System and method for controlling power demand over an integrated wireless network

• US 6,671,586 B2
• Filed: 08/15/2001
• Issued: 12/30/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Landis+Gyr Inc. (Landis+Gyr Group AG)
• Original Assignee: Statsignal Systems Incorporated (Statsignal)
• Inventors: Davis, James, Petite, Thomas D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Picard, Leo
• Assistant Examiner(s): KOSOWSKI, ALEXANDER J
• Application Number:
  US09/929,926
• Publication Number:
  US 20030036822A1
• Time in Patent Office: 867 Days
• Field of Search: 700/295, 700/286
• US Class Current: 700/295
• 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 13/00017 using optical fiber
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00022 using wireless data transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00034 the elements or equipment being or involving an electric power substation
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/12 The local stationary network supplying a household or a building
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/38 Arrangements for parallely feeding a single network by two or more generators, converters or transformers
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 30/60 Planning or developing urban green infrastructure
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• 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: Y04S 20/222 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/124 using wired telecommunication networks or data transmission busses
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/126 using wireless data transmission

Abstract

An intelligent network demand control system provides a system and method for controlling demand in an energy delivery system. The intelligent network demand control system employs a transceiver network with a plurality transceivers coupled to meters and appliances residing at a plurality of customer premises. Control room operators instruct a customer premises (CP) energy management controller to implement a reduction in system demand. A demand reduction control signal is relayed out to a predefined group of transceivers to shut off their respective controlled appliances. The predefined transceivers, identified by their identification codes, are specified in the demand reduction control signal. When the transceivers shut off the appliances in response to a broadcasted demand reduction control signal, the actual demand reduction is metered and relayed back to the CP energy management controller. The total demand reduction is aggregated into a single number and then communicated to the operators.

Claims

1. A system which controls appliances comprising:

at least one appliance controller unit, the appliance controller unit coupled to at least one appliance;

an energy management controller configured to communicate a demand reduction control signal;

a site controller configured to receive the demand reduction control signal and configured to communicate a first radio frequency (RF) signal corresponding to the demand reduction signal;

a first transceiver residing in the appliance controller unit and configured to receive the first radio control signal so that the appliance coupled to the appliance controller unit is shut off upon receipt of the first RF signal;

a second transceiver coupled to a meter, the meter configured to detect demand, and configured to communicate a second RF signal corresponding to the metered demand to the site controller,

wherein the second RF signal is received by the site controller, and wherein information corresponding to the metered demand is communicated by the site controller to the energy management controller.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of appliance controller units, each one of the plurality of appliance controller units coupled to at least one of a plurality of appliances; and

a plurality of first transceivers residing in one of the plurality of appliance controller units and configured to receive the first RF signal corresponding to the demand reduction control signal generated by the energy management controller so that each of the appliances coupled to the appliance controller units are shut off upon receipt of the first RF signal.

3. The system of claim 2, further comprising:

an appliance controller unit memory residing in each one of the plurality of appliance controller units, the appliance controller unit memory configured to have a unique identification code identifying the appliance controller unit; and

an energy management controller memory residing in the energy management controller, the energy management controller memory having a database identifying each one of the plurality of appliance controller units and the associated unique identification code such that the demand reduction control signal generated by the energy management controller is selectively communicated to selected ones of the plurality of appliance controller units.

4. The system of claim 3, further comprising logic residing in the energy management controller memory configured to select at least one unique appliance controller unit identification code such that when the demand reduction control signal is generated the selected ones of the plurality of appliance controller units are identified by the appliance controller unit identification code.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

an appliance controller unit memory residing in each one of the plurality of appliance controller units, the appliance controller unit memory having logic configured to detect the operating status of a plurality of components residing in the appliance controller unit and configured to generate a status report that is transmitted by the first transceiver as a third RF signal to the site controller such that the energy management controller generates a component failure report when the status report indicates failure of at least one component residing in the appliance controller unit.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the metered demand information communicated as the second RF signal to the energy management controller is used to determine the difference between the metered demand information before generation of the demand reduction control signal and the metered demand information after the demand reduction control signal causes the appliance to be shut off.

