Power monitoring and analysis system for identifying and tracking individual electrical devices

• US 8,311,754 B2
• Filed: 12/10/2009
• Issued: 11/13/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Verlitics LLC
• Original Assignee: Home Comfort Zones Incorporated
• Inventors: Alles, Harold Gene
• Primary Examiner(s): Nghiem, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Vargas, Manuel Rivera
• Application Number:
  US12/635,010
• Publication Number:
  US 20110144932A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,069 Days
• Field of Search: 702/61, 702/57
• US Class Current: 702/61
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 2204/24 Identification of individual loads, e.g. by analysing current/voltage waveforms
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 4/002 Remote reading of utility meters
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00001 characterised by the display of information or by user interaction, e.g. supervisory control and data acquisition systems [SCADA] or graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00002 characterised by monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00016 using a wired telecommunication network or a data transmission bus
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00028 involving the use of Internet protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/70 Load identification
• 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 90/20 Smart grids as enabling technology in buildings sector smart grids supporting the management or operation of end-user stationary applications in general, or like technologies with no associated climate change mitigation effect Y04S20/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/00 Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/30 State monitoring, e.g. fault, temperature monitoring, insulator monitoring, corona discharge
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/40 Display of information, e.g. of data or controls
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/242 Home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/30 Smart metering, e.g. specially adapted for remote reading
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/124 using wired telecommunication networks or data transmission busses

Abstract

Methods and mechanisms for processing a plurality of electrical parameters of a common alternating current service that supplies power for multiple electrical devices. In an embodiment, an instance data structure is identified based on a data set which is generated from samples of an alternating current service, the instance data structure corresponding to an on-off cycle of an electrical device. Based on the instance data structure, a contribution by the on-off cycle is subtracted from the data set to determine a residual data set. In another embodiment, the residual data set is processed to determine whether the residual data set includes a contribution by an on-off cycle of another electrical device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

identifying a data set generated based on sampling at legs of an alternating current service, the legs providing a common power supply a plurality of electrical devices;

with a processor and a memory, identifying, based on said data set, a first instance data structure corresponding to a first on-off cycle of a first electrical device of the plurality of electrical devices, the first instance data structure including;

first data characterizing a start section of the first on-off cycle;

second data characterizing a middle section of the first on-off cycle; and

third data characterizing an end section of the first on-off cycle;

based on the identifying the first instance data structure, subtracting from the data set a contribution by the first on-off cycle, wherein the subtracting the contribution results in a residual data set; and

determining whether the residual data set includes a contribution by any on-off cycle of another electrical device of the plurality of electrical devices, wherein the first on-off cycle and the any on-off cycle each start with a respective step change event of a corresponding electrical device and ends with a respective step change event of the corresponding electrical device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein identifying the first instance structure includes identifying an indication in the data set of a step change event of the first electrical device.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising iteratively performing operations each to subtract a contribution by a respective on-off cycle of the plurality of electrical devices.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising decomposing an instance data structure into two instance data structures.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein identifying the first instance data structure is based on a match error between the first instance data structure and a device structure, said match error indicating an association of said first instance data structure with said device structure.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising consolidating the first instance data structure with the device structure based on a measurement confidence parameter of the first instance structure.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the data set includes a plurality of reports generated approximately once per alternating current cycle of the alternating current service, the plurality of reports each including multiple respective electrical parameters, wherein each of the respective multiple respective electrical parameters is based on a respective plurality of sample values.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying a composite structure characterizing behavior of multiple electrical devices of the plurality of electrical devices.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform a method comprising:

identifying a data set generated based on sampling at legs of an alternating current service, the legs providing a common power supply for a plurality of electrical devices;

identifying, based on said data set, a first instance data structure corresponding to a first on-off cycle of a first electrical device of the plurality of electrical devices, the first instance data structure including;

first data characterizing a start section of the first on-off cycle;

second data characterizing a middle section of the first on-off cycle; and

third data characterizing an end section of the first on-off cycle;

based on the identifying the first instance data structure, subtracting from the data set a contribution by the first on-off cycle, wherein the subtracting the contribution results in a residual data set; and

determining whether the residual data set includes a contribution by any on-off cycle of another electrical device of the plurality of electrical devices, wherein the first on-off cycle and the any on-off cycle each start with a respective step change event of a corresponding electrical device and ends with a respective step change event of the corresponding electrical device.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 9 wherein identifying the first instance structure includes identifying an indication in the data set of a step change event of the first electrical device.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, the method further comprising iteratively performing operations each to subtract a contribution by a respective on-off cycle of the plurality of electrical devices.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, the method further comprising decomposing an instance data structure into two instance data structures.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 9 wherein identifying the first instance data structure is based on a match error between the first instance data structure and a device structure, said match error indicating an association of said first instance data structure with said device structure.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, the method further comprising consolidating the first instance data structure with the device structure based on a measurement confidence parameter of the first instance structure.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the data set includes a plurality of reports generated approximately once per alternating current cycle of the alternating current service, the plurality of reports each including multiple respective electrical parameters, wherein each of the respective multiple respective electrical parameters is based on a respective plurality of sample values.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, the method further comprising identifying a composite structure characterizing behavior of multiple electrical devices of the plurality of electrical devices.