Smart Grid:
Energy Monitoring
Demarcus Hamm
ECE-499
Advisor: Professor Traver
6/9/2010
1
Report Summary:
The purpose of the capstone design project is to give students a chance to incorporate a
lot of what they have learned in the last four years into one project. This project combines
research of the Smart Grid system and energy monitoring systems. The project will use an
energy monitoring system to simulate smart meters in the home that will be used in the Smart
Grid system. We will do this by using an energy monitoring system to measure the energy
consumption in the engineering labs. The analysis of this data will provide us information that
could lead to energy savings by making us more aware of wasteful energy use or helping to
create an energy management system.
The goal of this project is to set up a real time energy monitoring system for one or more
of the rooms in the electrical and computer engineering (ECE) labs that stores data by day and
time. We want to be able to understand the energy use by the time of day and by the type of load
we are monitoring. We also want to set up a visible display in the hallway near the labs to raise
Smart Grid and energy conservation awareness.
The project was approached by first finding the maximum energy consumption of all the
loads in the ECE labs to determine which load could lead to the most savings. Using information
gathered by a student about the load and circuit connections to the circuit panels, a diagram was
made to allow for easier understanding of the connections. Next, a list of design alternatives
were created and evaluated on their effectiveness of meeting the goals. The system selected was
the TED5000G.
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Table of Contents:
Report Summary…………………………………………………………………………………1
Table of Figures and Tables……………………………………………………………………..3
Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………....4
Background……………………………………………………………………………….......4-11
Smart Home Network……………………………………………………………………….......5-7
Energy Sensors………………………………………………………………………………….7-9
Room and Layout Power Consumption………………………………………………………10-12
Effects on society………………………………………………………………………………...12
Design Requirements………………………………………………………………………..12-13
Design Alternatives………………………………………………………………………….13-15
Final Design and Implementation…………………………………………….……………15-17
Results…..……..…………………….……………………………………………...…………...17
Production Schedule……………….……………………………..………………………....18-19
Cost Analysis…………………………………………………………………………………....20
User’s Manual…………………….…………………………………………………………….20
Conclusion…………………………...………………………………………………………20-21
References………………………………………………………………………………..…..22-23
Appendix…………………...………………………………………………………………..24-33
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Table of Figures and Tables:
Figure1: Diagram of Smart Home Network Components………………………………………...5
Figure 2: Current Shunt………………………………………………………………………...…6
Figure 3: Closed Loop Hall Effect Sensor………………………………………………………...7
Figure 4: Magnetoresisive Sensor…………………………………………………………………8
Figure 5: Optical Current Sensor………………………………………………………………….8
Figure 6: Basic Circuit Diagram…………………………………………………………………..9
Table 1: The Maximum Energy Consumption by Devices……………………………………...10
Figure 7: Components of an Energy Monitoring System ……………………………………….12
Figure 8: Connection Diagram of the Energy Monitoring System………………………………15
Figure 9: Photo of Current Transformer set up…………………………………………………..15
Figure 10: Final Connection Diagram…………………………………………………………...16
Table 2: Cost……………………………………………………………………………………..19
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Introduction:
In 2007, less than 10% of the total electric energy in the US was produced using
renewable resources; 49% of it was produced using coal and 22% of it was produced using
natural gas. Petroleum, coal, and natural gas used in electric energy production, represented 81%
of total U.S. human-caused greenhouse gas emissions in 2008 [7]. Because of the limited
availability of nonrenewable resources and the effects of greenhouse gas emissions on the
environment, this is a problem. How can we start to solve this problem? The problem could be
addressed on the distribution side or the consumer side; we could increase our use in renewable
energy sources, such as solar or wind power or we could use the most energy efficient
technology available. The use of Smart Grid addresses this problem and may lead to a solution in
the future. Smart Grid would help us use electric energy in a more efficient manner using
technology and resources already available.
In this project, we will explore smart grid, energy monitoring and management and set
up an energy monitoring system to advance smart grid concepts in Union College. Research was
first conducted on Smart Grid, components of smart home networks, and energy monitoring. We
then developed design requirements and produced a set of design alternatives for the project. A
final design was then selected, implemented, and evaluated.
Background:
Generally, Smart Grid is a way of using sensors, actuators, and information technology to
increase the efficiency of energy distribution, while allowing business and homeowners to use
this energy more efficiently. Smart Grid can be defined in different ways depending on what
perspective you are looking at it on. Some people like to look at it more from the distributor’s
side; they emphasize Smart Grid as the use of sensors and control techniques to increase grid
security and efficiency and make grids “self healers” [1]. Self healers mean that grid issues will
be reported and resolved in real time. Smart Grid has also been looked at as having smart
appliances that are automated to turn off when the users do not want them on. In this perspective,
smart meters are also important to give consumers more control over their cost by allowing them
to see how much they are spending and what the level of demand is. Demand is the total amount
of electricity being used by a customer at a time and is measured in kW. For example, using 250
kW for one hour is the same amount of kWh as using 500kW for 30 minutes; however, in the
first case the demand is 250kW while it is 500kW in the second case. In the second case the
distributors need more generation and transmission capacity to supply the customer.
We will mainly focus on Smart Grid as a two way communication between energy
distributors and customers using smart meters and sensors. These meters utilize sensors that
sense energy use in homes. The meters will display this data and data from the distributors
regarding demand allowing customers to use their appliances in ways that would be cheaper for
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them and the distributors. Energy distributors use rate structures that are either fixed, based on
season, based on time of day, or other factors. With a fixed rate structure, people pay the same
price to use energy during periods of peak demand, when it actually takes more to supply that
energy due to loading, as they do when there is very little energy use going on. If smart meters
were used with a program that varied the rate structure with demand, it would encourage energy
use during times that would be more efficient. The smart meters would allow consumers to
observe how much they are being charged for their energy use at specific times allowing them to
use it when it would be cheaper; since this would be when the demand is lower it would be
cheaper for distributors. This will also reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and it could still be
used in conjunction with alternative energy sources to increase their efficiency.
