Web based monitoring, management and contest based on collected power consumption data
OwnerEugene Wang, David Mossinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A web based monitoring and management system for collection and distribution of power consumption information. The power consumption information is collected by an intelligent power meter in one embodiment, and by a collector device in another. The power consumption information is communicated to a remote server for analysis, reporting and managing a power savings/green energy contest. The collector device or the intelligent power meter receives monitoring data from a number of electrical appliances with which it is communicatively coupled. Communication between the collector device that receives monitoring data from a number of electrical appliances and the monitoring devices occurs over a power line.
Claims20
A web based monitoring and management system comprising:
- an intelligent electricity meter electrically coupled to a plurality of appliances at a first premises, the intelligent electricity meter providing efficient billing display and tracking of time-based usage of electric power by the plurality of appliances;
- the intelligent electricity meter tracking a user's power usage information for each of the plurality of appliances, and reporting it to a server;
- a contest management component at the server tracking the user's power usage information, recommending ways to reduce energy consumption by the user, and mapping reduced energy consumption to money saved;
- and
- the contest management component determining the user as a winner of an energy saving contest based on tracking of the user's power usage information and money saved.
A monitoring system that monitors appliances, the monitoring system comprising:
- a plurality of monitoring devices, each of the plurality of monitoring devices capable of being used to monitor at least one of a plurality of appliances that are electrically coupled to it;
- a data collector device communicatively coupled to and interacting with the plurality of monitoring devices;
- and
- the data collector device communicating commands to the plurality of monitoring devices and monitoring the power consumption of the plurality of appliances.
A method of operating a monitoring system that monitors power consumption by appliances, the method comprising:
- providing efficient billing display and tracking of a user's power usage information by an intelligent electricity meter electrically coupled to a plurality of appliances at a first premises;
- tracking, by the intelligent electricity meter, a user's power usage information and mapping it to each of the plurality of appliances;
- reporting the user's power usage information to a server by the intelligent electricity meter;
- recommending, by the server, ways to reduce energy consumption by the user and mapping reduced energy consumption to money saved;
- managing an energy saving contest, by the server;
- and
- determining the user as a winner of the energy saving contest based on tracked power usage information of the user.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.