EP2390832A2
Active / In Force
EP
⏱️ 4.0 years remaining
Methods and systems for analyzing energy usage
Assignee: Accenture Global Services Ltd
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Filing: 2010-11-04
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2030-11-04
Abstract
Abstract Systems and methods consistent with the present invention allow an energy consumption index to be generated from DR response data and influencer data. The energy consumption index may indicate the energy consumption of a consumer before receiving a DR signal, the change in the consumption after the consumer receives a DR signal, and the consumer's propensity to respond to a DR signal. Systems and methods consistent with the present invention also allow energy providers to monitor, forecast, and plan for changes in consumer demand for energy. Various energy planning tools may facilitate an energy provider's ability to monitor, forecast, and plan for such changes.
Inventors
- 👤 Gaëlle Le roux
- 👤 Younes Souilmi
- 👤 Scott Kurth
- 👤 John M. Akred
- 👤 Thorvald Hoyem
- 👤 Sanjay Mathur
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-26 08:45
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06Q; G06Q30/00; G06Q30/02; G01; G01D; G01D4/00; G01D4/002; G01D4/004; G06Q10/00; G06Q10/06; G06Q50/00; G06Q50/06; G01D2204/00; G01D2204/10; G01D2204/14; Y; Y02; Y02B; Y02B90/00; Y02B90/20; Y02P; Y02P90/00; Y02P90/80; Y02P90/82; Y04; Y04S; Y04S20/00; Y04S20/30
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 15
Claim 1
Independent Claim
124 words
A computer-implemented method of managing energy provision, comprising: determining energy planning criteria for a group of energy users, wherein the energy planning criteria comprise: a forecast, created using a computer, of a propensity of the group of energy users to alter energy consumption; a forecast, created using a computer, of an energy consumption of the group of energy users; and a determination of an actual energy consumption of the group of energy users; determining an optimal level of a factor regarding energy provision based on the energy planning criteria; determining a signal to send to receiving devices of a target group of energy users to achieve the optimal level of the factor regarding energy provision; and sending the determined signal to the receiving devices.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
79 words
The method of claim 1, wherein determining a signal to send to receiving devices of a target group of energy users further comprises: determining a type of DR signal to send to the receiving devices of the target group of energy users; determining the target group of energy users to whose receiving devices to send the DR signal; and determining a timing scheme for sending the DR signal to the receiving devices of the target group of energy users.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
37 words
The method of claim 2, further comprising simulating an effect of sending the determined type of DR signal to the receiving devices of the determined target group of energy users in accordance with the determined timing scheme.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
84 words
The method of claim 2 or 3, further comprising: sending the determined type of DR signal to the receiving devices of the determined target group of energy users in accordance with the determined timing scheme; receiving response data from the target group of energy users' receiving devices; and determining whether the energy consumption of the target group of energy users changed in response to the determined type of DR signal that was sent to the receiving devices of the target group of energy users.
Claim 5
Independent Claim
68 words
The method of any of claims 1 to 4, wherein determining an optimal level of a factor regarding energy provision further comprises one of more of: determining a price elasticity for the group of energy users; determining a demand elasticity for the group of energy users; simulating an effect of introducing a DR signal program into a new market; and determining a negawatt capacity of an energy provider.
Claim 6
Independent Claim
63 words
The method of any of claims 1 to 5, wherein determining an optimal level of a factor regarding energy provision further comprises: determining the existence of a problem in an energy provision network; determining a type of DR signal to send to the receiving devices of the target group of energy users in order to alleviate the problem in the energy provision network.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
44 words
The method of claim 6, wherein determining the type of DR signal to send further comprises determining a minimum level of energy load to be routed from a first area in the energy provision network to a second area in the energy provision network.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
151 words
The method of any of claims 1 to 7, wherein determining said energy planning criteria comprises: receiving demand response ("DR") response data from a first group of energy users; associating the DR response data with influencer data, stored in a database, regarding the first group of energy users; determining an energy consumption index for the first group of energy users, wherein the energy consumption index comprises: a value of energy consumption before DR data is communicated to devices corresponding to the first group of energy users; a propensity of the first group of energy users to alter energy consumption in response to DR data; and a change in energy consumption, after DR data is communicated to devices corresponding to the first group of energy users; and establishing an energy consumption index for a second group of energy users based on the energy consumption index for the first group of energy users.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of claim 8, further comprising establishing an energy consumption index for a third group of energy users based on the energy consumption index for the second group of energy users.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
211 words
A system for managing energy usage by leveraging demand response ("DR") data, comprising: a first database storing DR response data received from usage devices corresponding a first group of energy users; a second database storing influencer data regarding the first group of energy users; a computer processor coupled to the first database and the second database, the computer processor associating the DR response data with the influencer data, the computer processor further determining an energy consumption index for the first group of energy users and establishing an energy consumption index for a second group of energy users based on the energy consumption index for the first group of energy users, and sending a signal to a receiving device of at least one energy user based on said energy consumption index for said second group of energy users, wherein the energy consumption index for the first group of energy consumers comprises: a value of energy consumption before DR data is communicated to usage devices corresponding to the first group of energy users; a propensity of the first group of energy users to alter energy consumption in response to DR data; and a change in energy consumption, after DR data is communicated to usage devices corresponding to the first group of energy users.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
27 words
The system of claim 10, wherein the first group of energy users comprises a sample group of consumers that are representative of an energy provider's customer base.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
28 words
The system of claim 10 or 11, wherein the energy consumption index for the first group of energy users further comprises a period over which energy change persisted.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
26 words
The system of any of claims 10 to 12, wherein the second group of energy users is a subset of the first group of energy users.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
45 words
The system of any of claims 10 to 13, wherein establishing an energy consumption index for the second group of energy users comprises correlating energy consumption behavior of the first group of energy users and energy consumption behavior of the second group of energy users.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
24 words
The system of any of claims 10 to 14, wherein the DR response data comprise a value of energy consumption on a per-device basis.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
CA2531839A1
Cited
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