This document summarizes an article from the January 2013 issue of ERCIM News about smart energy systems. It discusses the S4EeB project which aims to develop an intelligent building management system to optimize energy efficiency. The system will use audio sensors and signal processing to determine occupancy levels in buildings in order to adjust HVAC and other systems based on actual usage. It describes the components of the system including acoustic processing units and a building management optimizer. The project is testing prototypes at airports and malls in Europe.
The IoT-MGLab at the department of energy technology , Aalborg University is a living laboratory that intends to develop and demonstrate cost-effective and comfort-aware solutions for future smart homes and enables the construction of an internet of things (IoT)-based infrastructure for a data intensive system and its interaction with end-users. IoT-MGLab also serves as a demonstrator to show the viability of low voltage DC and AC systems for future households which will enhance the energy efficiency, flexibility and reliability following Danish smart grid strategy.
The IoT-MGLab at the department of energy technology , Aalborg University is a living laboratory that intends to develop and demonstrate cost-effective and comfort-aware solutions for future smart homes and enables the construction of an internet of things (IoT)-based infrastructure for a data intensive system and its interaction with end-users. IoT-MGLab also serves as a demonstrator to show the viability of low voltage DC and AC systems for future households which will enhance the energy efficiency, flexibility and reliability following Danish smart grid strategy.
Module 10 - Section 7,8 & 9: Enabling effects of ICTs for climate action 2011...Richard Labelle
This presentation focuses on the role of ICTs in enabling the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, in facilitating greater energy efficiency and overall in contributing to the promotion of sustainability and LED (low emission development).
Slide presentations developed to demonstrate how Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) be used to address climate change, and why ICTs are a crucial part of the solution – i.e. in promoting efficiency, Green Growth & sustainable development, in dealing with climate change and for climate and environmental action. These slide presentations were delivered in February 2011 in Seongnam, near Seoul in Korea.
These presentations were developed and delivered over 2.5 days on the occasion of a Regional Training of Trainers Workshop for upcoming Academy modules on ICT for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Abatement. These modules were developed as part of the Academy of ICT Essentials for Government leaders developed by the United Nations (UN) Asia Pacific Centre for ICT Training (APCICT), based in Songdo City, in the Republic of South Korea.
These presentations were developed in 2011, and are somewhat out of date, but most of the principles still apply. Module 10, which has been published, does not include much of the information outlined in these presentations, which are fairly technical. They were developed to address a significant gap in understanding of the technical basis of using ICTs for climate action and because there is a clear bias in development circles against the importance of dealing with climate change mitigation in developing countries. These presentations are an attempt to redress this lack and are published here with this purpose in mind.
The author, Richard Labelle, is presently working on updating these presentations to further highlight the importance of addressing climate change and the important role that technology including ICTs, play in this effort.
Europe 2014-2020: smart grid (réseaux intelligents)UNITEC
présentations de la Délégation générale Société de l’Information à la délégation d’Aquitains conduite par AEC, 30 janvier 2012:
les réseaux intelligents (smart grid)
Module 10 - Section 7,8 & 9: Enabling effects of ICTs for climate action 2011...Richard Labelle
This presentation focuses on the role of ICTs in enabling the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, in facilitating greater energy efficiency and overall in contributing to the promotion of sustainability and LED (low emission development).
Slide presentations developed to demonstrate how Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) be used to address climate change, and why ICTs are a crucial part of the solution – i.e. in promoting efficiency, Green Growth & sustainable development, in dealing with climate change and for climate and environmental action. These slide presentations were delivered in February 2011 in Seongnam, near Seoul in Korea.
These presentations were developed and delivered over 2.5 days on the occasion of a Regional Training of Trainers Workshop for upcoming Academy modules on ICT for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Abatement. These modules were developed as part of the Academy of ICT Essentials for Government leaders developed by the United Nations (UN) Asia Pacific Centre for ICT Training (APCICT), based in Songdo City, in the Republic of South Korea.
These presentations were developed in 2011, and are somewhat out of date, but most of the principles still apply. Module 10, which has been published, does not include much of the information outlined in these presentations, which are fairly technical. They were developed to address a significant gap in understanding of the technical basis of using ICTs for climate action and because there is a clear bias in development circles against the importance of dealing with climate change mitigation in developing countries. These presentations are an attempt to redress this lack and are published here with this purpose in mind.
The author, Richard Labelle, is presently working on updating these presentations to further highlight the importance of addressing climate change and the important role that technology including ICTs, play in this effort.