7. The system of claim 6, further comprising a means for communicating information to components residing in an energy delivery system control center, the communicating means coupled to the energy management controller, such that operators understand the determined difference between the metered demand information before generation of the demand reduction control signal and the metered demand information after the demand reduction control signal causes the appliance to be shut off.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a means for receiving an instruction from components residing in an energy delivery system control center, the instruction receiving means coupled to the energy management controller such that the demand reduction control signal is communicated when the instruction is received.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising;

an interface coupled to the energy management controller and configured to interface with a communication network such that the generated demand reduction control signal is communicated to the site controller.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the communication network is a public switched telephone network.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the communication network is a utility legacy communication system.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the communication network is a digital communication system.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the communication network is a radio frequency (RF) communication system.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the communication network is an Internet network.

15. The system of claim 1, further comprising an

appliance controller unit memory residing in the appliance controller unit, the appliance controller unit memory configured to have logic that compares a unique identification code identifying the appliance controller unit with an identification code residing in the first RF signal corresponding to the demand reduction control signal, such that when the appliance controller unit unique identification code corresponds to the demand reduction control signal identification code, the appliance controller unit shuts off the appliance coupled to the appliance controller unit.

16. A method for controlling demand in an energy delivery system, the method comprising the steps of:

generating a demand reduction control signal by an energy management controller;

transmitting a first radio frequency (RF) signal corresponding to the demand reduction control signal generated by the energy management controller to a plurality of first transceivers, one first transceiver residing in one of a plurality of appliance control units, wherein each one of the plurality of appliance control units is coupled to at least one appliance;

shutting off the appliance coupled to the appliance control unit in response to receiving the first RF signal;

metering a first change in demand at a plurality of meters, each one of the meters coupled to one of the appliances;

transmitting plurality of second RF signals each corresponding to one of the plurality of first changes of demand to the energy management controller from a plurality of second transceivers, each one of the second transceivers coupled to one of the plurality of meters; and

determining a first aggregate change in demand, the first aggregate change in demand equaling a sum of the plurality of first changes in demand.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

assigning a unique identification code to each one of the plurality of appliance control units;

selecting a plurality of identification codes such that selected ones of the plurality of appliance control units are selected; and

receiving the first RF signal corresponding to the generated demand reduction control signal by the selected ones of the plurality of appliance control units perform the step of shutting off each one of the appliances coupled to the selected ones of the plurality of appliance control units.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising the step of communicating the demand reduction control signal through a communication network from the energy management controller to a site controller such that the site controller transmits the first RF signal to the at least one of a the plurality of appliance control units.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the communication network is a public switched telephone network.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the communication network is a utility legacy communication system.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the communication network is a digital communication system.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein the communication network is a radio frequency (RF) communication system.

23. The method of claim 18, wherein the communication network is an Internet network.

24. The method of claim 16, further comprising the step of receiving by the energy management controller a demand reduction instruction from operators of the energy delivery system such that the step of generating the demand reduction control signal is made in response to the received demand reduction instruction.

25. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

determining a difference between the determined first aggregate change in demand with a demand reduction instruction specifying a desired amount of demand reduction;

generating a second demand reduction control signal;

transmitting a third RF signal corresponding to the second demand reduction control signal to a plurality of third transceivers, wherein each one of the third transceivers resides in one of a second plurality of appliance control units, and wherein each one of the second plurality of appliance control units is coupled to at least one appliance;

shutting off at least one of the appliances coupled to the second plurality of appliance control units in response to receiving the third RF signal;

metering a second change in demand at a second plurality of meters;

transmitting a plurality of fourth RF signals each corresponding to one of the plurality of second changes of demand to the energy management controller from a plurality of fourth transceivers, each one of the fourth transceivers coupled to one of the plurality of second meters; and

determining a second aggregate change in demand, the second aggregate change in demand equaling the sum of the plurality of second changes in demand.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising the step of selecting a number of appliance control units to be members of the second plurality of appliance control units such that the second aggregate change in demand substantially equals the difference between the first aggregate change in demand and the desired amount of demand reduction.

27. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

selecting at least one of the plurality of appliance control units; and

transmitting the first radio frequency (RF) signal corresponding to the generated demand reduction control signal to the selected appliance control units such that the appliances coupled to the selected appliance control units are shut off.

28. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

generating a terminating signal; and

transmitting a third RF signal corresponding to the terminating signal from the energy management controller to the plurality of appliance control units such that the demand reduction control signal is ended.

29. The method of claim 28, further comprising the steps of:

metering a second change in demand at each one of the plurality of meters after receiving the third RF signal; and

determining a second aggregate change in demand, the second aggregate change in demand equaling a second sum of the plurality of second changes in demand.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising the steps of:

selecting a number of appliance control units to be members of a second plurality of appliance control units;

generating a second demand reduction control signal;

transmitting the second demand reduction control signal to the second plurality of appliance control units, each one of the second plurality of appliance control units coupled to at least one appliance; and

shutting off each one of the appliances coupled to the second plurality of appliance control units in response to receiving the second demand reduction control signal such that a third aggregate change in demand substantiallly equals a difference between the second aggregate change of demand and the aggregate metered demand determined before the demand reduction control signal is ended.

31. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

assigning a unique identification code to each one of the plurality of appliance control units;

selecting a plurality of identification codes to define a first demand reduction load block; and

associating the selected identification codes with the generated demand reduction control signal such that when the demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code selected perform the step of shutting off at least one of the appliances coupled to the appliance control unit.

32. The method of claim 31, further comprising the steps of:

defining a load block identification code such that the load block identification code corresponds to the selected unique identification codes; and

associating the load block identification code with the generated demand reduction control signal such that when the demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code associated with the load block identification code perform the step of shutting off each one of the appliances coupled to the appliance control unit.

33. The method of claim 32, further comprising the steps of:

defining a plurality of load block identification codes, each one of the load block identification codes corresponding to the selected unique group of identification codes, such that a plurality of demand reduction load blocks are defined;

estimating an aggregate amount of demand reduction for each of the plurality of demand reduction load blocks;

receiving a demand reduction instruction specifying an amount of a desired aggregate demand reduction; and

selecting at least one of the plurality of demand reduction load blocks such that the estimated amount of demand reduction for the selected demand reduction load blocks approximately equals the amount of the desired aggregate demand reduction, wherein the generated demand reduction control signal corresponds to the selected demand reduction load blocks.

34. The method of claim 33, further comprising the steps of:

determining a difference between the first aggregate change in demand and the amount of the desired aggregate demand reduction;

selecting at least one second demand reduction load block such that the sum of the estimated aggregate amount of demand reduction associated with the selected second demand reduction load block substantially equals the determined difference; and

generating a second demand reduction control signal such that when the second demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code associated with the second demand reduction load block perform the step of shutting off each one of the appliances coupled to the appliance control unit.

35. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

generating an acknowledgment RF signal from each one of the transceivers residing in the appliance control units that successfully shut off its respective appliance; and

communicating the acknowledgement RF signal to the energy management controller.

36. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of;

indicating failure of at least one component residing in one of the plurality of appliance control units by generating a status RF signal that is transmitted from the transceiver residing in the appliance control unit to the energy management controller; and

requesting maintenance for the failed component.

37. The method of claim 36, further comprising the step of generating a status request signal by the energy management controller, such that when the status request RF signal is received by the plurality of appliance control units, the step of indicating failure of at least one component is initiated.

38. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

generating a notification control signal by the energy management controller, the generation of the notification control signal occurring before the step of generating the demand reduction control signal by a predefined amount of time;

transmitting a RF notification control signal corresponding to the notification control signal to a selected one of the first transceivers;

receiving the RF notification control signal by the selected first transceiver; and

generating a notification communication signal by the at least one appliance control unit in which the selected first transceiver resides, such that a customer understands that the step of shutting off the appliance will occur at a future time, the future time substantially corresponding to the predefined amount of time.

