Google has announced its plan to help consumers gain better information about their personal electricity usage.
The plan, which is listed on Google’s philanthropic website, promotes the adoption of smart electricity meters in homes across the world. These smart meters are better than regular meters because they can provide detailed information about usage rates throughout the day, theoretically letting consumers make smarter decisions about when to leave the lights on or when to run the dryer.
But since installing these devices in homes won’t automatically make the information they gather available to users, Google is also developing a software tool called Google PowerMeter (presumably a web app) that puts this information at people’s finger tips. We can only guess that the graph below is something that this application would produce, since Google hasn’t showed any of it off to the general public yet. The application is currently being beta tested internally by Googlers and will stay that way as Google tries to build partnerships with “utilities and independent device manufacturers”.
Personally, I find this type of Google project the most exciting. The search giant is using its weight to bring data online that currently exists in a very offline realm. As Google calls it, the electrical utilities system we still use is very “1950s-era”. Who’s jaw hasn’t dropped after looking at their electricity bill at the end of a cold winter month? This sort of situation shouldn’t happen in the information age.
Google is in a unique position to tackle large-scale projects like this one because of its clout and resources. It can throw its weight behind lobbying, development, and partnership efforts all at the same time. That’s why we see Google, and not startups, successfully pursuing projects like digitizing the world’s books and collecting panoramic images from every street across the country. Google’s competitive advantage over more nimble startups is the ability to actually add hard data to the internet while others are just trying to organize what’s already available (or are depending on “social” data that comes straight from consumers’ heads).
Since an important part of Google’s mission statement is to make the information it organizes universally available, we can expect to see the company aggregate the data it collects from individual consumers to provide statistics about usage trends and whatnot. This ultimately has to be what Google has in mind, since simply saving consumers 5-15% on their monthly bill doesn’t warrant such an ambitious undertaking.
DiY Kyoto has a small device called Watson that does the same, plus a neat application called Holmes to track & exchange your data online.
Watson is particularly clean in design :
http://www.diykyoto.com
Another similar product is The Energy Detective with the Footprints software.
http://www.thee...gydetective.com
A very noble and innovative idea… Google is making its presence felt is nearly every aspect of where there is an exchange of bits and bytes…
Its sometimes scary what they are foreseeing in the long run… they have our search results… they know where we go online… they have our voices… they know where we are physically located… now they will know how energy efficient we are :)
This is very good to see, especially in the context of google pushing for consumers to get free and open realtime access to their own energy data. So, I’m hoping that:
* Google can push smart metering forward, so there are more of them out there.
* We’ll get open access to our own energy data. An API key on my power bill would do nicely thanks.
* We’ll end up with a full web ecosystem of measurment, visualisation and comparison tools to help reduce our consumption.
Any other products that do this type of things? I would appreciate links as I am going to be building a new house this year and would love this type of technology and would like to incorporate this type of solution.
Check out “The Wattson” by DIY Kyoto.
http://www.diyk...k/wattson/about
There’s a related article on this subject by Wired.
http://www.wire...-08/st_thompson
The world thanks you for your installation…;)
There’s also an awesome device called “Ewgeco” currently in private beta. It not only monitors your electricity, but also water & gas usage. Check it out: http://www.ewgeco.com/
(Disclaimer: I may be biased; we write the web app that interacts with the hardware device and presents information in the same way as Google’s PowerMeter. For electricity, water *and* gas usage.)
Important correction–Google.org is not a non-profit. It is frequently described as Google’s “philanthropic arm,” but it is in fact organized as a for-profit entity. This is relevant because the company ultimately plans to monetize PowerMeter. There’s nothing wrong with this, but we should keep this in mind before adopting government mandates that would give preference to Google’s model and give the company a smart grid monopoly.
That’s good to point out and correct. I’ve changed it above.
For anyone who want’s to know why Google.org is a philanthropic arm. Please read the following…
http://www.nyti...y/14google.html
I hope Google puts pressure on utility companies to reinvent themselves.
*for-profit philanthropic…
Great, so there will be a way for the electric company to charge a higher rate, if say you use your air conditioner on a mild day, or use too many lights during the day.