Energy saving sensors is also a big part of smart grid. Sensors are being used in systems
to reduce resource use in homes. Systems that include occupancy sensors are being used to turn
off and on lights. Their applications also extend to water control; the sensors are used to keep
water from being used wastefully. Temperature sensors are being used in heating and air
conditioning control. In the future, it may be useful to use sensors to help in managing other
things for instance controlling other appliances such as TV’s. Light sensors could also be used in
systems to make lights dimmed in the day. In addition, they can be used in kitchens to aid in
controlling stoves and ovens. Moreover, the systems could all be controlled by a centralized unit
that allows users to adjust which appliances turn off, times when they will turn off, and how long
they delay before turning off when they are not in use.
Smart Home Network:
Smart home networks allow computers, devices, and other appliances to communicate
with each other. Smart home networks are made up of several components: the sensors, sensor
interface, actuators, computing, and communication. Figure 1 shows a possible configuration of
the components.
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Figure 1: The components of a smart home network.
The sensors in the smart home network transform a physical property into an electrical signal.
Sensor interface is circuitry that changes the sensor output into one that can be recognized by the
actuator or computer. In the network, the communications can be wired or wireless. The network
can also have many different topologies; the network could be arranged to allow for sensor nodes
to communicate with other sensor nodes or actuators. The computing in sensor networks is done
by the microcontroller, which controls the sensors, processes its data, and handles the
communication protocols; there can be several computers or one central one. In a smart home
network, actuators are an optional component that is controlled by a sensor or computer to
change the environment or the networks relation to it. Actuators can improve sensing by
repositioning sensors or pointing a camera; they also can affect the environment by opening a
valve or emitting a sound.
In a smart home network, a possible sensor node could be composed of the sensor, an
analog to digital converter, a bus interface, and an analog interface circuit. These smart sensors
differ in the degree that they are integrated on the sensor chip. For example, one could have a
sensor chip with a built in analog interface and an analog to digital converter, but the bus
interface must be connected separately. Fully integrated smart sensors contain all necessary
elements to function on one sensor chip. They contain one or more sensors, amplifiers,
multiplexers, A/D converters, an interface, and control and power management per node. The
sensor nodes can be interfaced using various methods. They could be connected using a bus
interface where the nodes would all be connected to a single cable. They could also be connected
using mesh topology where the sensors would communicate through each other wired or
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wirelessly. The nodes could all communicate to a central hub that would control each node as
well.
Energy Sensors:
Electrical energy is energy resulting from work done on charged particles due to an
electromagnetic force. There are various types of sensors that can be used for electrical energy
monitoring. In this section a few current sensors of electrical energy are examined.
Current transformers are one that measures only AC current. The input current range of
current transformers depends on the ratio of windings between the first and second coils of wire.
Wound current transformers use two coils of wire; one connected to the power supply called the
primary winding and the other is the secondary winding. As current travels through the primary
winding a magnetic field is produced; this induces a current on the secondary winding that is
smaller but proportional to the primary current. Window current transformers have one winding
assembled on the core; the monitored conductor passes through the middle. Current transformers
are used in meters and protection of appliances connected to AC power supplies.
Current shunt (also called ammeter shunt) is a type of energy sensor that can measure
AC/DC current. Its input current ranges are up to 20A with frequencies up to 100 kHz [15]. In
current shunt a resistor with very little resistance is placed in a circuit. Based on the voltage drop
through the resistor and the resistance of the resistor the current can be found using Ohms Law
(I=V/R). Figure 2 shows an example of a current shunt. Current shunts are primarily used for
power supply monitoring.
Figure 2: An example of a current shunt. [13]
Hall Effect current sensors also measures AC/DC current. Hall Effect current sensor
typical ranges are for open loop up to 1000A and from DC-20 kHz; for closed the ranges are less
than 500A and from DC up to 150 kHz [15]. A open loop Hall Effect sensor is one where the
amplified output of the Hall element is directly used as its measurement value. In a closed loop
8
one, the amplified output is sent through a compensation coil on the magnetic core to make the
flux in the core zero; this makes the sensor more linear and temperature independent. Hall Effect
sensors are made using magnetic material, a current conductor and a hall element. The sensors
work by creating a magnetic field perpendicular to a current in a conductor; this creates a voltage
difference across the conductor. These sensors output voltage is proportional to the product of
the magnetic flux density and the current through the conductor. Figure 3 shows a setup for a
closed loop Hall Effect current sensor. Hall Effect current sensors are used for motor and inverter
control, reed switches, and power supply management and protection.
Figure 3: Setup for a closed loop Hall Effect current sensor. [16]
Another type of energy sensor is called Magnetoresistive current sensor. These sensors
can also measure AC/DC current up to 50A [16]. Magnetoresistive current sensors are made up
of magnetoresistors arranged in a bridge and current conductors. The electric resistance of the
magnetoresistors depends on the external magnetic field applied to them. The primary current
produces a magnetic field that changes the resistances of the magnetoresistors. The
compensation conductor is to compensate for the magnetic field produced by the current through
the primary conductor; this feedback reduces nonlinearity and removes temperature dependence.
The voltage drop across a resistor after the compensation forms the output. Figure 4 shows a
basic setup for magnetoresistors. Magnetoresistive current sensors are used in power electronic
systems, solar technology, battery management, electric vehicles, robotics, and safety devices.
9
Figure 4: Setup for a Magnetoresistive current sensor. [16]
Optical current sensors sense AC/DC current using the Faraday’s effect; it can also be
used to determine magnetic field intensity. The input current range is up to 23 kA [21]. Current
flowing in a conductor induces a magnetic field that rotates linearly polarized light traveling in a
sensing path encircling the conductor. From the rotation of the plane of polarization of the light,
a measurement of the magnetic field can be made and from that the current can be found. Optical
current sensors uses bulk optical crystals or long lengths of optical fiber, coiled around a currentcarrying conductor. Figure 5 shows a setup for an Optical current sensor. Optical sensor
applications include monitoring currents on overhead electrical distribution lines, underground
electrical vaults, and rectangular bus-bars within switchgear.
