Smart Meters

PROJECT SUMMARY

The topic is about smart meters and smart grids (and smart cities), where we use smart meters. These are meters which measure the power consumption, or in case of photo-voltaic cells, measure the power generation, and communicate with other equipment. The communication can be via power lines or wireless.

The problem we see is that non-sinusoidal voltages and currents cause differences in readings. Furthermore unbalanced power supplies could cause differences in readings. We are investigating the cause of these variations. We also would like to develop units which are more advanced to what is currently available, in terms of measurement and control. In terms of measurement, we often use Power Qubes http://www.powerstandards.com/PQube.php. But these are not perfect, too expensive for wide employment. We are also interested in the wideband (DC-MHz) impedance of the grid, how to measure it, and as function of time (microseconds to minutes), and the propagation of interference. In terms of control there are many devices on the market. If the issue of errors in meter readings has been solved we would like to create a test bed for a zero-energy house, where the measuring and control is integrated at building-level, and where energy consumption from the grid is minimized by optimization of energy flow. We will add power quality and (conducted) electromagnetic interference issues to it, while monitoring electromagnetic fields from the health perspective (exposure) could be an option too.

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