Im all about information but this is gettng crazy
Huh? Your electric company knows that (when the electric is consumed) already — you don’t, that’s the key here.
yeah but up until now they could not justify it.
By lowering the cost to people conserving they will be able to justify raising it to the rest.
-1
That’s sort of the point.
Will this be available in India anytime in next 20 years? We don’t have even have regular electricity here.
Yes it will, but for you the smart grid will be fueled by human souls.
LOL stop it! You are sooo wrong… :-)
Just imagine having a comparison chart on every amazon product telling you how much power it consumes and how it compares to similar products …
@Sagar Patti: the US is currently the greatest polluter in the world. it’s good that it starts from there
ayeah, and hail to google for standing responsibly at the forefront of innovation, even in rough times
ayeah, and hail to google for standing responsibly at the forefront of innovation, even in rough times
@Eric please see http://www.tril...antnetworks.com
Leading provider of solutions for advanced metering, demand response, and grid management.
Trilliant is a leader in delivering intelligent networks that enable the transition to the Smart Grid. Trilliant offers a combination of hardware, software and services that serve as the nervous system of the Smart Grid. Since its founding in 1985, the company has been a leading innovator in the delivery and implementation of advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), demand response, and grid management solutions. Trilliant also offers installation, program management and meter revenue cycle services. Trilliant focuses on providing an array of flexible and robust options for utility companies, ranging from meter, network and IT infrastructures to full or hybrid outsource models. Trilliant has more than 100 utility customers including Duke Energy, E.ON US (Louisville Gas & Electric), Hydro One, Hydro Quebec, Jamaica Public Service Company Limited, Milton Hydro, Northeast Utilities, PowerStream, Public Service Electric & Gas, San Diego Gas & Electric, Toronto Hydro Electric System Ltd., and Union Gas. The company is privately owned.
Misleading article. Should tell the audience smart meter is not currently available.
This article is science fiction as that it does not exist. It is telling the public what could possibly happen, like watching Back To The Future.
Nothing to see here.
This can be Sci-Fi, but google’s aims are a fact
great yet another give us more of your personal data from google , who could ever resist such an offer
its good to see that google puts some weight behind opensourcing smart meters so that third parties can integrate it quickly and widely.
yello strom germany and microsoft have a similar project running since last december.
http://www.micr...ello_strom.aspx
Goerlitz AG germany is delivering solutions and promotes the open standardisation process on various power network layers.
http://www.goer...mp;set_lang=eng
personally we are very excited about this announcement. it certifies that our business is viable. We started five years ago and manufactured ourselves etc. we have a user base of 10ks’, which this year is definitely gonna grow. WE welcome the big players into the game. The more we are doing something together the more impact it will have.
Although wattson looks much cuter ;)
Could somebody please tell me the point of this device? At least here in Estonia, for me electricity costs the same at any given time (there is also possible two rate plans where night electricity is cheaper and day a bit more expensive). If I knew how much my washing machine uses electricity, what will it change? I won’t stop washing my clothes.
Of course it’s cool to see current usage rate, but I can’t see any real benefit of it to me. Am I missing something?
Stuff like realizing that your consumption of electricity shoots up by 15% when your apartment is 1 degree of Celsius warmer, goes up when you leave lights on in rooms where nobody is at the moment, etc usually tends to educate you in the long term to be more energy efficient.
Here in Finland some electric companies are installing this type of devices to selected new houses as an experiment, with a password-protected web interface to monitor your house’s electric bill in real time.
And, like mentioned above, there are already tools on market to do exactly this: http://www.diykyoto.com/uk
The “problem” is that I have the habbit to switch off the lights when I leave the room, work or home, doesn’t matter.
For me those kind of devices seem like a hype, first they “invent” the problem and then try to sell solution for that. Making those kind of gadgets seem like a waste of energy. But there are probably people who need those gadgets for reminding them to switch off the lights when they leave the room or keep the appartment 1 degree less warm.
Google’s PowerMeter provides the “what” component that’s been missing in home energy conservation. People are motivated by incentives, which our energy bill currently serves as. However, once we say “holy #$!@” at our bill price, we have no clue WHAT to do about it.