Figure 5: Example optical fiber based current sensor.
The five sensors mentioned above are not the only types of sensors of electrical energy. In fact,
electrical energy can also be measured using voltage sensors or power meters that use some of
the same principles in a different way to measure energy consumption. From the collection of
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sensors above, it’s apparent that even sensors that sense the same parameters are very different.
Depending on the inputs and the received outputs they will be better than others for certain
applications.
Room Layout and Power Consumption:
There are nine rooms in the hallway for the ECE labs. There are two circuit panels that
contain the circuits for most of these rooms (the outlets for the odd rooms are not on these
panels). Using this information a diagram was created (shown in figure 6) to show the basic
circuit connections in both panels in a simpler form and the relative layout of the rooms and
panels in the ECE labs.
Figure 6: Basic circuit connection diagram. The numbers on the lines represent how many circuits are connected for
the load type. The lights for the even rooms except 108 are on two circuits and the rest of the lights are on only one
circuit.
To decide which load we wanted to monitor we did calculations of the maximum power
consumption of all of the load types in the labs. In table 1, we can see that the biggest energy
consumers are the computers, printers and the projectors. This is the maximum power that they
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consume when they are in use with everything running. If we take into consideration how much
the appliances are being used we’ll find that the biggest consumers are the lights and computers.
The lights are probably higher than the computers because they are almost always on. Since
these are the biggest consumers, monitoring the energy used by one of these will be more
beneficial because decreasing the energy used by them could lead to more savings.
Appliances
Monitor
power save
Computer
power save
Function
generator
Multimeter
Power Supply
Oscilloscope
Printer
HP2300dn
standby
power save
Printer p4014
power save
standby
Printer P3005dn
power save
standby
Projector
standby
Lights per bulb
per unit
Power Consumption (W)
84
~6
310
~3
28
10
195
100
426
8.8
8.4
800
12
17
600
9
9
370
6
32
128
Table 1: The maximum energy consumption by devices.
The benefit with measuring the energy used by lights is that most of the lights in a room
are connected to two circuits; some rooms have lights connected to only one circuit. This would
allow us to monitor the energy use in a circuit and obtain information about the room light’s
power consumption and the power consumption of lights in general. The disadvantage is that the
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circuits for the lights are connected to the panel in the corridor that may be hard to access. The
disadvantage in monitoring the computers energy consumption is that they are on more than two
circuits. This will increase the number of sensors we need. The advantage in monitoring the
computers is that there is less management on the computer’s energy use so it could be more
effective in terms of saving energy.
Effects on Society:
The effects of the project on society will have to do mostly with its economic,
environmental, political, and social impact and its manufacturability. Studies have been done in
the past that focus on how energy monitoring affected residential homes. One such project in
Japan provided 10 homes with an energy monitoring system to monitor total energy consumption
and the energy consumption of various devices. It was found that the total energy consumption
dropped by about 12% after the installation of the system [23]. Because the results are based on
how informed the users are the results cannot tell how much of an impact this project will have;
however, it does show that there are opportunities for projects to be a huge success. Economic
success and environmental impact are intertwined. Because 90% of the U.S. electric energy is
produced using nonrenewable resources using less energy will lead to less nonrenewable
resources being used. The byproducts of the nonrenewable resources include radioactive waste
and various air pollutants. Reduction in the use of these resources should result in a decline in
drilling and mining for these resources. The display will also educate people on Smart Grid and
raise energy awareness. With energy shortage concerns and sustainable development being a
global concern this is certain to have a giant social and political impact. In the US, China, and
Europe Smart Grid is becoming very important. This project and similar ones will show the
effectiveness of a smarter distribution grid without all of the associated risk. The
manufacturability of energy monitors are growing as time progresses. There are already many
different systems that are available for residential circuit monitoring and for single device
monitoring.
Design Requirements:
The goals of the project are to understand the energy usage in the ECE labs to allow for
energy savings or an energy management system and to provide education to students and
visitors. In order for us to meet our goals the system must meet certain design requirements. The
design must
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Use wireless technology
Store data
Graphically display data
Monitor more than one circuit in a panel
Be expandable
Contain a visible display
Run without user interactions
Have a two inch depth or less for the display
Go into standby mode when no one is near it
Display may need internet access
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Display may need space for a database
To monitor energy in the labs we will need to monitor energy through the circuit panels; we want
this design to use wireless technology so that we do not have to do additional wiring from the
panel to the system and from the system to the display to set up the energy monitoring system.
We want this energy monitoring system to store data so that we can compare data from different
days. The system must be able to graphically display the data so that it is easier to interpret and
analyze. This design must be able to monitor more than one circuit so we can have a more
complete monitoring of the rooms. We want our design to be expandable so that we can add
additional circuits to monitor. Also, if another student wanted to update the system or add an
energy management aspect to it they would be able to. A computer will be used to display the
data in the system. Viewers will be able to see the energy consumed by loads in the labs. This
information will be shown as a graph and switch between displaying the data over the last
minute, hour, day, week, and month; the display mode will switch every thirty seconds. They
will also be able to see information about Smart Grid; this information will be inside the display
case near the display.
The display for the system will be outside in the hallway near the labs inside the glass
display case. For this reason the display must run without user interactions and be less than two
inches thick. Since computers waste a significant amount of energy while displaying the data, the
display must go into standby mode when no one is viewing the data. The display may need
internet access because a lot of the design options require the data to be displayed over the
internet. The display may also need enough hard drive space to store a database for the graphs.
Design Alternatives:
There were many different options for the systems we could have chosen. The energy
monitoring system that we need to set up will have the basic parts shown in figure 7.
