP) module accessing network of the electrical device using groups to transmit and receive data in a ZigBee communication scheme;

a communication control module connected with the data collection module in the wired scheme to transit and receive data; and

a conversion module converting a communication scheme of signals transmitted and received between the network of the electrical device using groups and the data collection module.

5. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 1, wherein the electrical device using group includes a smart meter that is connected with electrical devices that belong to the electrical device using group and measures the power consumption of the electrical device using group.

6. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 1, wherein the electrical device using group further includes a load controller that is connected with the electrical devices which belongs to the electrical device using group and controls power consumption of the electrical devices in accordance with the control command from the control command generation module.

7. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 6, wherein the load controller includes at least one of a smart energy display (SED), an infrared load control device (IR_LCD), and a load control device (LCD).

8. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 7, wherein the SED includes:

an information display module displaying at least one of the power consumption information and the control command from the gateway; and

a ZigBee communication module communicating with the gateway.

9. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 7, wherein the LCD includes:

the ZigBee communication module communicating with the gateway and the electrical device;

a device identification module identifying a connected electrical device;

a measurement module measuring a power consumption of the connected electrical devices; and

an operation control module controlling power consumption of the electrical devices in accordance with the control command from the gateway.

10. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 7, wherein the IR_LCD includes:

the ZigBee communication module communicating with the gateway;

an infrared communication module communicating with the connected electrical devices;

the device identification module identifying the electrical devices; and

the operation control module controlling the power consumption of the electrical devices in accordance with the control command from the gateway.

11. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 1, further comprising:

a group management module managing group information on the electrical device using group.

12. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 1, further comprising:

a device management module managing device information of the electrical devices that belongs to the electrical device using group.

13. The smart energy management apparatus controlling power consumption according to claim 12, wherein the device management module transmits information on an electrical device added to the electrical device using group to an authentication server and manages the added electrical device on the basis of a legality examination result from the authentication server.

14. A smart energy management method controlling power consumption, comprising:

collecting power consumption information of one or more electrical device using groups through a gateways;

acquiring a power consumption pattern of the electrical device using groups by analyzing the power consumption information;

estimating power consumption for a predetermined period on the basis of the power consumption pattern of the electrical device using groups; and

outputting a control command to limit power consumption of the electrical device using groups.

15. The smart energy management method controlling power consumption according to claim 14, wherein the outputting outputs the control command for the electrical device using group of which the estimated power consumption is larger than a threshold value.

16. The smart energy management method controlling power consumption according to claim 14, wherein the collecting receives the power consumption information from the smart meter, that is connected with electrical devices that belong to the electrical device using group and measures the power consumption of the electrical device using group, and an LCD that measures the power consumption of connected electrical device.

17. The smart energy management method controlling power consumption according to claim 14, further comprising:

transmitting the control command to an electrical device using group of which the estimated power consumption is larger than a threshold value through the gateway.

18. The smart energy management method controlling power consumption according to claim 17, wherein the transmitting transmits the control command to a load controller that is connected with the electrical devices which belongs to the electrical device using group and controls the power consumption of the electrical devices.

19. The smart energy management method controlling power consumption according to claim 14, wherein the gateway transmits and receives a signal to and from the electrical device using group in a ZigBee communication scheme.

20. The smart energy management method controlling power consumption according to claim 14, further comprising:

collecting and managing device information of the electrical devices that belongs to the electrical device using group.