Determining information about devices in a building using different sets of features

• US 9,057,746 B1
• Filed: 11/26/2014
• Issued: 06/16/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sense Labs, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Sense Labs, Inc.
• Inventors: Phillips, Michael S., Marcus, Jeffrey N., Houlette, Ryan T., Micali, Christopher M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lau, Tung S
• Application Number:
  US14/554,962
• Time in Patent Office: 202 Days
• Field of Search: 702/62
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 21/133 by using digital technique
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply

Abstract

Electrical usage of devices in a building may be monitored to provide information about the operation of the devices to a user. The information communicated to a user may include historical information and real-time information. In determining the real-time information, it may be desired to provide the information quickly and use a smaller set of features that are available more quickly. In determining the historical information, it may be desired to provide more accurate information and use a larger set of features. A device may compute real-time information and historical information using different sets of features.

Claims

1. A method for determining state changes of devices in a building, the method performed by a monitoring device in the building, the method comprising:

receiving an electrical signal, wherein the electrical signal corresponds to electrical usage of a plurality of devices, and wherein the electrical signal comprises at least one of voltage signal, a current signal, a power signal, or a reactive power signal;

identifying an electrical event in the electrical signal, wherein the electrical event corresponds to a first time;

computing a first feature using a first portion of the electrical signal, wherein the first portion comprises the first time;

computing a second feature using a second portion of the electrical signal, wherein the second portion comprises the first time and wherein an end time of the second portion is later than an end time of the first portion;

performing first processing comprising;

computing a first score using the first feature and a model, wherein the model corresponds to one or more devices and a state change of the one or more devices and wherein computing the first score does not use the second feature, and

selecting, using the first score, a first device and a first state change; and

performing second processing comprising;

computing a second score using the first feature, the second feature, and the model, and

selecting, using the second score, (i) the first device and the first state change, or (ii) a second device and a second state change.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the electrical event in the electrical signal comprises computing a first value for a first window of the electrical signal prior to the first time, computing a second value for a second window of the electrical signal after the first time, and comparing the first value to the second value.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first feature is computed before the end time of the second portion of the electrical signal.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the first processing further comprises transmitting, to a first server computer, first information about the first device and the first state change; and

the second processing further comprises transmitting, to a second server computer, second information about (i) the first device and the first state change or (ii) the second device and the second state change.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first processing further comprises computing the first score using a transition model that corresponds to a state change of an element of the first device and a directed graph describing a plurality of state changes of the first device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first processing further comprises selecting the first device and the first state change by generating a directed graph with a plurality of nodes, wherein a first node of the graph corresponds to the first device and the first state change.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the first processing further comprises transmitting the first information to the first server without significant delay from the first time.

8. A monitoring device for determining state changes of devices in a building, the device comprising:

at least one processor;

at least one memory storing processor-executable instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

receive an electrical signal, wherein the electrical signal corresponds to electrical usage of a plurality of devices;

identify an electrical event in the electrical signal, wherein the electrical event corresponds to a first time;

compute a first feature using a first portion of the electrical signal, wherein the first portion comprises the first time;

compute a second feature using a second portion of the electrical signal, wherein the second portion comprises the first time and wherein an end time of the second portion is later than an end time of the first portion;

perform first processing comprising;

computing a first score using the first feature, wherein computing the first score does not use the second feature, and

selecting, using the first score, a first device and a first state change; and

perform second processing comprising;

computing a second score using the first feature and the second feature, and

selecting, using the second score, (i) the first device and the first state change, or (ii) a second device and a second state change.

9. The monitoring device of claim 8, wherein the at least one processor identifies the electrical event in the electrical signal by computing a first value for a first window of the electrical signal prior to the first time, computing a second value for a second window of the electrical signal after the first time, and comparing the first value to the second value.

10. The monitoring device of claim 8, wherein the first feature is computed before the end time of the second portion of the electrical signal.

11. The monitoring device of claim 8, wherein:

the first processing further comprises transmitting, to a first server computer, first information about the first device and the first state change; and

the second processing further comprises transmitting, to a second server computer, second information about (i) the first device and the first state change or (ii) the second device and the second state change.

12. The monitoring device of claim 8, wherein the first processing further comprises computing the first score using a transition model that corresponds to a state change of an element of the first device and a directed graph describing a plurality of state changes of the first device.

13. The monitoring device of claim 8, wherein the first processing further comprises selecting the first device and the first state change by generating a directed graph with a plurality of nodes, wherein a first node of the graph corresponds to the first device and the first state change.

14. The monitoring device of claim 11, wherein the first processing further comprises transmitting the first information to the first server without significant delay from the first time.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, cause at least one processor to perform actions comprising:

receiving an electrical signal, wherein the electrical signal corresponds to electrical usage of a plurality of devices;

identifying an electrical event in the electrical signal, wherein the electrical event corresponds to a first time;

computing a first feature using a first portion of the electrical signal, wherein the first portion comprises the first time;

computing a second feature using a second portion of the electrical signal, wherein the second portion comprises the first time and wherein an end time of the second portion is later than an end time of the first portion;

performing first processing comprising;

computing a first score using the first feature, wherein computing the first score does not use the second feature, and

selecting, using the first score, a first device and a first state change; and

performing second processing comprising;

computing a second score using the first feature and the second feature, and

selecting, using the second score, (i) the first device and the first state change, or (ii) a second device and a second state change.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein identifying the electrical event in the electrical signal comprises computing a first value for a first window of the electrical signal prior to the first time, computing a second value for a second window of the electrical signal after the first time, and comparing the first value to the second value.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the first feature is computed before the end time of the second portion of the electrical signal.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein:

the first processing further comprises transmitting, to a first server computer, first information about the first device and the first state change; and

the second processing further comprises transmitting, to a second server computer, second information about (i) the first device and the first state change or (ii) the second device and the second state change.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the first processing further comprises computing the first score using a transition model that corresponds to a state change of an element of the first device and a directed graph describing a plurality of state changes of the first device.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the first processing further comprises transmitting the first information to the first server without significant delay from the first time.

21. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the first information is used to provide real-time information about the first device to a user and the second information is used to provide historical information about the first device or the second device to the user.