System and method for active power load management
First Claim
1. A system for managing consumption of power supplied by an electric utility to a plurality of power consuming devices, the system comprising:
- one or more client devices, each client device operating at least partially responsive to received power control messages and including;
at least one controllable device interface facilitating communication of power control instructions to at least one controllable device, each controllable device selectively enabling and disabling a flow of electric power to a power consuming device of the plurality of power consuming devices responsive to the power control instructions; and
a device control manager operably coupled to the at least one controlled device interface, the device control manager generating the power control instructions responsive to the received power control messages; and
a server communicatively coupled to the electric utility and the one or more client devices, the server including;
a command processor operable to receive power control commands from the electric utility and issue power control event messages responsive thereto, at least one of the power control commands requiring a reduction in an amount of electric power consumed by the plurality of power consuming devices;
an event manager operable to receive the power control event messages, maintain at least one power management status relating to each client device and issue power control event instructions responsive to the power control event messages;
a database for storing, on a per client device basis, information relating to power consumed by the plurality of power consuming devices during operation of the plurality of power consuming devices; and
a client device manager operably coupled to the event manager and the database, the client device manager selecting from the database, based on the information stored in the database, at least one client device to which to issue a power control message indicating at least one of an amount of electric power to be reduced and identification of at least one controllable device to be instructed to disable a flow of electric power to one or more associated power consuming devices responsive to receipt of a power control event instruction requiring a reduction in a specified amount of electric power.
9 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A system for managing consumption of power supplied by an electric utility to power consuming devices includes at least one client device and a server. Each client device operates at least partially responsive to control messages received from the server and controls operation of one or more controllable devices. Each controllable device selectively enables and disables a flow of power to one or more of the consuming devices. The server stores information, on a per client device basis, relating to power consumed by the consuming devices. When a power reduction is requested by the utility, the server selects, based on client device information stored in the database, at least one client device to which to issue a power reduction message that indicates at least one of an amount of power to be reduced and an identification of a controllable device to be instructed to disable a flow of power.
391 Citations
25 Claims
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1. A system for managing consumption of power supplied by an electric utility to a plurality of power consuming devices, the system comprising:
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one or more client devices, each client device operating at least partially responsive to received power control messages and including; at least one controllable device interface facilitating communication of power control instructions to at least one controllable device, each controllable device selectively enabling and disabling a flow of electric power to a power consuming device of the plurality of power consuming devices responsive to the power control instructions; and a device control manager operably coupled to the at least one controlled device interface, the device control manager generating the power control instructions responsive to the received power control messages; and a server communicatively coupled to the electric utility and the one or more client devices, the server including; a command processor operable to receive power control commands from the electric utility and issue power control event messages responsive thereto, at least one of the power control commands requiring a reduction in an amount of electric power consumed by the plurality of power consuming devices; an event manager operable to receive the power control event messages, maintain at least one power management status relating to each client device and issue power control event instructions responsive to the power control event messages; a database for storing, on a per client device basis, information relating to power consumed by the plurality of power consuming devices during operation of the plurality of power consuming devices; and a client device manager operably coupled to the event manager and the database, the client device manager selecting from the database, based on the information stored in the database, at least one client device to which to issue a power control message indicating at least one of an amount of electric power to be reduced and identification of at least one controllable device to be instructed to disable a flow of electric power to one or more associated power consuming devices responsive to receipt of a power control event instruction requiring a reduction in a specified amount of electric power. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A server for use in a system that manages consumption of power supplied by at least one electric utility to a plurality of power consuming devices, wherein power flow to the plurality of power consuming devices is enabled and disabled by a plurality of controllable devices and wherein the plurality of controllable devices operated under the control of one or more client devices, the server comprising:
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a command processor operable to receive power control commands from the at least one electric utility and issue power control event messages responsive thereto, at least one of the power control commands requiring a reduction in an amount of electric power consumed by the plurality of power consuming devices; an event manager operable to receive the power control event messages, maintain at least one power management status relating to each client device and issue power control event instructions responsive to the power control event messages; a database for storing, on at least one of a per client device basis and a per electric utility basis, information relating to power consumed by the plurality of power consuming devices during operation of the plurality of power consuming devices; and a client device manager operably coupled to the event manager and the database, the client device manager selecting from the database, based on the information stored in the database, at least one client device to which to issue a power control message indicating at least one of an amount of electric power to be reduced and identification of at least one controllable device to be instructed to disable a flow of electric power to one or more associated power consuming devices responsive to receipt of a power control event instruction requiring a reduction in a specified amount of electric power. - View Dependent Claims (12)
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13. A client device for use in a system that manages consumption of power supplied by an electric utility to a plurality of power consuming devices, wherein power flow to at least some of the plurality of power consuming devices is enabled and disabled by a plurality of controllable devices, wherein at least one controllable device operates under the control of the client device, and wherein the client device receives power control messages from a remote server, the client device comprising:
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at least one controllable device interface facilitating communication of power control instructions to the at least one controllable device, the power control instructions causing the at least one controllable device to selectively enable and disable a flow of electric power to a power consuming device of the plurality of power consuming devices; and a device control manager operably coupled to the at least one controllable device interface, the device control manager generating the power control instructions responsive to the received power control messages.
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14. A method for a server to manage a flow of power supplied by at least one electric utility to a plurality of power consuming devices, the method comprising:
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receiving a power control command from an electric utility, the power control command requiring a reduction in an amount of electric power consumed by at least some of the power consuming devices; responsive to the power control command, determining a group of client devices to which to issue a power control message, each client device of the group controlling at least one controllable device, each controllable device selectively enabling and disabling a flow of electric power to at least one power consuming device of the plurality of power consuming devices, the power control message indicating at least one of an amount of electric power to be reduced and an identification of one or more controllable devices to be instructed to disable a flow of electric power to one or more associated power consuming devices; and issuing the power control message to the at least one client device. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A method for a client device to manage a flow of power supplied by an electric utility to a plurality of power consuming devices, the client device being responsive to power control messages issued by a load management server and controlling one or more controllable devices that selectively enable and disable a flow of electric power to at least some of the plurality of power consuming devices, the method comprising:
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receiving a first power control message from the load management server, the first power control message indicating at least one of an amount of electric power to be reduced and an identification of at least one controllable device to be instructed to disable a flow of electric power to one or more associated power consuming devices; and responsive to the first power control message, issuing a power management command to a controllable device causing the controllable device to disable a flow of electric power to at least one associated power consuming device. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25)
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Specification