AUTOMATED DEMAND RESPONSE GATEWAY

• US 20140067150A1
• Filed: 08/31/2012
• Published: 03/06/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens Industry Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens Industry Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Songkakul, Pornsak, Soza, Ricardo, Patterson, John, Pawlowski, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 9,124,132 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/297
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 21/133 by using digital technique
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 22/00 Arrangements for measuring time integral of electric power or current, e.g. electricity meters
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06312 Adjustment or analysis of established resource schedule, e.g. resource or task levelling, or dynamic rescheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/12 The local stationary network supplying a household or a building
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/60 Limiting power consumption in the network or in one section of the network, e.g. load shedding or peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/222 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving

Abstract

A system and method for reducing an electrical load in a facility or building with an automated demand response server having a hierarchical grouping of demand stages and demand groups with associated timers that control the shedding of load in order to achieve the appropriate level of load reduction and ramping up devices in a controlled manner upon the expiration of a demand response event.

Claims

1. A method for an automated demand response (ADR) gateway that reduces an electrical load in a facility having a building automation system, the method comprising:

receiving a demand response message associated with a demand response event via a computer connected to a network, the demand response message identifying at least a duration of a demand response event and a target power level for the demand response event;

determining at least one demand group to activate at the start of the demand response event, where more than one demand group exist;

activating the at least one demand group for a maximum timer period to achieve a first power saving; and

activating a second demand group upon the expiration of a delay time when the at least one demand group fails to meet the target power level for the demand response event.

2. The method of claim 1, further includes starting a duty cycle timer at the start of a duty cycle period associated with the activation of the first demand group, and

resetting the duty cycle timer upon expiration and reactivating the first demand group if it has been deactivated prior to the duty cycle timer expiring.

3. The method of claim 1, further includes deactivating the first demand group upon the expiration of the maximum timer period.

4. The method of claim 1 where at least the first demand group and the second demand group are associated with a first demand stage that has a first power shedding capability that is different from a second shedding capability of a second demand stage.

5. The method of claim 4 where the second demand stage is associated with at least one additional demand group that is not present in the first demand group.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the target power level for the demand response is further lowered by a demand hysteresis value.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising setting the delay timer with a user interface.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising setting a soft landing timer that defines a soft landing period during which the first demand groups and the second demand group are deactivated if active.

9. An automated demand response (ADR) gateway that reduces an electrical load in a facility having a building automation system, comprising:

a client in a computer with a processor connected to a network in receipt of a demand response message that is associated with a demand response event, the demand response message identifying at least a duration of a demand response event and a target power level for the demand response event;

a memory with at least one demand group that is activated by the processor at the start of the demand response event, where more than one demand group exist in the memory;

a first power reduction achieved by the execution of the at least one demand group, where the execution occurs until the expiration of a maximum time timer; and

a second demand group in the memory that is activated by the processor upon the expiration of a delay time timer when the at least one demand group fails to meet the target power level for the demand response event.

10. The system of claim 9, further includes a duty cycle timer that is started at the start of a duty cycle period that is associated with the activation of the first demand group, where the duty cycle timer is restarted upon expiration and the first demand group is reactivated if it has been deactivated prior to the duty cycle timer expiration.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the first demand group is deactivated upon expiration of the maximum time period.

12. The method of claim 9 where a first demand stage that has a first power shedding capability is associated with the at least the first demand group and the second demand group in memory.

13. The method of claim 12 where a second power shedding capability is associated with the second demand stage having at least one additional demand group that was not in the first demand stage.

14. The method of claim 9, where a demand hysteresis value is included with the target power level for the demand response.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising a user interface that enables the setting of the delay timer.

16. The method of claim 9, further comprising a user interface that enables the setting of a soft landing timer that defines the soft landing period during which any of the first demand group and send demand group that is active is deactivated.

17. A tangible computer readable media containing instructions, when executed by a processor result in a method for an automated demand response (ADR) gateway that reduces an electrical load in a facility having a building automation system, comprising instructions for:

receiving a demand response message associated with a demand response event via a computer connected to a network, the demand response message identifying at least a duration of a demand response event and a target power level for the demand response event;

determining at least one demand group to activate at the start of the demand response event, where more than one demand group exists;

activating the at least one demand group for a maximum time period to achieve a first power reduction; and

activating a second demand group upon the expiration of a delay time when the at least one demand group fails to meet the target power level for the demand response event.

18. The tangible computer readable media of claim 17 further includes instructions for starting a duty cycle timer at the start of a duty cycle period associated with the activation of the first demand group, and

resetting the duty cycle timer upon expiration and reactivating the first demand group if it has been deactivated prior to the duty cycle timer expiring.

19. The tangible computer readable media of claim 17 further includes instructions for deactivating the first demand group upon the expiration of the maximum timer period.

20. The tangible computer readable media of claim 17 where at least the first demand group and the second demand group are associated with a first demand stage that has a first power shedding capability.

21. The tangible computer readable media of claim 20 further includes instructions for the second demand stage associated with at least one additional demand group that is not present in the first demand stage having a second power shedding capability that is greater than the first demand stage.

22. The tangible computer readable media of claim 17, where the instructions for the power level for the demand response is further lowered by a demand hysteresis value.

23. The tangible computer readable media of claim 17 further includes instructions for setting a soft landing timer that defines a soft landing period during which the first demand groups and the second demand group are deactivated if active