# US 2018/0025443 A1 · Electric energy adjustment apparatus, system, method and program > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2018/0025443 A1 - Document ID: US20180025443A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 15/547,248 - Filed: 2015-02-23 - Published: 2018-01-25 - Earliest claimed: 2015-02-23 - Assignees: NEC Corporation - Applicants: NEC Corporation - Inventors: Shantanu CHAKRABORTY; Toshiya OKABE - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20180025443A1 ## CPC - G06Q 50/06: Energy or water supply - G05B 15/02: electric - H02J 3/008: Circuit arrangements for power supply or distribution technologies responsive to energy trading - G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - G05B: CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS (systems for controlling or regulating non-electric variables G05D; systems for regulating electric or magnetic variables G05F; control devices or systems insofar as characterised by mechanical features only G05G) - H02J: ELECTRIC POWER NETWORKS; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS OR SYSTEMS FOR SUPPLYING OR DISTRIBUTING ELECTRIC POWER; SYSTEMS FOR STORING ELECTRIC ENERGY ## Abstract A Service Provider (SP) includes a controller that instructs several Producers (provide the electric energy) and Consumers (consume the electric energy) about the electrical energy. The controller selects one of the Producers as an Active Producer (AP) that provides a predetermined volume of the electric energy, one of a remainder of the Producers as a Passive Producer (PP) that adjusts a volume of provided electric energy to be, one of the Consumers as an Active Consumer (AC) that consumes a predetermined volume of the electric energy, and one of a remainder of the Consumers as a Passive Consumer (PC) that adjusts a volume of consumed electric energy, and the controller instructs one of Passive Subscribers (either the PP or the PC) to adjust the electric energy, so as to mitigate a difference between a total supply volume and a total demand volume. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An electric energy adjustment apparatus comprising: at least one memory storing instructions, and at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to instruct a plurality of Producers and Consumers about electrical energy, the Producers provide the electric energy, the Consumers consume the electric energy; wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to select at least one of the plurality of Producers as an Active Producer that provides a predetermined volume of the electric energy, at least one of a remainder of the plurality of Producers as a Passive Producer that adjusts a volume of the electric energy to be provided, at least one of the plurality of Consumers as an Active Consumer that consumes a predetermined volume of the electric energy, and at least one of a remainder of the plurality of Consumers as a Passive Consumer that adjusts a volume of the electric energy to be consumed, and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to instruct at least one of Passive Subscribers, which is at least one of either the Passive Producer or the Passive Consumer, to adjust the electric energy, so as to mitigate a difference between a total volume of the electric energy provided by the plurality of Producers and a total volume of the electric energy consumed by the plurality of Consumers. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The electric energy adjustment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to receive values of an electric energy volume which is provided by the plurality of Producers and is consumed by the plurality of Consumers during a certain time period, and the at least one processor instructs at least one of the Passive Subscribers to adjust the electric energy based on the received values of the electric energy volume. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The electric energy adjustment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor instructs at least one of the Passive Subscribers to adjust the electric energy during a certain time period, and when there is a difference between a total real supply volume which is provided by the plurality of Producers and a total real demand volume which is consumed by the plurality of Consumers during the certain time period, the at least one processor instructs at least one of the Passive Subscribers to further adjust the electric energy. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The electric energy adjustment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein before a certain time period in which the plurality of Producers and Consumers actually adjust the electric energy, the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to determine adjustment values to adjust the electric energy so as to mitigate the difference based on predicted values of demand and supply electric energy obtained in each of the plurality of Producers and Consumers during the certain time period, and the at least one processor instructs at least one of the Passive Subscribers based on the adjustment values. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The electric energy adjustment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor possesses profiles about demand and supply electric energy obtained in each of the plurality of Producers and Consumers during a certain time period, the at least one processor determines adjustment values to adjust the electric energy, based on the profiles, and the at least one processor instructs at least one of the Passive Subscribers based on the adjustment values. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The electric energy adjustment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein there are a plurality of time periods for the Passive Subscribers to adjust the electric energy, and the at least one processor determines adjustment values to adjust the electric energy for each of the time periods, so as to mitigate the difference, and instructs at least one of the Passive Subscribers based on the adjustment values. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The electric energy adjustment apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the at least one processor selects one of the pluralities of Producers and Consumers as Active and one of the pluralities of Producers and Consumers as Passive for each of the time periods. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The electric energy adjustment apparatus according to any claim 1, wherein the at least one processor determines adjustment values to adjust the electric energy so as to mitigate the difference within the range of the constraints under which the Passive Subscribers are able to adjust the electric energy, and instructs at least one of the Passive Subscribers based on the adjustment values. ### Claim 9 (canceled) ### Claim 10 An electric energy adjustment method using a plurality of Producers that provide electric energy, a plurality of Consumers that consume the electric energy and a controller that instructs the plurality of Producers and Consumers about the electrical energy, the method comprising: selecting, by the controller, at least one of the plurality of Producers as an Active Producer that provides a predetermined volume of the electric energy, at least one of a remainder of the plurality of Producers as a Passive Producer that adjusts a volume of the electric energy to be provided, at least one of the plurality of Consumers as an Active Consumer that consumes a predetermined volume of the electric energy, and at least one of a remainder of the plurality of Consumers as a Passive Consumer that adjusts a volume of the electric energy to be consumed; and instructing, by the controller, at least one of Passive Subscribers, which is at least one of either the Passive Producer or the Passive Consumer, to adjust the electric energy, so as to mitigate a difference between a total volume of the electric energy provided by the plurality of Producers and a total volume of the electric energy consumed by the plurality of Consumers. ### Claim 11 A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a control program causing a computer to execute: a selection processing of selecting at least one of a plurality of Producers which provide electric energy as an Active Producer that provides a predetermined volume of the electric energy, at least one of a remainder of the plurality of Producers as a Passive Producer that adjusts a volume of the electric energy to be provided, at least one of the plurality of Consumers which consume the electric energy as an Active Consumer that consumes a predetermined volume of the electric energy, and at least one of a remainder of the plurality of Consumers as a Passive Consumer that adjusts a volume of the electric energy to be consumed, and an instruction processing of instructing at least one of Passive Subscribers, which is at least one of either the Passive Producer or the Passive Consumer, to adjust the electric energy, so as to mitigate a difference between a total volume of the electric energy provided by the plurality of Producers and a total volume of the electric energy consumed by the plurality of Consumers.