93. The method of claim 29, further comprising the step of comparing the second aggregate change in demand with an aggregate metered demand determined before the terminating signal is generated.

39. A system for controlling demand in an energy delivery system, comprising:

means for generating a demand reduction control signal by an energy management controller;

means for transmitting a first radio frequency (RF) signal corresponding to the demand reduction control signal generated by the energy management controller to a plurality of first transceivers, one first transceiver residing in one of a plurality of appliance control units, wherein each one of the plurality of appliance control units is coupled to at least one appliance;

means for shutting off the appliance coupled to the appliance control unit in response to receiving the first RF signal;

means for metering a first change in demand at a plurality of meters, each one of the meters coupled to one of the appliances;

transmitting a plurality of second RF signals each corresponding to one of the plurality of first changes of demand to the energy management controller from a plurality of second transceivers, each one of the second transceivers coupled to one of the plurality of meters; and

means for determining a first aggregate change in demand, the first aggregate change in demand equaling a sum of the plurality of first changes in demand.

40. The system of claim 39, further comprising:

means for assigning a unique identification code to each one of the plurality of appliance control units;

means for selecting a plurality of identification codes such that selected ones of the plurality of appliance control units are selected; and

means for receiving the first RF signal corresponding to the generated demand reduction control signal by the selected ones of the plurality of appliance control units perform the step of shutting off each one of the appliances coupled to the selected ones of the plurality of appliance control units.

41. The system of claim 39, further comprising means for communicating the demand reduction control signal through a communication network from the energy management controller to a site controller such that the site controller transmits the first RF signal to the at least one of the plurality of appliance control units.

42. The system of claim 39, further comprising means for receiving by the energy management controller a demand reduction instruction from operators of an energy delivery system such that the step of generating the demand reduction control signal is made in response to the received demand reduction instruction.

43. The system of claim 39, further comprising:

means for receiving a demand reduction instruction, the demand reduction instruction having at least a requested amount of demand reduction;

means for determining a difference between the determined first aggregate change in demand with the requested amount of demand reduction;

means for generating a second demand reduction control signal;

means for transmitting a third RF signal corresponding to the second demand reduction control signal to a plurality of third transceivers, wherein each one of the third transceivers resides in one of second plurality of appliance control units, and wherein each one of the second plurality of appliance control units is coupled to at least one appliance;

means for shutting off at least one of the appliances coupled to the second plurality of appliance control units in response to receiving the third RF signal;

means for metering a second change in demand at a second plurality of meters;

means for transmitting a plurality of fourth RF signals corresponding to one of the plurality of second changes of demand to the energy management controller from a plurality of fourth transceivers, each one of the fourth transceivers coupled to one of the plurality of second meters; and

means for determining a second aggregate change in demand, the second aggregate change in demand equaling the sum of the plurality of second changes in demand.

44. The system of claim 43, further comprising means for selecting a number of appliance control units to be members of the second plurality of appliance control units such that the second aggregate change in demand substantially equals the difference between the first aggregate change in demand and the demand reduction instruction selecting the number of appliance control units to be members of the second plurality of appliance control units such that the second aggregate change in demand substantially equals the difference between the first aggregate change in demand and the requested amount of demand reduction.

45. The system of claim 39, further comprising:

means for selecting at least one of the plurality of appliance control units; and

means for transmitting the first radio frequency (RF) signal corresponding to the generated demand reduction control signal to the selected appliance control units such that the appliances coupled to the selected appliance control units are shut off.

46. The system of claim 39, further comprising:

means for generating a terminating signal; and

means for transmitting a third RF signal corresponding to the terminating signal from the energy management controller to the plurality of appliance control units such that the demand reduction control signal is ended.

47. The system of claim 46, further comprising:

means for metering a second change in demand at each one of the plurality of meters after the demand reduction control signal is ended;

means for determining a second aggregate change in demand, the second aggregate change in demand equaling the sum of the metered second change in demand at each one of the plurality of meters; and

means for comparing the second aggregate change of demand with an aggregate metered demand determined before the demand reduction control signal is ended.