Europe 2014-2020: smart grid (réseaux intelligents)UNITEC
présentations de la Délégation générale Société de l’Information à la délégation d’Aquitains conduite par AEC, 30 janvier 2012:
les réseaux intelligents (smart grid)
El nuevo superordenador Mare Nostrum y el futuro procesador europeoAMETIC
Presentación a cargo de Mateo Valero, del BSC-CNC, en el 33er Encuentro de la Economía Digital y las Telecomunicaciones organizado por AMETIC y Santander Empresas en colaboración con la UIMP
Industrial networks are becoming ever more complex and require more compact connectivity solutions. One of the key questions on the path to Integrated Industry is what capabilities future Ethernet infrastructures will need to provide.
Dans le cadre de la Semaine Européenne du Développement Durable, The Smart Company a organisé un Energy Day consacré à l'efficience énergétique des bâtiments et aux villes intelligentes.
Nous avons eu l'honneur d'assister aux présentations du Cluster Tweed, de la Ville de Liège, de Dalkia, de Cenaero avec la participation de Snugr et de Cleanweb Belgium.
Module 10 - Session 6 enabling effects of ICTs part 2. Smart motor systems, s...Richard Labelle
More on the enabling effects of ICTs from a 2011 perspective. How these smart technologies can make a significant contribution to reducing GHG emissions and enhancing energy efficiency and conservation as well as facilitating energy management in general.
Slide presentations developed to demonstrate how Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) be used to address climate change, and why ICTs are a crucial part of the solution – i.e. in promoting efficiency, Green Growth & sustainable development, in dealing with climate change and for climate and environmental action. These slide presentations were delivered in February 2011 in Seongnam, near Seoul in Korea.
These presentations were developed and delivered over 2.5 days on the occasion of a Regional Training of Trainers Workshop for upcoming Academy modules on ICT for Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Abatement. These modules were developed as part of the Academy of ICT Essentials for Government leaders developed by the United Nations (UN) Asia Pacific Centre for ICT Training (APCICT), based in Songdo City, in the Republic of South Korea.
These presentations were developed in 2011, and are somewhat out of date, but most of the principles still apply. Module 10, which has been published, does not include much of the information outlined in these presentations, which are fairly technical. They were developed to address a significant gap in understanding of the technical basis of using ICTs for climate action and because there is a clear bias in development circles against the importance of dealing with climate change mitigation in developing countries. These presentations are an attempt to redress this lack and are published here with this purpose in mind.
The author, Richard Labelle, is presently working on updating these presentations to further highlight the importance of addressing climate change and the important role that technology including ICTs, play in this effort.
Jim Brazell presents a prescient view on the future of computing at the Machine to Machine Computing Conference for M2M United in San Antonio, Texas in 2006. If you want a speaker who can show you the future today, there is one guy who has been nailing future trends for the past decade and his name is Jim Brazell. Learn more at www.ventureramp.com. Read his free technology forecast from the Texas State Technical College System on the same topic at: http://forecasting.tstc.edu/forecasts/m2m-the-wireless-revolution/
M2M is an acronym for Machine-to-Machine computing and both fourth generation and M2M involve networking physical, chemical, biological and neurological objects, systems and environments. Applications of M2M and fourth generation computing span virtually every industry and market. “The most compelling discovery of the report is the emergence of a fourth generation of computing defined as a system on a chip with a single platform for power, communications and computing.” says Jim Brazell, principal analyst.
Highlights of the forecast include recommendations to educators who wish to develop curricula and analysis of the global US$100 billion industry in 2005 forecast to grow to US $700 billion by 2010. The report describes M2M technologies, identifies the emerging and promising markets, and identifies the resources Texas can draw upon to play a leading role in this increasingly competitive arena. Based on more than 100 interviews and an M2M industry survey, as well as secondary sources, the report outlines human capital needs of M2M companies over the next three to five years, and how technical and community colleges can best meet those needs through targeted curricula and transdisciplinary learning environments. By anticipating workforce demands, college curriculum offerings can be a constructive force in attracting high-tech companies to the state and ensuring that existing high-tech companies continue to have appropriately skilled employees.
Opportunities and challenges in printed electronics productionQuad Industries
Printed electronics represents an enormous potential in a world of interconnected appliances. But there is still a large gap between the technology that is available and the potential for real-life applications. “That’s why we are focusing so strongly on intensive collaboration with our customers,” says Wim Christiaens, R&D director at Quad Industries.
