Aggregator-based electric microgrid for residential applications incorporating renewable energy sources

• US 8,571,955 B2
• Filed: 10/19/2011
• Issued: 10/29/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Al Faruque, Mohammad Abdullah, Dalloro, Livio, Ludwig, Hartmut
• Primary Examiner(s): Robinson, Kito R
• Application Number:
  US13/276,392
• Publication Number:
  US 20130046668A1
• Time in Patent Office: 741 Days
• Field of Search: 705/35, 705/412
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0206 Price or cost determination based on market factors
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/50 Systems or methods supporting the power network operation or management, involving a certain degree of interaction with the load-side end user applications
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 50/14 Marketing, i.e. market research and analysis, surveying, promotions, advertising, buyer profiling, customer management or rewards

Abstract

A residential electric grid (microgrid) is proposed as a distribution arrangement between a utility company and a group of individual residential consumers. The residential consumers are also viewed as “producers” of renewable energy and are defined as “prosumers”. An aggregator is used at the microgrid to negotiate with the utility on behalf of the group of prosumers, commanding a better price for excess electricity sold back to the utility (especially as part of a Demand Response (DR) program). Importantly, the microgrid is constructed to include energy storage capability at the microgrid. Therefore, the arrangement is capable of supplying power to the residential customers in the event of an outage at the macrogrid level, and also selling back the electricity to the utility as part of a DR program.

Claims

1. An electricity microgrid for controlling electricity flow between a plurality of residential consumers and at least one utility company, the microgrid comprising:

at least one renewable generation source for generating electricity at the microgrid;

means for storing at least a fraction of the generated electricity at the microgrid; and

an aggregator entity connected with the at least one generation source, the storing means, the plurality of residential consumers and the at least one utility company, at least some of the residential consumers being prosumers including renewable generation sources, the aggregator entity including a processor and non-transitory computer-readable media having stored thereon computer readable instructions, wherein execution of the computer readable instructions by the processor causes the processor to perform operations comprising purchasing electricity from the at least one utility for distribution to the plurality of residential consumers connected to the microgrid and pooling the electricity generated by the at least one renewable generation source, the aggregator utilizing a rules-based mechanism to perform the purchasing of electricity;

wherein the rules-based mechanism includes the following rules;

an electricity price charged by a prosumer to the utility is less than an electricity price charged by the prosumer to the aggregator;

an electricity price charged by the utility to the prosumer is greater than or equal to an electricity price charged by the aggregator to the prosumer;

an electricity price charged by the utility to the prosumer is greater than or equal to an electricity price charged by the utility to the aggregator;

an electricity price paid by the utility to the aggregator during a Demand Response program is greater than an electricity price paid by the utility to the aggregator without a Demand Response program;

an electricity price charged by the prosumer to the utility is less than or equal to an electricity price paid by the utility to the aggregator without a Demand Response program; and

an electricity price paid by a second aggregator entity to buy from a first aggregator entity is greater than or equal to an electricity price paid by the first aggregator entity to buy from the second aggregator entity.

2. An electricity microgrid as defined in claim 1 wherein the aggregator is further configured to sell at least a portion of the electricity generated by the microgrid to a utility.

3. An electricity microgrid as defined in claim 2 where the generated electricity is sold to the utility as part of a Demand Response (DR) program.

4. An electricity microgrid as defined in claim 1 wherein the at least one renewable generation source includes a plurality of renewable generation sources installed at residences of a plurality of residential consumers, the plurality of residential consumers defined as residential prosumers.

5. An electricity microgrid as defined in claim 1 wherein the at least one renewable generation source includes a stand-alone renewable generation source installed along the microgrid and controlled by the aggregator entity.

6. A method of controlling a bi-directional flow of electricity between a utility company and a plurality of residential consumers, at least a subset of the plurality of residential consumers including renewable sources for generating electricity, the method including:

creating an electric microgrid interconnecting the plurality of residential consumers;

installing electricity storage means at the microgrid; and

providing an aggregator at the microgrid including a processor and non-transitory computer-readable media having stored thereon computer readable instructions, wherein execution of the computer readable instructions by the processor causes the processor to perform operations comprising;

controlling buying and selling of electricity to the utility company on behalf of the plurality of residential consumers utilizing a rules-based mechanism to control the buying and selling of electricity, at least some of the residential consumers being prosumers including renewable generation sources;

wherein the rules-based mechanism includes the following rules;

an electricity price charged by a prosumer to the utility is less than an electricity price charged by the prosumer to the aggregator;

an electricity price charged by the utility to the prosumer is greater than or equal to an electricity price charged by the aggregator to the prosumer;

an electricity price charged by the utility to the prosumer is greater than or equal to an electricity price charged by the utility to the aggregator;

an electricity price paid by the utility to the aggregator during a Demand Response program is greater than an electricity price paid by the utility to the aggregator without a Demand Response program;

an electricity price charged by the prosumer to the utility is less than or equal to an electricity price paid by the utility to the aggregator without a Demand Response program; and

an electricity price paid by a second aggregator entity to buy from a first aggregator entity is greater than or equal to an electricity price paid by the first aggregator entity to buy from the second aggregator entity.

7. The method as defined in claim 6 wherein the aggregator pools the electricity generated by the subset of the plurality of residential consumers and sells the pooled electricity to the utility company as part of a Demand Response program.

8. The method as defined in claim 6 wherein the aggregator is configured to control the electricity storage means and allow for stored electricity to be sold to separate ones of the plurality of residential consumers during power outage or as part of a load shifting program.