48. The system of claim 47, further comprising:

means for selecting a number of appliance control units to be members of a second plurality of appliance control units;

means for generating a second demand reduction control signal;

means for transmitting the second demand reduction control signal to the second plurality of appliance control units, each one of the second plurality of appliance control units coupled to at least one appliance; and

means for shutting off each one of the appliances coupled to the second plurality of appliance control units in response to receiving the second demand reduction control signal such that a third aggregate change in demand substantially equals the difference between the second aggregate change of demand and the aggregate metered demand determined before the demand reduction control signal is ended.

49. The system of claim 39, further comprising:

means for assigning a unique identification code to each one of the plurality of appliance control units;

means for selecting a plurality of identification codes to define a first demand reduction load block; and

means for associating the selected identification codes with the generated demand reduction control signal such that when the demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code selected perform the step of shutting off at least one of the appliances coupled to the appliance control unit.

50. The system of claim 49, further comprising:

means for defining a load block identification code such that the load block identification code corresponds to the selected unique identification codes; and

means for associating the load block identification code with the generated demand reduction control signal such that when the demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code associated with the load block identification code perform the step of shutting off each one of the appliances coupled to the appliance control unit.

51. The system of claim 50, further comprising:

means for defining a plurality of load block identification codes, each one of the load block identification codes corresponding to the selected unique group of identification codes, such that a plurality of demand reduction load blocks are defined;

means for estimating an aggregate amount of demand reduction for each of the plurality of demand reduction load blocks;

means for receiving a demand reduction instruction specifying an amount of a desired aggregate demand reduction; and

means for selecting at least one of the plurality of demand reduction load blocks such that the estimated aggregate amount of demand reduction for the selected demand reduction load blocks approximately equals the amount of the desired aggregate demand reduction specified by the demand reduction control signal.

52. The system of claim 51, further comprising:

means for metering an aggregate change in demand after the demand reduction control signal is transmitted to the plurality of appliance control units;

means for determining a difference between the aggregate metered demand change and the amount of the desired aggregate demand reduction;

means for selecting at least one second demand reduction load block such that the sum of the estimated aggregate amount of demand reduction associated with the selected second demand reduction load block substantially equals the determined difference; and

means for generating a second demand reduction control signal such that when the second demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code associated with the second demand reduction load block perform the step of shutting off each one of the appliances coupled to the appliance control unit.

53. The system of claim 39, further comprising:

means for generating an acknowledgment RF signal from each one of the transceivers residing in the appliance control units that successfully shut off its respective appliance; and

means for communicating the acknowledgement RF signal to the energy management controller.

54. The system of claim 39, further comprising:

means for indicating failure of at least one component residing in one of the plurality of appliance control units by generating a status RF signal that is transmitted from the transceiver residing in the appliance control unit to the energy management controller; and

means for requesting maintenance for the failed component.

55. The system of claim 54, further comprising means for generating a status request signal by the energy management controller, such that when the status request RF signal is received by the plurality of appliance control units, the step of indicating failure of at least one component is initiated.

56. The system of claim 39, further comprising:

means for generating a notification control signal by the energy management controller, the generation of the notification control signal occurring before the demand reduction control signal is generated by a predefined amount of time;

means for transmitting a RF notification control signal corresponding to the notification control signal from the energy management controller to a selected one of the first transceivers;

means for receiving the RF notification control signal by the selected first transceiver; and

means for generating a notification communication signal by the at least one appliance control unit in which the selected first transceiver resides, such that a customer understands that the appliance will be shut off at a future time, the future time substantially corresponding to the predefined amount of time.

