Smart grid

LAS VEGAS--No longer content to simply show its latest electronics at CES, LG this year brought a line of networked "smart appliances."

At a press event here today, the company announced a line of kitchen and cleaning appliances that use the Thinq brand name, promising consumers better energy efficiency and control.

The appliances use a Wi-Fi home network and smart meter to offer features, such as remotely operating appliances from a smart phone or programming them to take advantage of off-peak rates.

Being connected to a network also enables the appliances to alert their owners that something is … Read more

A smart-home automation system using Fios, Verizon's fiber-optic communications network, is about to be tested in some New Jersey homes, the company announced yesterday.

The management system, which Verizon simply refers to as Home Monitoring and Control, enables real-time access to view and make changes to a home's lighting, security cameras, locks, and thermostats, as well as appliances and consumer electronics devices connected to the home network.

The software application that offers the real-time monitoring and control can be accessed by smartphone, computer, or Fios TV.

Verizon will be demonstrating the smart-home system at the 2011 International Consumer … Read more

MidAmerican Energy plans to install 593 megawatts worth of wind power in Iowa, the company announced yesterday.

The Des Moines, Iowa-based company is a subsidiary of MidAmerican Energy Holdings, which itself is a listed subsidiary of Warren Buffett's holding company Berkshire Hathaway. About 89 percent of MidAmerican Energy Holdings is owned by Berkshire Hathaway, a MidAmerican spokeswoman told the Associated Press.

MidAmerican Energy has signed a deal with Siemens Energy to provide the wind turbines for the project, which will consist of 258 of Siemens' giant 2.3-megawatt wind turbines installed throughout several counties in Iowa by the end … Read more

As more companies realize the savings involved in running large commercial buildings more efficiently when it comes to energy, sales of automated building energy management systems are poised to soar.

The U.S. market for such systems will grow to $2.4 billion annually by 2016 compared to seeing $900 million in revenue for 2010, according to the "Building Energy Management Systems" report released today by Pike Research.

Products include optimization software for a particular building's needs, as well as analytics that tap in to smart grids to predict peak supply and demand scenarios and adjust internal … Read more

Google's PowerMeter Web application can now track home electricity from a PC or smartphone using Wi-Fi and a home's broadband connection.

Blue Line Innovations is expected to announce a deal tomorrow to tie its PowerCost Monitor to Google's PowerMeter for monitoring home energy. Combined with a WiFi Gateway sold by Blue Line Innovations, a person can get real-time and historical information on electricity use. PowerMeter also lets people create a home energy budget, share efficiency tips, and predict costs.

Getting more information on energy use is meant to help people find ways to conserve. For example, a … Read more

AT&T has acquired home automation company Xanboo, part of a spate of activity which could lead to energy management services from broadband providers.

Xanboo provides homeowners with a system for managing connected devices, such as security cameras and controllers, from a smartphone, TV, or PC. CEPro reported the acquisition yesterday (hat tip to Earth2Tech).

The deal follows Motorola's announcement last week that it has bought home automation company 4Home, in which Verizon also had invested. Earlier this year, iControl and uControl merged their product offerings, which are expected to be used as part of Comcast's Xfinity home security service.

Internet broadband providers are pushing into home automation to expand their product offerings as a way to retain customers. They expect that consumers will be willing to pay for security services, where people can access cameras and door alarms from a PC, TV, or smartphone.

One of the services broadband providers have explored with home automation is energy management, which would give consumers a way to monitor electricity use and control electronics from a Web-enabled device or TV.

Verizon, for example, has talked about offering a combined energy and security service, although it has yet to roll it out. The idea would be that a person could use a device, such as touch-screen display, to change home settings. For example, when leaving, a person can turn on the security and adjust the thermostat and lighting. … Read more

Smart-grid data analytics services will generate $4.2 billion in annual revenue by 2015, according to a report released today by Pike Research.

The report asserts that converting the amassment of raw data collected from smart meters into useful information, and in real-time, is a utility's goal from day one of smart-grid deployment. The information garnered from data analytics has an immediate and direct impact on how a utility operates as a company, according to Pike Research.

"[By] utilizing smart-grid data analytics tools and related services, utilities will be able to gain better insights into their customers' energy … Read more

General Electric has created a Home Energy Management business in a bid to apply digital technologies to energy efficiency in consumers' homes and the electric grid, the company said today.

The business unit, part of GE Appliances & Lighting, combines "smart" appliances and an Internet-based home energy management system called Nucleus, which is set for release next year.

By making a single business unit for home energy, GE is trying to focus its efforts on consumer interest in smart-grid technologies geared at using energy more efficiently, the company said.

"It makes economic and environmental sense for the … Read more

The best path to energy-efficient electronics is connecting them to the Internet, according to People Power.

The Silicon Valley-based company today launched a system that uses embedded networking chips and Internet software, called the Energy Services Platform, to monitor and control plugged-in devices for better efficiency. It says it's working with some business partners and expects its products to be available in the first quarter of next year.

There are dozens of companies seeking to reduce waste in electronics with energy monitoring and control technologies, with many developing home energy management systems made available through utilities.

People Power, by … Read more