Proportional Power Allocation for Renewable Energy Systems
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for allocating electrical power from a shared energy source with fluctuating output to competing consumers fail to ensure fair distribution, especially when user demands are irregular and unpredictable, and do not account for consumer investments or usage contracts.
Innovation Solution
A resource management system employing a proportional-share fairness method that allocates power based on consumer shares, considering historic energy consumption and current generation, ensuring that power rates are adjusted to reflect individual investments and usage patterns, with optimization to maximize available power consumption and minimize differences in energy distribution among users.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If power is allocated based on equal sharing among consumers, then simplicity of allocation is improved, but fairness reflecting consumer investments deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the allocation parameter from equal sharing to proportional sharing based on consumer investments. The controller dynamically adjusts power distribution ratios according to each consumer's investment level in the energy storage system, transforming the allocation mechanism from simple equal division to investment-proportional distribution that reflects fairness principles.
2Productivity
If power allocation adjusts dynamically to fluctuating generation, then energy utilization efficiency is improved, but complexity of control increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the controller continuously monitors the state of charge of the energy storage system and the power generation from renewable sources. Based on this feedback, the controller dynamically adjusts the power allocation to consumers, ensuring optimal energy utilization while maintaining a relatively simple control structure through rule-based proportional distribution.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from static equal power allocation to dynamic proportional allocation that adapts to changing conditions. The power distribution ratios are adjusted in real-time based on consumer investments and current energy availability, allowing the system to respond dynamically to fluctuating renewable generation while maintaining operational simplicity through predefined proportional shares.
3Speed
If power is allocated without considering historic consumption, then responsiveness to current demand is improved, but fairness among consumers deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent establishes power allocation ratios in advance based on each consumer's investment level before the actual power distribution occurs. These pre-determined proportional shares ensure fairness is built into the allocation mechanism from the outset, while the system remains responsive to current demand conditions through real-time adjustment of power delivery according to these predetermined fair ratios.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a system and power allocation method that maintains proportional-share fairness of energy distribution to competing consumers. The system consists of a renewable energy source with a fluctuating power output, and users with shares in the system and stochastic continuous power loads. The method periodically re-computes power rates allocated to each connected load considering users' shares in the system, current power demand and generation and users' historic energy consumption patterns. The rate computation is based on an optimization problem that maximizes the allocated power respecting current generation and minimizes the difference in energy distributed to different users.