Figure 7: Components of the energy monitoring system. The curved lines represent wireless communication.
14
One option was to make every component of the system ourselves. With this option we
would have to buy each individual part and make custom software and interfaces. An advantage
of this is that we would have complete control over what our system does. The biggest
disadvantage with this option is how much time it would take to put together the system. It
would be very complicated because we would have to make the software to store and display the
data from scratch.
The next set of options include off the shelf integrated options. The first one is the plugin energy monitors. These energy monitors plug in to an outlet and monitors the energy of the
load connected to it. These energy monitors have their own display. The advantage of this
method is that it is really simple. The disadvantages are that it can’t graphically display the data
or transmit the data. We would also need a lot of these devices if we wanted to use this method.
Another disadvantage is that there is no way to monitor lights or any other load that did not use
outlets.
The Power Logic branch circuit monitor is an ideal solution for this project. It can
monitor 42 circuits in a panel using clip-on current transformers; this is more than enough to
monitor ever circuit in the panel. It has software to graphically display the data and it has web
based transmission of data. With this system we would have to add a computer to the system to
display the data. The problem with this is that it costs $3000.
The OwlCM119 is another design option. It is an energy monitor that uses clip-on
current transformer to monitor energy use. The system can be bought with or without a display.
The system cannot add extra transformers so we would have to buy a whole new sensor each
time. No information was found on whether or not the system would cause interference if
another system was added. The system can also connect to a computer through USB and it has
software to graphically display the data. The system costs about $50 for single circuit
monitoring.
The final option we looked into was the TED 5000G. This energy monitor, much like the
previous two, use current transformers to monitor energy. The current transformers are
connected to a measuring and transmitting unit, which transmits data through the wires of the
circuit to the gateway. The gateway can transmit the data to a computer through Ethernet or
wirelessly. This system can add up to four extra measuring units and eight current transformers.
The cost of the system is about $200 for one measuring and transmitting unit, two current
transformers, and one gateway. The system has software to store data and it is compatible with
Google power meter, which graphs the data. There are also third party applications to display
data in different ways.
For the display, research was done to find appropriate systems. The first option
considered was the apple Ipad. It has a 9.7 inch display, internet access, and 16-64 GB of hard
drive space. It also has a touch screen display and in-plane switching properties (ISP) that allows
the computer to adjust to different viewing angels. This option ranges in cost from $500-700.
The problem with this choice is that we could get a bigger display if we are not going to use the
other features the Ipad has. The advantage of it is that it would fit in the display case without
many modifications.
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The next option was the all in one computer. These computers have all of their
components in one piece. The advantages of these computers are that they have varying screen
sizes from about 17-22 inches and they have hard drive space that can go up to 1TB. Some of
these computers have a remote control that could be used for switching between standby modes.
The disadvantage of the computers is that they may not fit in the space provided.
We also considered using the desktop computers in the labs and drilling a hole through
the display case to the room behind it; this would allow for a monitor to be in the case and the
tower to be in the other room. This method would be cheaper than the other options. The
problem with this is that permission to do this may be difficult to obtain.
Final Design and Implementation:
The system we chose for monitoring was the TED5000G with one additional measuring
and transmitting unit (MTU) and two additional current transformers (CT). The system will be
connected as shown in figure 8.
Figure 8: Connection diagram of the energy monitoring system. The Current transformers are clip on and will be
inside of the panel with the measuring and transmitting unit.
Our system will have 2 MTUs, 4 CTs, and one gateway. The CTs measures the current in the
system based on the magnetic field created by it. Figure 9 is a picture of the set up inside of the
circuit panel.
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Figure 9: CTs in the circuit panel. The CTs in the photo are clipped around circuits 7-11.
The system measures real RMS power and is also capable of measuring complex power. It has 1
watt sensitivity and accuracy within 2%. The MTUs samples the voltage and does calculations to
compute power factor. This information is communicated to the gateway through a circuit that is
connected to the outlet the gateway is plugged into. The gateway then stores the data.
The gateway communicates software stored in it called TED footprints that allows us to
display data on a computer in the network. The advantage of using the footprints system would
have been that we would have working software to display the power factor, complex power, and
real RMS power. It also would display the data graphically for each MTU. One disadvantage of
the software is that it cannot switch between displaying data by different time periods
automatically; it requires you to manually select displaying the data by minute, hour, week, and
month. Another disadvantage is that the software requires user interaction to tell the MTUs apart
graphically; we have to move the cursor over the graph to tell which MTU the graph is for. Since
our system is not supposed to be very interactive, this goes against our design requirements.
Since the developers release their application program interface, there are many third
party software available. The software that we decided to use is a modified version of third party
software called “it’s Electric.” The program has been modified to display 1 minute, 1 hour, 1
week, and 1 month data in 30 second intervals. The disadvantage of using this software was that
the modifications were time consuming.
Figure 10 below shows a final connection diagram with communication methods.
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Figure 10: Final connection diagram. The hardware is shown in squares while the software is in ellipses.
The MTUs communicate with the gateway using power line carrier, a way of communicating
through power lines. The gateway communicates to the Union College access point to display
Footprints. Footprints can only be displayed on a computer that is on the internal campus
network. The Its Electric software is ran on antipasto, a Union college web server; it takes data
from the TED5000 and stores it in a database. The javascript and Html code for the Its Electric
software can be found in the Appendix. It includes Google visualization API and provides a
webpage to display the data. For this reason the data can be viewed over the World Wide Web.
Results:
The energy monitoring aspect of the project is set up and running on antipasto. The CTs
are currently monitoring circuits 12-14 which are the lights in rooms 104 and 106. The software
is displaying inaccurate values because the MTUs were designed for two phase systems. To
compensate for this we have to use one phase for the MTU and the CTs connected to it. This
limits our options regarding what we can monitor. Another option is to wait until the TED
manufactures release the three phases MTU scheduled for June 2010. If we took this option we
could use the previous MTUs for single phase and the new ones for the 3 phase applications.