The meter provides the “what”.
I am using this now:
http://www.blue...sp?mn=1.274.285
It does the same general concept, it is just missing the web based analytics. It uses a collar on top of your meter to measure rotations and power consumption. If they had a Wifi version that would push the data to Google so it could be graphed and analyzed, this be done very cheaply without having to replace household meters. That is very expensive and hard to install.
coming up soon will be
http://www.healthyandcool.com
matt is going to hell.
Something like this would definitely help people spend less on power if they knew how they were using it. It will be interesting to see if Google is able to partner with any utilities on a solution like this since it will ultimately decrease revenues for the utility companies.
If there isn’t one for a house-hold system: KillAWatt + gumstick computer + internet connection + GoogleApp + iphone = alerts when you are breaking the bank in electricity bills. Stuff like this might come from areas that have an innovating electricity supplier (Texas you can choose from multiple suppliers), but probably not from areas like California where it’s just Pacific Gas & Electric. Driver here is going to be people needing to cut down (economy bad or electric rates up) and finding an easy, set-up way to do it.
@Eric – I have two devices I like for this.
1. Watts Up? Measures usage for any one device. Looks like an extension cord with a big box on it, and can be used to hone in on the exact use of any one device.
http://www.wattsupmeters.com/
2. TED – The Energy Detective – This is an inexpensive way to retrofit a house. I have not used their competition (Wattson), but I I find TED very useful as a starting point for an existing house. Rather than one device, it tells you what your whole house is using. Things like ceiling lights and other fixtures can not be measured with Watts Up, but they can with TED.
http://www.thee...ydetective.com/
The economics of putting these hardware devices in homes doesn’t make any sense at this point in time — spend $300 to save a few dollars? Also, the utilities are still the bottleneck in actually interfacing to the meters and getting the data. Do you think they really want Google owning their precious meter data? Also, if they get 40 million meters and they hear from them every minute (near real-time) – that’s 21 trillion data reports a year. They don’t get anywhere near that many searches each year, so do you think they’ll buy 2 million more servers for this? So this thing won’t really be real-time, and it won’t even eventually be 40 million meters. Instead, Google has stifled smart-grid innovation because firms like mine now have to try to sell our real-time metering services that we already sell to large users against this non-existent, non-reality free alternative that Google only pursues for PR benefit in a market they don’t understand.
If they don’t understand it, your company should be able to outsell them. Plain and simple.
This project is cool for individuals, but I doubt that a “cool gadget” is the ultimate goal.
Contrary to some suggestions, the utility company does NOT know when you are running your dryer. They can only sense residential usage in aggregate… if they could do this already then we would already have a “smart grid” and not a 50’s era system.
Google stands to make a lot of money by providing this information to utility companies who could use their search muscle to get a better implementation of something they’d otherwise have to do themselves. Google can build strong public support by having a public API that lets anyone see general usage, and then make big bucks by charging utilities for each query against their database of power usage. Once that’s in place though, the utility companies would likely make a good profit by getting usage information in half-hour increments than they would for occasional meter readings.
@Eric
Also check out http://www.getgreenbox.com Greenbox Technology was founded by the creators of Flash and they’ve been working for two years on a home energy management interface. They are in the market working with utilities and device manufacturers with new innovations being added all the time.
As solar technology steadily improves, and as stimulus money gets channeled into the green power industry, soon a significant percentage of power will come from individuals and small power farms. Hard to imagine now? Sound greenwashed? Solar panels already pay for themselves after just a few years. In ten years crowdsourced power will be a completely new market and Google (as usual) is putting themselves in the position to be the manager of that market. This is big stuff.
More: http://thinkske...or-for-awesome/
-ThinkSketch
I am working on a startup that does just this minus the in home units. This is simply Google trying to score some of the funds that come out the bailout.
I am sure this is to just help their lobbyists sell the idea to get the funds as in home units are not cost effective and several established utility related companies have been working on this for years. The only way is if Google will buy these companies, thus maybe the ability to get Government funds for this.
Join the club Google.
