1) Smart metering technologies and big data analytics can help water utilities better understand residential water usage patterns and identify different consumption profiles.
2) Gamification approaches, like the SmartH2O project's "DropTheQuestion" app, show potential for inducing behavioral change and reducing household water consumption. Preliminary results from SmartH2O indicate water savings of 10% on average.
3) Further analysis of smart meter data from over 11,000 households in Valencia, Spain identified common daily, weekly, and hourly water usage patterns and helped classify households into consumption categories from very high to low users.
ICT solutions for highly-customized water demand management strategies
1. ICT solutions for highly-customized water
demand management strategies
M. Giuliani, A. Cominola, A. Castelletti, P. Fraternali,
J. Guardiola, J. Barba, M. Pulido-Velazquez, A.E. Rizzoli
3. A general procedure
Low resolution
data
High resolution
data
non-intrusive
metering
intrusive
metering
1. DATA GATHERING
Decision tree
algorithms
Machine learning
algorithms
2. WATER END USES
CHARACTERIZATION
Descriptive
models
Prescriptive
models
behavioural
modelling
multivariate
analysis
3. USER MODELLING
4.PERSONALIZED
WDMS
water consumption at
the appliance-level
billed data
disaggregated
water end uses
water consumption at
the household-level
disaggregated
water end uses
qualitative info on drivers
of water consumption
quantitative prediction
of users’ behaviours
High-resolution smart metered
water consumption data
Models of water
user behavior
quarterly / half yearly basis readings
1 kilolitre (=1m3)
Traditional water meters
Smart meters resolution: 72 pulses/L
(=72k pulses/m3 )
Data logging resolution: 5-10 s interval
Information on time-of-day for consumption
Smart water meters
1000 L | quartely readings
0.013 L | 5-10 sec.
Cominola et al. (2015), Environmental Modelling Software
4. A general procedure
Low resolution
data
High resolution
data
non-intrusive
metering
intrusive
metering
1. DATA GATHERING
Decision tree
algorithms
Machine learning
algorithms
2. WATER END USES
CHARACTERIZATION
Descriptive
models
Prescriptive
models
behavioural
modelling
multivariate
analysis
3. USER MODELLING
4.PERSONALIZED
WDMS
water consumption at
the appliance-level
billed data
disaggregated
water end uses
water consumption at
the household-level
disaggregated
water end uses
qualitative info on drivers
of water consumption
quantitative prediction
of users’ behaviours
Models of water
user behavior
Models of water
user behavior
Water Utility problem
Water Demand Management Strategies:
TECHNOLOGICAL (e.g., water efficient devices)
FINANCIAL (e.g., water price schemes, incentives)
LEGISLATIVE (e.g., water usage restrictions)
OPERATION MAINTENANCE (e.g., leak detection)
EDUCATION (e.g., water awareness campaigns, workshops)
Cominola et al. (2015), Environmental Modelling Software
5. A general procedure
Low resolution
data
High resolution
data
non-intrusive
metering
intrusive
metering
1. DATA GATHERING
Decision tree
algorithms
Machine learning
algorithms
2. WATER END USES
CHARACTERIZATION
Descriptive
models
Prescriptive
models
behavioural
modelling
multivariate
analysis
3. USER MODELLING
4.PERSONALIZED
WDMS
water consumption at
the appliance-level
billed data
disaggregated
water end uses
water consumption at
the household-level
disaggregated
water end uses
qualitative info on drivers
of water consumption
quantitative prediction
of users’ behaviours
Models of water
user behavior
Models of water
user behavior
Characterization of the water demand at the household level, possibly
as determined by natural and socio-psychographic factors as well as by the
users' response to different WDMS.
Cominola et al. (2015), Environmental Modelling Software
8. Research questions
1) Can big-data analytics support the identification of consumption
profiles?
2) Can gamification induce behavioral change?
9. SmartH2O Project in Valencia
VALENCIA | ES
EMIVASA water supply utility
2 million customers served
490,000watersmart meters currentlyinstalled
Developmentplan: 650,000 water smartmeters installedbyend2015
http://www.smarth2o-fp7.eu/
10. User profiling via hierarchical clustering
Analysis of observed water consumption to study historical trends, extract consumption profiles, identify promising areas
for demand management options
11. Classification of average daily demand
very high (495 l/d)
high (250 l/d)
medium (130 l/d)
low (30 l/d)
DATASET:
11,000 households
hourly readings
2 years monitoring period
13. Hourly patterns - load shapes
DATASET:
11,000 households
hourly readings
2 years monitoring period
14. Most common load shapes
DATASET:
11,000 households
hourly readings
2 years monitoring period
15. Most common load shapes
DATASET:
11,000 households
hourly readings
2 years monitoring period
Zero-consumption days
16. Most common load shapes
DATASET:
11,000 households
hourly readings
2 years monitoring period
Double-peak
consumption pattern
17. Model validation
he observed one, with a very small under- and overestimation for medium and high
12. Empirical cumulative density function of daily consumption of EMIVASA
users.
daily average consumption
18. Model validation
Figure 13. Empirical cumulative density function of daily consumption of EMIVASA
users estimated for weekdays (left panel) and weekends (right panel) separately.
daily average consumption only week days only weekends
24. Take home messages
• The large-scale deployment of smart meters is renovating residential water demand
management
• ICT tools have strong potential for making the most of these new data
• Gamification represents a promising option for raising users’ awareness and induce behavioral
change
25. Next Steps
Combine the consumption profiles with psychographic information about the users for a better interpretation/
characterization of the extracted profiles.
Traditional survey: static snapshot and
limited/expensive scalability
Online gamified survey: dynamic data
collection but limited population’s sample