Because of the MTU complications we have not yet tested the accuracy of the circuit
readings. The rated accuracy is 2% with 1 watt sensitivity. The display is not currently up due to
acquiring permissions and spacing complications.
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Production Schedule:
Week 1:
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Set up system with MTU 1 on circuits 7 and 9 and MTU 2 on circuits 8 and 10.
o Found issues with MTU and Gateway communications.
Created a draft poster for the Smart Grid Symposium.
Week 2:
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Finalized poster for Smart Grid Symposium and presented it.
Obtained communication between gateway and MTUs.
o Talked with Mike Mahony about possible interference. Found that his project has
not started.
Started investigating accuracy issues.
o Found spikes in energy use at certain times.
Week 3:
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Used the meter to compare accuracy with TED's footprints software.
o Started looking for sources of error because data was not very accurate.
Started researching software to display energy monitoring data.
o Found 3rd party applications to graphically display TED data and developer API.
o Started looking into modifying the It's Electric 3rd party application.
Created an energy audit plan.
Week 4:
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Found possible issue with TED5000 readings.
o Mathematical error with use of a 3 phase system.
o Began to investigate the issues with the measurements.
o Decided to hold off the energy audits.
Started learning the basics of HTML.
Week 5:
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Contacted the developer on the issue.
o Learned that the problem could be fixed using software, but no information on
how.
o Started looking at the differences between the different distribution systems.
Posted issue on the TED5000 support forum.
Started web page for senior project. .
Updated final report.
Week 6:
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Obtained complete circuit energy measurements from footprints system and a multimeter
to observe the differences in the values.
Researched display and motion sensor options.
Energy monitoring software running without the automatic switch between hour, day,
and month.
o Energy monitor linked to website
Week 7:
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Talked with Gary Thomas about feasibility of mounting.
o possible in both locations
o Biggest concern is whether or not we can fit the computer inside.
Talked with Mike Mahony about his PLC project
o Has not started yet.
o He does not think it will cause much interference due to location and the type of
project he's doing.
Added more information to display and motion sensor options.
Talked with TED manufacturers regarding MTU problem.
o Problem will cause errors with the power factor calculations.
o Trade in not possible.
Week 8:
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Received suggestion from the support forum.
o Connect the CTs to one phase of the circuit per MTU.
Finished initial software modifications.
o Software switches between different display modes.
Started working on final presentation.
Discovered problem with software.
o IP address was dynamic
o Interfered with communication with Its Electric
Week 9:
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Finished and presented final presentation.
Completed and presented the final poster.
Talked with ITS to get a static IP address.
Week 10+:
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Removed unnecessary interactive buttons in software.
Looked into drilling a hole for the display choices.
Debugging software.
Finished final paper.
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Cost Analysis:
The table below shows the cost for the project.
Item
Price
TED 5002-G
Extra MTU and 2
CTs
$
Company
The Energy
279.95 Detective
$
80.00
Web Site
http://www.theenergydetective.com/store/
Table 2: Cost for the project. The display cost is an estimate currently.
In terms of $/circuits monitored the system had prices a little higher than similar systems. The
Owl cm119 could monitor 1 circuit for about $50 initially. Afterwards, it cost about $8 for an
extra sensor and can hold four sensors per system. Including the USB connect the total system
cost would be $100. Adding additional sensors would require a new system and could lead to
interference. The Power Logic BCM monitors 42 circuits with a cost per circuit of $71.40. The
cost difference between the TED system and the similar systems is justified by the fact that the
system is more expandable than the Owl and can be bought in a smaller quantity than the Power
Logic BCM.
User’s Manual:
For information related to changing or setting up the hardware, the TED5000 installation
manual can be referred to.
http://www.theenergydetective.com/media/TED%205000%20Installation%20Instructions%20v2
.0.1.pdf
The It’s Electric software is ran in SSH client. After logging in to antipasto.union.edu,
you must change to the directory that has the its-electric.jar file. The code to run the program is
java -jar its-electric-1.4.jar -m 2 -g http://149.106.35.142 electricDB/
The –m allows you to specify how many MTUs you have present and the –g lets you specify the
IP address. If you want to change the port “–p” can be added before the “–g” otherwise, it
defaults to port 8081.
After the program is running, the database should start growing about 1GB per month. To
view the data currently go to antipasto.union.edu/~hammd/its-electric.html.
Conclusion:
The project is expected to help with energy savings in Union College by raising energy
awareness and creating an opportunity for an energy management system. The idea with smart
meters is that if a person knows how much they are spending on energy and during what times
they will come up with a better plan to save. With the labs the students are not directly paying for
the energy, but knowing how much they use could motivate them to save. Furthermore, if the
21
faculty understands the usage they may be able to set up restrictions to limit the amount of rooms
available when there are not many students.
Using the TED5000 system we were able to set up an energy monitor with software to
display it on a computer. The system does not include the display, but in the future it will be
implemented. Future work for this project also includes making edits to the software to include
power factor and the complex power for each of the MTUs. The project could also be expanded
to include another gateway for the circuit panel in room 100. The data should be analyzed to find
better ways to use our energy.
