Smart Plug Load Remote Management & Analytics

This project is a laboratory evaluation of commercial plug load controls. The control devices connect wirelessly to the cloud and can report energy usage data. These devices are specific to commercial applications. The objective of the evaluation is to test the controls capability of the devices, the accuracy of energy measurements and cloud reporting capabilities. The deliverable will be a report with findings from the laboratory evaluation.

The goal of this project is to assess the functionality of intelligent plug load controls designed for commercial applications to determine potential opportunities for new customer incentive programs to help increase end user adoption of plug load control technology. The assessment verified the products’ metering capabilities against laboratory-grade power meters within an acceptable margin. Energy savings were found to be minimal with the loads used in this assessment. It is possible that more significant savings can be achieved in combination with other types of loads that are not equipped with any control or energy-savings features as those found in many modern customer end-use plug loads. For this project, two TV operating modes, retail and home, were considered in the evaluation of potential energy savings. Retail mode typically consumes the highest amount of electrical power as this mode provides better picture quality. It is important to note that TV loads can vary substantially, depending on size, operating mode, selected energy savings features and configuration with external input/output devices.