Ian,
Kind of difficult to out sell “free”. Anyway, I’m over my irritation with Google. Here’s some info that might be of interest. Its very difficult for utilities to do real-time meter reading so that they can monitor your meters, much less things in your house. They simply can’t cover their entire territories with IP networks and the other technologies like power line carrier and peer-to-peer narrowband wireless simply don’t cut it. In fact, the most popular automated meter reading system is drive-by and it isn’t even that inexpensive. Utilities don’t really want to rely on anyone else’s network either. My company has had success with residential for very small municipal utilities that put in their own wireless networks — and when we meter electric, gas, water — and control air conditioning and water heaters during peak periods. Then it easily pays for itself – 1 city had a 1 year ROI and 0 unhappy customers. Meter reading is too cheap for it to provide the needed ROI to install the equipment. However, it saves utilities a bundle if energy usage is curtailed when their cost of energy is high.
Google’s solution doesn’t include for free the hard part – getting the data from the meter to their system, its more of an API that they hope utilities will choose or be forced to use to share the user’s usage so they can present it. I suppose some home owners will buy a device that sends data directly to Google.
I wouldn’t discount this information being valuable to advertisers — the window retrofit and appliance markets are very big and with your load profile – I could figure out if you needed new windows, etc.
this is a cool post
Talk about a momentum booster. Google’s entrance into the smart grid conversation is great news all around, just as President Obama is turning up the volume on its importance as well. No one company or entity can tackle all the challenges around building the smart grid and populating it with smart meters. Google’s entrance into the conversation is not only a great complementary effort in providing consumers the tools they need to take charge of their energy consumption; it validates the issue. When Google speaks, people listen.
It’s a piece of a larger platform approach—one that Tendril’s building out—that adds the necessary elements of consumer and utility control, in addition to device-level information, that enables a real-time dialogue between consumers and their energy provider. It’s great to see quickening momentum among vendors, utilities and consumers as we drive 21st century energy efficiency on the road to energy independence.
Information is the key to change. Having Google throw their weight to drive real change is a huge win for the industry, for Tendril and for consumers.
This is really not much different than Google Analytics vs Omniture or Coremetrics. You’d better offer something pretty darn powerful to compete against free. While lots is happening in smart metering (which is really about utilities gaining individual home control) and there are good devices like the TED available now, the user interfaces are generally weak. On this alone, Google can own the aggregation of the data. The real issue is how long true smart metering will take to become ubiquitous. Some are saying a long long time. I wrote on my blog today about just how byzantine our utility is–someone still needs to drive here in a truck to read the meter. http://www.ener...toringhere-now/
Let’s also remember that so far this entire discussion is about electricity only. The real key will be how PowerMeter, over time, integrates the other key energy inputs like natural gas, heating oil, propane and even renewables.
Our team put together an educational video on the TED and the BlueLine monitors, and particularly the behavioral change that results from seeing energy use data in real time. We definitely support the notion of the kind of savings the Google testers are achieving: http://www.ener...ors#BuyersGuide
With PowerMeter, Google is validating the valuable role of energy monitoring in empowering end users with the information they need to take control of their personal energy consumption. I work with Fat Spaniel Technologies (www.fatspaniel.com), and we absolutely support Google’s stated principle that “open protocols and standards should serve as the cornerstone of smart grid projects” (from their blog). Last year we announced the industry’s first open energy monitoring solution – the Fat Spaniel Insight Platform™. We believe that in order to provide users with a complete energy solution, it must be an open platform that can monitor all devices and systems and distill the data into usable information. As such, Fat Spaniel will extend its open, standardized interface to Google’s PowerMeter once it is publicly released. We currently provide the monitoring technology for more than 2,000 renewable energy plants across 17 countries today, and we think that Google’s validation of the energy monitoring market will help spread the technology for adoption across all energy systems universally.
I don’t understand how the economics and privacy issues all coordinate together. I guess aggregating the statistics could be useful for society. We figured out Al Gore’s mansion used a lot of electricity. Sounds like a privacy issue that will appearing on This security site.
I got a lot of Information from this site.
http://kkhobbies.blogspot.com/
Day by day Google is Creating some Vast Innovative techniques, Thaks to Google.
http://www.piedaterredc.com/