System and method of controlling delivery and/or usage of a commodity

• US 7,949,615 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2009
• Issued: 05/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Invensys Systems Incorporated (Invensys PLC)
• Original Assignee: Robertshaw Controls Company (Schneider Electric SE)
• Inventors: Ehlers, Gregory A., Turner, James H., Beaudet, Joseph, Strich, Ronald, Loughmiller, George
• Primary Examiner(s): BORISSOV, IGOR N
• Application Number:
  US12/392,788
• Publication Number:
  US 20090157529A1
• Time in Patent Office: 818 Days
• Field of Search: 705/412, 705/413, 705/30, 705/26, 705/27, 705/63, 700/296, 700/286, 700/276, 700/275, 700/299, 307/40, 307/41, 307/38, 307/35, 340/310.16, 236/47, 236/51, 165/209
• US Class Current: 705/412
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/30 for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/47 Responding to energy costs
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/523 for displaying temperature data
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/58 using Internet communication
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/64 using pre-stored data
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/86 by controlling compressors within refrigeration or heat pump circuits
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2110/10 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/00 Control inputs relating to users or occupants
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0235 based on a comparison with predetermined threshold or range, e.g. "classical methods", carried out during normal operation; threshold adaptation or choice; when or how to compare with the threshold
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/06 Asset management; Financial planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/14 The load or loads being home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/64 The condition being economic, e.g. tariff based load management
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/66 one of the loads acting as master and the other or others acting as slaves
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• 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 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/242 : Home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/18 : Network protocols supporting networked applications, e.g. including control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 50/10 : Energy trading, including energy flowing from end-user application to grid

Abstract

A system and method manage delivery of energy from a distribution network to one or more sites. Each site has at least one device coupled to the distribution network. The at least one device controllably consumes energy. The system includes a node and a control system. The node is coupled to the at least one device for sensing and controlling energy delivered to the device. A control system is coupled to the node and distribution network for delivering to the node at least one characteristic of the distribution network. The node for controls the supply of energy to the device as a function of the at least one characteristic.

Claims

1. A method for providing a consumption management system for a commodity, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a distribution system for the commodity;

delivering the commodity to a plurality of customer sites, each customer site having a plurality of devices the use the commodity;

providing a control system connected to the distribution system and the customer sites for controlling the distribution of the commodity;

establishing an energy management program which may be activated during peak energy demand periods;

defining a subset of the devices, the subset of devices includes devices of a predetermined type in use by the customers;

providing a plurality of nodes, each node associated with one of the devices in the subset of devices at each customer site having a device of the predetermined type, the node having an interface operable by a user and being coupled to the control system, each node including control logic;

receiving, at the control logic, data related to the price of the commodity from the control system;

allowing the user, through the interface, to select a scenario from a set of predetermined scenarios, each of the scenarios in the set of scenarios defining a predetermined balance between comfort and economy for performance of the one of the devices when the energy management program is activated;

establishing a setpoint for the one of the devices, the setpoint being a target for an operating characteristic of the one of the devices, each of the scenarios defining a permissible offset for the setpoint; and

,

controlling, by the node, consumption of the commodity by the associated device as a function of the setpoint and the offset associated with the user selected scenario, wherein the commodity has an associated supply classification established from a set of supply classifications, and each scenario in the set of scenarios has an offset associated with each supply classification in the set of supply classifications, the setpoint and the offset defining a permissible range for the operating parameter, wherein the node in controlling consumption of the commodity maintains the operating parameter within the permissible range.

2. A method, as set forth in claim 1, further comprising the step of providing a device type indicator for each device, the device type indicator identifying the type of the device.

3. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the interface includes a switch and/or a knob.

4. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the user is the customer.

5. A method, as set forth in claim 4, wherein the step of allowing the user to set how the one of the devices will perform includes the step of allowing the customer to set if the one device will participate in the energy management program.

6. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the one of the devices has a normal mode of operation, and the step of allowing the user to set how the one of the devices will perform when the energy management program is activated includes the step of allowing the user to set how the device'"'"'s performance will vary from the normal mode of operation.

7. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the node is coupled to the associated one of the devices via a communications channel.

8. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the devices in the subset of the devices have onboard controls and the node is interconnected to the onboard controls.

9. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the step of providing a node includes the step of allowing the node to be retrofitted to an existing device.

10. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the node is integrated into an embedded controller of the one of the devices in the subset of devices.

11. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the step of allowing the user to set how the one of the devices in the subset of device at the customer'"'"'s site will perform when the energy management program is activated, includes the step of preventing the utility from affecting the operation of the device under the energy management program.

12. A method, as set forth in claim 1, further comprising the steps of receiving, at the control logic, data related to demand of the commodity and controlling, at the node, consumption of the commodity by the associated device as a function the data related to the demand and the price of the commodity and the user input related to the performance under the energy management program.

13. A method, as set forth in claim 12, wherein the step of controlling operation of the associated device acts to shift, reduce or cap demand of the commodity by the one device.

14. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the data related to demand and/or price of the commodity may include or be related to one or more of demand for the commodity, cost of the commodity, congestion levels on a delivery system and/or an associated cost of the delivery system.

15. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the commodity is electricity, and the data related to demand and/or price may include one or more of demand, usage, sign wave frequency, voltage.

16. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the commodity is gas, steam, water, or the like, the data related to demand and/or price may include one or more of line pressure and ambient temperature.

17. A method, as set forth in claim 1, further comprising the step of allowing the node to control operation of the corresponding device when the energy management program is activated in response to customer preferences and/or willingness to pay.

18. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the plurality of scenarios includes a maximum savings scenario, a balanced savings and performance scenario, and a maximum performance scenario, each scenario with a decreasing associated offset.

19. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the user interface is accessible via a remote device.

20. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the step of allowing the user to set how the one of the devices in the subset of device at the customer'"'"'s site will perform when the energy management program is activated, includes the step of allowing the user to set a budget value for the commodity, wherein the energy management program may be activated as a function of the budget value.

21. A method, as set forth in claim 20, wherein the budget value is expressed in terms of amount of commodity used and/or cost of commodity consumed.

22. A method, as set forth in claim 1, further comprising the step of triggering activation of the energy management program as a function of one or more of:

time of day, total demand for commodity, a real time cost of the commodity, a cost of delivery of the commodity, a total demand for a customer site, weather factors, historical usage and demand patterns of a node and/or group of nodes.

23. A method, set forth in claim 1, wherein the user is the utility and wherein the step of allowing the user to control how the one of the devices in the subset of device at the customer'"'"'s site will perform when the energy management program is activated further comprising the step of providing a plurality of optional operating modes selectable by the utility, offering a range of demand reduction options and performance modifications.

24. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the setpoint is established by one of the user and the energy management program.

25. A consumption management system for a commodity, comprising:

a distribution system for the commodity for delivering the commodity to a plurality of customer sites, each customer site having a plurality of devices the use the commodity;

a control system connected to the distribution system and the customer sites for controlling the distribution of the commodity, the control system for establishing an energy management program which may be activated during peak energy demand periods and for defining a subset of the devices, the subset of devices includes devices of a predetermined type in use by the customers; and

,

a plurality of nodes, each node including control logic and being associated with one of the devices in the subset of devices at each customer site having a device of the predetermined type, the node having an interface operable by a user and being coupled to the control system, each node including control logic for receiving data related to the price of the commodity from the control system, the interface for allowing the user to select a scenario from a set of predetermined scenarios, each of the scenarios in the set of scenarios defining a predetermined balance between comfort and economy for performance of the one of the devices, the node further for establishing a setpoint for the one of the devices, the setpoint being a target for an operating characteristic of the one of the devices, each of the scenarios defining a permissible offset for the setpoint and for controlling consumption of the commodity by the associated device as a function of the setpoint and the offset associated with the user selected scenario, wherein the commodity has an associated supply classification established from a set of supply classifications, and each scenario in the set of scenarios has an offset associated with each supply classification in the set of supply classifications, the setpoint and the offset defining a permissible range for the operating parameter, wherein the node in controlling consumption of the commodity maintains the operating parameter within the permissible range.

26. A consumption management system for a commodity, as set forth in claim 25, wherein the plurality of scenarios includes a maximum savings scenario, a balanced savings and performance scenario, and a maximum performance scenario, each scenario with a relatively decreasing associated offset.

27. A consumption management system for a commodity, as set forth in claim 25, wherein the setpoint is established by one of the user and the energy management program.