57. A method for controlling demand in an energy delivery system, the method comprising the steps of:

generating a demand reduction control signal by an energy management controller;

transmitting the demand reduction control signal from the energy management controller to a site controller;

communicating a first radio frequency (RF) signal from the site controller to a transceiver network comprising a plurality of network transceivers, the first RF signal having a first identification code corresponding to a plurality of transceivers;

communicating the first RF signal through the transceiver network to the plurality of transceivers residing in the appliance controller unit;

receiving the first RF signal by each of the plurality of transceivers, each transceiver residing in one of a plurality of appliance controller units, each appliance controller unit coupled to at least one appliance and configured to shut off the appliance coupled to the appliance control unit in response to its corresponding transceiver receiving the first RF signal;

detecting a first metered change in demand at each of a plurality of meters, each of the meters coupled to at least one of the appliances;

communicating a plurality of second RF signals to the transceiver network from a plurality of second transceivers, each one of the second transceivers uniquely coupled to one of the plurality of meters, and each of the second RF signals uniquely corresponding to the first metered change in demand at its respective meter;

receiving the plurality of second RF signals at the site controller;

communicating the plurality of second RF signals from the site controller to the energy management controller; and

determining a first aggregate change in demand, the first aggregate change in demand equaling a sum of the first metered change in demand in the plurality of second RF signals.

58. The method of claim 57, further comprising the step of communicating the demand reduction control signal from the energy management controller to the site controller through a communication network.

59. The method of claim 58, wherein the communication network is a public switched telephone network.

60. The method of claim 58, wherein the communication network is a utility legacy communication system.

61. The method of claim 58, wherein the communication network is a digital communication system.

62. The method of claim 58, wherein the communication network is a radio frequency (RF) communication system.

63. The method of claim 58, wherein the communication network is an Internet network.

64. The method of claim 57, further comprising the step of receiving by the energy management controller a demand reduction instruction from operators of an energy delivery system such that the step of generating the demand reduction control signal is made in response to the received demand reduction instruction.

65. The method of claim 57, further comprising the steps of:

receiving a demand reduction instruction, the demand reduction instruction having at least a requested amount of demand reduction;

determining a difference between the determined first aggregate change in demand with the requested amount of demand reduction;

generating a second demand reduction control signal;

transmitting the second demand reduction control signal to the site controller;

communicating a third RF signal from the site controller through the transceiver network, the third RF signal having a second identification code corresponding to a plurality of third transceivers residing in a second plurality of appliance control units, each one of the second plurality of appliance control units coupled to at least one second appliance so that the second appliances coupled to the second plurality of appliance control units are shut off in response to its corresponding third transceiver receiving the second RF signal;

detecting a second metered change in demand at each of a plurality of second meters, each of the second meters coupled to at least one of the second appliances;

communicating a plurality of fourth RF signals to the transceiver network from a plurality of fourth transceivers, each one of the fourth transceivers uniquely coupled to one of the plurality of second meters, and each of the fourth RF signals uniquely corresponding to the second metered change in demand at its respective second meter;

receiving the plurality of fourth RF signals at the site controller;

communicating the plurality of fourth RF signals from the site controller to the energy management controller; and

determining a second aggregate change in demand, the second aggregate change in demand equaling the sum of the second metered change in demand in the plurality of fourth RF signals.

66. The method of claim 65, further comprising the step of selecting a number of appliance control units to be members of the second plurality of appliance control units such that the second aggregate change in demand substantially equals the difference between the first aggregate change in demand and the requested amount of demand reduction.

67. The method of claim 57, further comprising the steps of:

generating a terminating signal; and

transmitting a terminating RF signal corresponding to the terminating signal to the plurality of transceivers such that the demand reduction control signal is ended.

68. The method of claim 57, further comprising the steps of:

assigning a unique identification code to each one of the plurality of appliance control units;

selecting a plurality of identification codes to define a first demand reduction load block; and

associating the selected identification codes with the generated demand reduction control signal such that when the demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code selected shut off the appliance coupled to the appliance control unit.

69. The method of claim 68, further comprising the steps of:

defining a load block identification code such that the load block identification code corresponds to the selected unique identification codes; and

associating the load block identification code with the generated demand reduction control signal such that the when the demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code associated with the load block identification code shut off the appliance coupled to the appliance control unit.

70. The method of claim 69, further comprising the steps of:

defining a plurality of load block identification codes, each one of the load block identification codes corresponding to the selected unique group of identification codes, such that a plurality of demand reduction load blocks are defined;

estimating an aggregate amount of demand reduction for each of the plurality of demand reduction load blocks; and

selecting at least one of the plurality of demand reduction load blocks such that an estimated amount of demand reduction for the selected demand reduction load blocks approximately equals a desired aggregate demand reduction specified by the demand reduction control signal.