22
References
1. S. Massoud Amin and Bruce F. Wollenberg. “Toward a Smart Grid” 2005
http://160.94.126.215/amin/Smart_Grid_IEEE_P&E_Amin_Wollenberg.pdf
2. Bradley Williams. “Smart Grid Basics- Turning Information into Power”. May 2009.
http://www.oracle.com/industries/utilities/pdfs/oracle-utilities-smart-grid-basics-wp.pdf
3. “What is Smart Grid and Why is it Important?” NEMA 2009.
http://www.nema.org/gov/energy/smartgrid/whatIsSmartGrid.cfm
4. Stan McCraking “Understanding Your Electric Rates”.
http://www.sandsutilityprofessionals.com/understanding%20your%20electric%20rates.p
df
5. Max Alexander. “From the Ground up: Smart Home Networks”
http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/article/0,,1214514,00.html
6. “What is a Smart Home” Smart home systems, Inc.
http://www.smarthomeusa.com/info/smarthome/
7. “Energy explained” http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/energyexplained/index.cfm
8. Mauri Kuorilehto, Mikko Kohvakka, Jukka Suhonen, Panu Hamalainen, Marko
Hannikainen, Timo D. Hamalainen. “Ultra-Low Energy Wireless Sensor Networks in
Practice” pg 29-41, Wiley 2007
9. C. S Raghavendra, Krishna M. Sivalinam, Taieb Znati.(eds.) “Wireless Sensor Networks”
pg. 3-19, Springer 2006
10. Boulianne, Carla Marie. “Functions of a Current Transformer” 2009
http://electricitymagnetism.suite101.com/article.cfm/functions_of_a_current_transformer
11. C. Sankaran. “Don't Be Left Short by Current Transformers” 1999
http://ecmweb.com/mag/electric_dont_left_short/
12. S. Piotri Filipski and Michael Boecker. “AC-DC Current Shunt and System for Extended
Current and Frequency Ranges” 2006
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=1658375&isnumber=34720
13. “Current Shunt Resistors” 2006 http://www.rc-electronics-usa.com/current-shunt.html
14. S.C Mukhopadhyay, R.Y.M. Huang (eds.), “Sensors” pg. 3-42, Springer-Verlag Berlin
Heidelberg 2008
15. Richard Dickinson and Shaun Milano. “Isolated Open Loop Current Sensing Using Hall
Effect Technology in an Optimized Magnetic Circuit” 2002
http://www.allegromicro.com/en/Products/Design/current_sensing/bsp_v1_52.pdf
16. P. Andreas Friedrich and Helmuth Lemme. “The Universal Current Sensor” 2000.
http://www.sensorsmag.com/articles/0500/82/main.shtml
17. Stefan Hubschmann and Matthias Schnieder. “Magnetoresistive Sensors” 1996
http://www.diodes.com/_files/products_appnote_pdfs/zetex/an20.pdf
18. J. Blake, W. Williams, C. Glasow, R. Bergh, K. Fetting, E. Hadley, and G. Sanders “
Optical Current Transducers for High Voltage Applications”
http://www.nxtphase.com/pdfs/Optical_Current_Transducers.pdf
19. W. Chu, D. Mcstray, and A. J. Rogers. “Magneto-optic Current Sensor Using a
Highly-Linear Birefringent Optical Fiber”
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?arnumber=00168470
20. Paul Duncan. “Optical Current and Voltage Sensors for Bus-bar Monitoring of Navy
Switchboards” 2005 http://www.empf.org/empfasis/apr05/busbar405.htm
23
21.Douglas P. McNutt, “ Electrical current sensors” 1998
ftp://ftp.macnauchtan.com/Theory/Current.pdf
22. Focus on Energy “Understanding Your Electric Bill” Technical Data Sheet. 2007
http://www.focusonenergy.com/files/document_management_system/business_programs/
understandingelectricbill_technicalsheet.pdf
23. Tsuyoshi Ueno, Ryo Inada, Osamu Saeki, and Kiichiro Tsuji. “Effectiveness of
Displaying Energy Consumption Data in Residential Houses”
http://www.ce.cmu.edu/~gdrg/readings/2006/02/21/Tsuji_EnergyDisplays.pdf
24
Appendix:
Java script for It’s electric program:
This file is part of
"it's electric": software for storing and viewing home energy monitoring data
Copyright (C) 2009--2010 Robert R. Tupelo-Schneck <schneck@gmail.com>
http://tupelo-schneck.org/its-electric
function
ItsElectric(url,timelineId,busyId,getWMax,resolutionId,initialZoom,realTimeUp
dateInterval) {
this.url = url;
this.timelineId = timelineId;
this.initialZoom = initialZoom;
this.busyId = busyId;
this.getWMax = getWMax;
this.resolutionId = resolutionId;
this.div1 = null;
this.div2 = null;
this.ready = false;
this.firstTime = true;
this.range = null;
this.resolution = null;
this.resolutionString = "";
this.minimum = 0;
this.maximum = 0;
this.realTime = true; // set false to prevent auto-update at latest time
this.noFlashEvents = false; // set true to make it work (somewhat) when
// accessing a file: URL without privileges
var self = this;
setInterval(function(){self.realTimeUpdate();},realTimeUpdateInterval);
this.zoom_position = 0;
this.change_zoom_delay_ms = 20000;
this.auto_zoom_ranges = new Array(
60,
60*60,
24*60*60,
24*60*60*7,
30*24*60*60
);
this.auto_zoom_text = new Array(
"1 min",
"1 hour",
"1 day",
"1 week",
25
"1 month"
);
setInterval(function(){self.autoChangeZoom();},
this.change_zoom_delay_ms);
}
ItsElectric.prototype.autoChangeZoom = function() {
var zoom_var = this.auto_zoom_ranges[this.zoom_position];
document.getElementById("zoom_level").innerHTML=this.auto_zoom_text[thi
s.zoom_position];
this.zoom(zoom_var);
this.zoom_position++;
if(this.zoom_position >= this.auto_zoom_ranges.length){
this.zoom_position = 0;
}
}
ItsElectric.prototype.init = function() {
var div0 = document.createElement('div');
div0.style.position = 'relative';
div0.style.width = '100%';
div0.style.height = '100%';
this.div1 = document.createElement('div');
this.div1.style.position = 'absolute';
this.div1.style.width = '100%';
this.div1.style.height = '100%';
this.div1.style.zIndex = '1';
this.div2 = document.createElement('div');
this.div2.style.position = 'absolute';
this.div2.style.width = '100%';
this.div2.style.height = '100%';
this.div2.style.zIndex = '0';
document.getElementById(this.timelineId).appendChild(div0);
div0.appendChild(this.div1);
div0.appendChild(this.div2);
this.annotatedtimeline = new
google.visualization.AnnotatedTimeLine(this.div1);
this.annotatedtimeline2 = new
google.visualization.AnnotatedTimeLine(this.div2);
var self = this;
google.visualization.events.addListener(this.annotatedtimeline,
'ready',
function(e){self.readyHandler(e);});
google.visualization.events.addListener(this.annotatedtimeline,
'rangechange',
function(e){self.rangeChangeHandler(e);});
