Domestic Appliance Peak Power Management via Phase Forecasting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current solutions for managing peak electrical consumption by domestic equipment either rely on user action, which is unreliable, or degrade equipment performance by restricting power usage, failing to minimize peak consumption without user intervention or performance degradation.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilize a data processing module to acquire and forecast operating phases of domestic equipment, allowing for intelligent interruption of these phases to shift energy consumption, thereby reducing peak demand without affecting user experience.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If a consumption threshold is imposed and non-priority equipment is shut down, then peak consumption is reduced, but equipment performance is significantly degraded
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by forecasting future operating phases of equipment before the peak consumption occurs. It acquires information about upcoming phases and proactively schedules interruptions in advance, allowing equipment to be ready for the interruption without degrading performance. This is achieved by the processing module forecasting operating phases and determining optimal interruption timing before the actual peak demand occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies dynamics by adaptively determining interruption durations based on the specific characteristics of each equipment and operating phase. Rather than imposing fixed shutdown periods, the processing module calculates dynamic interruption durations that are tailored to minimize peak consumption while preserving equipment performance. The interruption duration is adjusted based on forecasts and equipment-specific parameters.
2Loss of energy
If user action is required to manage consumption, then consumption control can be achieved, but the solution is unreliable and requires continuous user intervention
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements self-service by enabling equipment to automatically provide information about their own operating phases to the processing module. Each piece of equipment autonomously forecasts its future phases and communicates this data, allowing the system to manage consumption without user intervention. The equipment essentially serves itself by providing the necessary operational data and accepting scheduled interruptions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs feedback mechanisms where the processing module continuously acquires information from equipment about their operating phases and uses this feedback to adjust interruption scheduling. The equipment provides real-time feedback on their status and forecasts, which the processing module uses to dynamically optimize the interruption schedule, creating a closed-loop control system that operates autonomously.
3Power
If equipment is interrupted to reduce peak consumption, then maximum power consumption is minimized, but the duration of equipment operation is extended
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies preliminary action by forecasting future operating phases and determining optimal interruption schedules before the actual peak consumption occurs. By planning interruptions in advance based on predicted equipment behavior, the system can minimize the impact on total operation duration while effectively reducing peak power consumption. The forecast allows optimization of when interruptions occur to minimize overall duration extension.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3a~3b
AI summary
The present invention relates to a method for managing the electricity use of a plurality of household appliances connected within a local communication network and having one or more operating phases. Said method includes the following steps, implemented by a data processing module: - acquiring (E6, E13) information related to the operating phases, in progress or forthcoming, for at least two household appliances, the information related to an operating phase for a household appliance including the power used by said household appliance during said phase; - determining (E9), on the basis of the acquired information, at least one operating phase of one of said appliances to be interrupted so as to minimize peak power use; and - interrupting (E11, E12) said determined operating phase.