71. The method of claim 57, further comprising the steps of:

generating an acknowledgment RF signal from each one of the transceivers residing in the appliance control units that successfully shut off its respective appliance; and

communicating the acknowledgment RF signal to the energy management controller through the transceiver network.

72. The method of claim 57, further comprising the steps of:

generating a status RF signal generated by one of the transceivers residing in the plurality of appliance control units, the status RF signal indicating failure of at least one component residing in the appliance control unit; and

communicating the status RF signal to the energy management controller through the transceiver network thereby requesting maintenance for the failed component.

73. The method of claim 72, further comprising the steps of:

generating a status request signal by the energy management controller;

communicating the status request signal to the site controller;

communicating a status request RF signal from the site controller through the transceiver network to at least one of the transceivers, the status request RF signal corresponding to the status request signal;

generating a return status request RF signal indicating the status of the appliance control unit; and

communicating the return status request signal to the energy management controller through the transceiver network, the site controller, and the communication network.

74. The method of claim 57, further comprising the steps of:

generating a notification control signal by the energy management controller, the generation of the notification control signal occurring before the step of generating the demand reduction control signal by a predefined amount of time; and

transmitting a RF notification control signal corresponding to the notification control signal from the energy management controller to a selected one of the transceivers, such that when the notification control signal is received by the at least one appliance control unit in which the transceiver resides, a customer understands that the step of shutting off the appliance will occur at a future time, the future time substantially corresponding to the predefined amount of time.

75. A system for controlling demand in an energy delivery system comprising:

means for generating a demand reduction control signal by an energy management controller;

means for transmitting the demand reduction control signal from the energy management controller to a site controller;

means for communicating a first radio frequency (RF) signal from the site controller to a transceiver network comprising a plurality of network transceivers, the first RF signal having a first identification code corresponding to a plurality of transceivers;

means for communicating the first RF signal through the transceiver network to the plurality of transceivers residing in the appliance controller unit;

means for receiving the first RF signal by each of the plurality of transceivers, each transceiver residing in one of a plurality of appliance controller units, each appliance controller unit coupled to at least one appliance and configured to shut off the appliance coupled to the appliance control unit in response to its corresponding transceiver receiving the first RF signal corresponding to the demand reduction control signal;

means for detecting a first metered change in demand at each of a plurality of meters, each of the meters coupled to at least one of the appliances;

means for communicating a plurality of second RF signals to the transceiver network from a plurality of second transceivers, each one of the second transceivers uniquely coupled to one of the plurality of meters, and each of the second RF signals uniquely corresponding to the first metered change in demand at its respective meter;

means for receiving the plurality of second RF signals at the site controller;

means for communicating the plurality of second RF signals from the site controller to the energy management controller; and

means for determining a first aggregate change in demand, the first aggregate change in demand equaling a sum of the first metered change in demand of the plurality of second RF signals.

76. The system of claim 75, further comprising means for communicating the demand reduction control signal from the energy management controller to the site controller through a communication network.

77. The system of claim 76, wherein the communication network is a public switched telephone network.

78. The system of claim 76, wherein the communication network is a utility legacy communication system.

79. The system of claim 76, wherein the communication network is a digital communication system.

80. The system of claim 76, wherein the communication network is a radio frequency (RF) communication system.

81. The system of claim 76, wherein the communication network is an Internet network.

82. The system of claim 75, further comprising means for receiving by the energy management controller a demand reduction instruction from operators of an energy delivery system such that the step of generating the demand reduction control signal is made in response to the received demand reduction instruction.