google.visualization.events.addListener(this.annotatedtimeline2,
'ready',
26
function(e){self.readyHandler(e);});
google.visualization.events.addListener(this.annotatedtimeline2,
'rangechange',
function(e){self.rangeChangeHandler(e);});
this.requery();
};
ItsElectric.prototype.queryURL = function() {
var queryURL = this.url + '?extraPoints=yes';
var extendChar = '&';
if(this.ready) {
if(this.range && (this.range.start.getTime() != this.minimum ||
this.range.end.getTime() != this.maximum)) {
queryURL = queryURL + extendChar +
'start='+ Math.floor(this.range.start.getTime()/1000)
+
'&end=' + Math.floor(this.range.end.getTime()/1000);
extendChar = '&';
}
}
if(this.resolution) {
queryURL = queryURL + extendChar +
'resolution=' + this.resolution;
extendChar = '&';
}
return queryURL;
}
ItsElectric.prototype.requery = function() {
var query = new google.visualization.Query(this.queryURL());
//if(this.busyId) document.getElementById(this.busyId).style.display="";
var self = this;
query.send(function(response) {self.handleQueryResponse(response);});
};
ItsElectric.prototype.options = {displayAnnotations: false,
displayExactValues: true,
allValuesSuffix: 'W'};
ItsElectric.prototype.handleQueryResponse = function(response) {
if (response.isError()) {
if(this.busyId)
document.getElementById(this.busyId).style.display="none";
alert('Error in query: ' + response.getMessage() + ' ' +
response.getDetailedMessage());
return;
}
var realTimeNeedsAdjust = this.realTime && this.range &&
this.range.end.getTime() == this.maximum;
var data = response.getDataTable();
this.minimum = data.getValue(0,0).getTime();
this.maximum = data.getValue(data.getNumberOfRows()-1,0).getTime();
this.timeZoneOffset = parseInt(data.getTableProperty('timeZoneOffset'));
27
var wmax = null;
if(this.getWMax) wmax = this.getWMax();
var options = {};
for(p in this.options) options[p] = this.options[p];
var startDate = new Date();
var endDate = new Date();
var start;
var end;
if(this.range) {
if(realTimeNeedsAdjust) {
start = this.maximum - (this.range.end.getTime() this.range.start.getTime());
end = this.maximum;
this.range.start.setTime(start);
this.range.end.setTime(end);
}
else {
start = this.range.start.getTime();
end = this.range.end.getTime();
}
}
else {
start = this.minimum;
end = this.maximum;
}
setDateAdjusted(startDate,start);
setDateAdjusted(endDate,end);
options.zoomStartTime = startDate;
options.zoomEndTime = endDate;
// Disable the range selector
options.displayRangeSelector = false;
options.displayZoomButtons
= false;
if(wmax && wmax!='') {
options.max = wmax;
}
this.annotatedtimeline2.draw(data, options);
this.resolutionString = data.getTableProperty('resolutionString');
if(this.noFlashEvents) this.readyHandler(null);
};
// this horribleness makes things behave close to daylight saving time change
function setDateAdjusted(date,time) {
date.setTime(time);
date.setTime(time - date.getTimezoneOffset()*60000);
// yes, again, in case we are close to DST
date.setTime(time - date.getTimezoneOffset()*60000);
}
ItsElectric.prototype.readyHandler = function(e) {
if(this.busyId)
document.getElementById(this.busyId).style.display="none";
if(this.resolutionId) {
var obj = document.getElementById(this.resolutionId);
while(obj.firstChild) obj.removeChild(obj.firstChild);
28
obj.appendChild(document.createTextNode(this.resolutionString));
}
this.ready = true;
var temp = this.annotatedtimeline2;
this.annotatedtimeline2 = this.annotatedtimeline;
this.annotatedtimeline = temp;
temp = this.div1.style.zIndex;
this.div1.style.zIndex = this.div2.style.zIndex;
this.div2.style.zIndex = temp;
if(this.firstTime && !this.noFlashEvents) {
this.firstTime = false;
this.zoom(this.initialZoom);
}
};
ItsElectric.prototype.rangeChangeHandler = function(e) {
var oldRange = 0;
if(this.range) {
oldRange = this.range.end.getTime() - this.range.start.getTime();
}
this.range = this.annotatedtimeline.getVisibleChartRange();
if(this.range.end.getTime() - this.range.start.getTime() != oldRange) {
this.resolution = null;
}
this.requery();
};
ItsElectric.prototype.zoom = function(t) {
if(this.noFlashEvents) alert("This won't work with noFlashEvents=true.");
if(!this.ready || this.noFlashEvents) return;
this.range = this.annotatedtimeline.getVisibleChartRange();
this.resolution = null;
var newStart = new Date();
newStart.setTime(this.range.end.getTime() - t*1000);
this.range.start.setTime(this.range.end.getTime() - t*1000);
if(newStart.getTime()<this.minimum) newStart.setTime(this.minimum);
var newEnd = new Date();
newEnd.setTime(this.range.end.getTime());
this.annotatedtimeline.setVisibleChartRange(newStart,newEnd);
var self = this;
setTimeout(function(){self.requery();},500);
};
ItsElectric.prototype.scrollToPresent = function() {
if(this.noFlashEvents) alert("This won't work with noFlashEvents=true.");
if(!this.ready || this.noFlashEvents) return;
this.range = this.annotatedtimeline.getVisibleChartRange();
var size = this.range.end.getTime() - this.range.start.getTime();
var newStart = new Date();
var newEnd = new Date();
newEnd.setTime(this.maximum);
this.range.end.setTime(this.maximum);
newStart.setTime(this.maximum - size);
this.range.start.setTime(this.maximum - size);
this.annotatedtimeline.setVisibleChartRange(newStart,newEnd);
29
var self = this;
setTimeout(function(){self.requery();},500);
};
ItsElectric.prototype.setResolution = function(t) {
if(!this.ready) return;
this.resolution = t;
this.requery();
};
ItsElectric.prototype.realTimeUpdate = function() {
if(!this.ready || !this.realTime || this.noFlashEvents) return;
if(this.range && this.range.end.getTime() < this.maximum) return;
this.requery();
};
HTML for its Electric Software:
<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
<!-This file is part of
"it's electric": software for storing and viewing home energy monitoring data
Copyright (C) 2009-2010 Robert R. Tupelo-Schneck <schneck@gmail.com>
http://tupelo-schneck.org/its-electric
-->
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en">
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" />
<script type="text/javascript" src="its-electric.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
// CHANGE URL BELOW to the URL of your "it's electric" data server
var itsElectric = new ItsElectric('http://antipasto.union.edu:8081',
// CHANGE URL HERE
'timeline','busy',
function(){return
document.forms['topform'].wmax.value;},
'resolutionId',4*60*60,60000);
//itsElectric.noFlashEvents = true; // not recommended, see
README.txt
</script>
<title>it's electric</title>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://www.google.com/jsapi"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
google.load('visualization', '1',
{'packages':['annotatedtimeline']});
google.setOnLoadCallback(function() { itsElectric.init(); });
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
function show(id) {
var e = document.getElementById(id);
e.style.display = '';
30
}
function hide(id) {
var e = document.getElementById(id);
e.style.display = 'none';
}
</script>
<script onload="itsElectric.timedRangeChange()">
</script>
<style type="text/css">
.its-electric {
font-family: monospace;
font-size: 40px;
font-weight: bold;
letter-spacing: 5px;
text-shadow: gray 2px 2px 2px;
}
.monospace {
font-family: monospace;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<div>
<span class="its-electric">i<span style="letter-spacing:5px">t</span><span style="letter-spacing:-3px">'s</span> electric</span>
<span
class="monospace">v1.4</span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp
;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbs
p;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nb
sp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&n
bsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<img alt="" src="img6.jpg" width="300" height="82" /></div>
<div style="position:relative;width:1000px;">
<form id="topform" action="#" onsubmit="return false;">
<p style="font-size:11px;font-family:sans-serif;marginbottom:0.25em;padding-left:0.5em">
<!-- <b>More zoom:</b> -->
<span>
<!-<a href="#"
onclick="itsElectric.zoom(15*60);return false;">15'</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.zoom(30*60);return
false;">30'</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.zoom(60*60);return
false;">1h</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.zoom(2*60*60);return
false;">2h</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.zoom(4*60*60);return
false;">4h</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.zoom(8*60*60);return
false;">8h</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.zoom(12*60*60);return
false;">12h</a>&nbsp;
-->
31
<h2>Range: <span id="zoom_level">4 hours</span>
</h2>
</span>
&nbsp;
<!-<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.scrollToPresent();return
false;">Scroll to present</a>
-->
&nbsp;
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<b>Watts max:</b>
<input type="text" name="wmax" value="1000"
style="width:4em;text-align:right;" onchange="itsElectric.requery();"/>W
&nbsp;
<!-<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.requery();return
false;">Refresh</a>
&nbsp;
<a href="#"
onclick="document.forms['topform'].wmax.value=null;itsElectric.requery();retu
rn false;">Auto max</a>
&nbsp; &nbsp;
-->
<!-<b>Resolution:</b>
<span>
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(1);return
false;">1"</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(4);return
false;">4"</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(15);return
false;">15"</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#" onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(60);return
false;">1'</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#"
onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(4*60);return false;">4'</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#"
onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(15*60);return false;">15'</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#"
onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(60*60);return false;">1h</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#"
onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(3*60*60);return false;">3h</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#"
onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(8*60*60);return false;">8h</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#"
onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(24*60*60);return false;">1d</a>&nbsp;
<a href="#"
onclick="itsElectric.setResolution(null);return false;">Auto</a>&nbsp;
</span>
-->
&nbsp;
<!-<i>Currently: <span id="resolutionId"></span></i>
&nbsp;
32
<span id="busy" style="display:none"><img
style="position:absolute;right:0;" src="wait20.gif" alt="[busy]"/></span>
-->
</p>
</form>
</div>
<div id="timeline" style="width:1000px;height:600px;"></div>
<!--INSERT PERSONAL TEXT HERE-->
<p style="font-size:small">
<a href="http://tupelo-schneck.org/its-electric"><span
class="monospace">it's electric</span></a>: software for storing and viewing
home energy monitoring data
<br/>
Copyright &copy; 2009-2010 <a href="http://tupeloschneck.org/robert">Robert R. Tupelo-Schneck</a>
&lt;<a href="mailto:schneck@gmail.com">schneck@gmail.com</a>&gt; <a href="#" onclick="show('copying');window.scrollBy(0,1000);return
false;">free software / no warranty</a> <a href="its-electric-1.4.zip">download including source</a>
<span id="copying" style="display:none; color:gray; font-size:small">
<br/><br/>
<span class="monospace">it's electric</span> is free software: you can
redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the <a
href="http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/agpl.html">GNU Affero General
Public License</a> as<br/>
published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
License, or (at your option) any later version.<br/>
<br/>
<span class="monospace">it's electric</span> is distributed in the hope that
it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of<br/>
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
<a href="http://www.fsf.org/licensing/licenses/agpl.html">GNU Affero General
Public License</a> for more details.
&nbsp; <a href="#" onclick="hide('copying');return false;">hide</a>
</span>
</p>
</body>
</html>