83. The system of claim 75, further comprising:

means for receiving a demand reduction instruction, the demand reduction instruction having at least a requested amount of demand reduction;

means for determining a difference between the determined first aggregate change in demand with the requested amount of demand reduction;

means for generating a second demand reduction control signal;

means for transmitting the second demand reduction control signal to the site controller;

means for communicating a third RF signal from the site controller through the transceiver network, the third RF signal having a second identification code corresponding to a plurality of third transceivers residing in a second plurality of appliance control units, each one of the second plurality of appliance control units coupled to at least one second appliance so that the second appliances coupled to the second plurality of appliance control units are shut off in response to its corresponding third transceiver receiving the second RF signal;

means for detecting a second metered change in demand at each of a plurality of second meters, each of the second meters coupled to at least one of the second appliances;

means for communicating a plurality of fourth RF signals to the transceiver network from a plurality of fourth transceivers, each one of the fourth transceivers uniquely coupled to one of the plurality of second meters, and each of the fourth RF signals uniquely corresponding to the second metered change in demand at its respective second meter;

means for receiving the plurality of fourth RF signals at the site controller;

means for communicating the plurality of fourth RF signals from the site controller to the energy management controller; and

means for determining a second aggregate change in demand, the second aggregate change in demand equaling the sum of the second metered change in demand in the plurality of fourth RF signals.

84. The system of claim 83, further comprising means for selecting a number of appliance control units to be members of the second plurality of appliance control units such that the second aggregate change in demand substantially equals the difference between the first aggregate change in demand and the requested amount of demand reduction.

85. The system of claim 75, further comprising:

means for generating a terminating signal; and

means for transmitting a terminating RF signal corresponding to the terminating signal to the plurality of transceivers such that the demand reduction control signal is ended.

86. The system of claim 75, further comprising:

means for assigning a unique identification code to each one of the plurality of appliance control units;

means for selecting a plurality of identification codes to define a first demand reduction load block; and

means for associating the selected identification codes with the generated demand reduction control signal such that when the demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code selected shut off the appliance coupled to the appliance control unit.

87. The system of claim 86, further comprising:

means for defining a load block identification code such that the load block identification code corresponds to the selected unique identification codes; and

means for associating the load block identification code with the generated demand reduction control signal such that when the demand reduction control signal is transmitted, only the appliance control units having their identification code associated with the load block identification code shut off the appliance coupled to the appliance control unit.

88. The system of claim 87, further comprising:

means for defining a plurality of load block identification codes, each one of the load block identification codes corresponding to the selected unique group of identification codes, such that a plurality of demand reduction load blocks are defined;

means for estimating an aggregate amount of demand reduction for each of the plurality of demand reduction load blocks; and

means for selecting at least one of the plurality of demand reduction load blocks such that an estimated amount of demand reduction for the selected demand reduction load blocks approximately equals a desired aggregate demand reduction specified by the demand reduction control signal.

89. The system of claim 75, further comprising:

means for generating an acknowledgment RF signal from each one of the transceivers residing in the appliance control units that successfully shut off its respective appliance; and

means for communicating the acknowledgment RF signal to the energy management controller through the transceiver network.

90. The system of claim 75, further comprising:

means for generating a status RF signal generated by one of the transceivers residing in the plurality of appliance control units, the status RF signal indicating failure of at least one component residing in the appliance control unit; and

means for communicating the status RF signal to the energy management controller through the transceiver network thereby requesting maintenance for the failed component.

91. The system of claim 90, further comprising;

means for communicating a status request signal generated by the energy management controller to the site controller; and

means for communicating a status request RF signal from the site controller through the transceiver network to at least one of the transceivers the status request RF signal corresponding to the status request signal;

means for generating a return status request RF signal indicating the status of the appliance control unit; and

means for communicating the return status request signal to the energy management controller through the transceiver network, the site controller, and the communication network.

92. The system of claim 75, further comprising:

means for generating a notification control signal by the energy management controller, the generation of the notification control signal occurring before the step of generating the demand reduction control signal by a predefined amount of time; and

means for transmitting a RF notification control signal corresponding to the notification control signal from the energy management controller to a selected one of the transceivers such that when the notification control signal is received by the at least one appliance control unit in which the transceiver resides, a customer understands that the step of shutting off the appliance will occur at a future time, the future time substantially corresponding to the predefined amount of time.