Wireless future actility ifma_realty 19-05-15Muriel Walter
DEBATNAMIDDAG IFMA ''Intelligente gebouwen'' - 19 mei 2015 - Realty T&T
Of we er nu werken of leven, we willen ons prettig en comfortabel in een ruimte voelen. In bedrijfspanden spelen flexibiliteit en rendabiliteit bovendien een uiterst belangrijke rol. Hoe flexibeler de gebouwentechniek op nieuwe eisen kan reageren en zich aan nieuwe technische ontwikkelingen kan aanpassen, des te eerder zal deze techniek renderen. Bovendien is met het oog op het toenemende milieubewustzijn en de stijgende energiekosten een gebouwmanagement vereist dat intelligente oplossingen voor efficiënt energieverbruik biedt.
IFMA gaat op deze debatnamiddag tijdens de Realty beurs op T&T dieper in op dit thema en de impact van deze evolutie op de activiteiten van de Facility Manager en Real Estate professional.
Connector Corner: Automate dynamic content and events by pushing a buttonDianaGray10
Here is something new! In our next Connector Corner webinar, we will demonstrate how you can use a single workflow to:
Create a campaign using Mailchimp with merge tags/fields
Send an interactive Slack channel message (using buttons)
Have the message received by managers and peers along with a test email for review
But there’s more:
In a second workflow supporting the same use case, you’ll see:
Your campaign sent to target colleagues for approval
If the “Approve” button is clicked, a Jira/Zendesk ticket is created for the marketing design team
But—if the “Reject” button is pushed, colleagues will be alerted via Slack message
Join us to learn more about this new, human-in-the-loop capability, brought to you by Integration Service connectors.
And...
Speakers:
Akshay Agnihotri, Product Manager
Charlie Greenberg, Host
JMeter webinar - integration with InfluxDB and GrafanaRTTS
Watch this recorded webinar about real-time monitoring of application performance. See how to integrate Apache JMeter, the open-source leader in performance testing, with InfluxDB, the open-source time-series database, and Grafana, the open-source analytics and visualization application.
In this webinar, we will review the benefits of leveraging InfluxDB and Grafana when executing load tests and demonstrate how these tools are used to visualize performance metrics.
Length: 30 minutes
Session Overview
-------------------------------------------
During this webinar, we will cover the following topics while demonstrating the integrations of JMeter, InfluxDB and Grafana:
- What out-of-the-box solutions are available for real-time monitoring JMeter tests?
- What are the benefits of integrating InfluxDB and Grafana into the load testing stack?
- Which features are provided by Grafana?
- Demonstration of InfluxDB and Grafana using a practice web application
To view the webinar recording, go to:
https://www.rttsweb.com/jmeter-integration-webinar
Kubernetes & AI - Beauty and the Beast !?! @KCD Istanbul 2024Tobias Schneck
As AI technology is pushing into IT I was wondering myself, as an “infrastructure container kubernetes guy”, how get this fancy AI technology get managed from an infrastructure operational view? Is it possible to apply our lovely cloud native principals as well? What benefit’s both technologies could bring to each other?
Let me take this questions and provide you a short journey through existing deployment models and use cases for AI software. On practical examples, we discuss what cloud/on-premise strategy we may need for applying it to our own infrastructure to get it to work from an enterprise perspective. I want to give an overview about infrastructure requirements and technologies, what could be beneficial or limiting your AI use cases in an enterprise environment. An interactive Demo will give you some insides, what approaches I got already working for real.
Epistemic Interaction - tuning interfaces to provide information for AI supportAlan Dix
Paper presented at SYNERGY workshop at AVI 2024, Genoa, Italy. 3rd June 2024
https://alandix.com/academic/papers/synergy2024-epistemic/
As machine learning integrates deeper into human-computer interactions, the concept of epistemic interaction emerges, aiming to refine these interactions to enhance system adaptability. This approach encourages minor, intentional adjustments in user behaviour to enrich the data available for system learning. This paper introduces epistemic interaction within the context of human-system communication, illustrating how deliberate interaction design can improve system understanding and adaptation. Through concrete examples, we demonstrate the potential of epistemic interaction to significantly advance human-computer interaction by leveraging intuitive human communication strategies to inform system design and functionality, offering a novel pathway for enriching user-system engagements.
Let's dive deeper into the world of ODC! Ricardo Alves (OutSystems) will join us to tell all about the new Data Fabric. After that, Sezen de Bruijn (OutSystems) will get into the details on how to best design a sturdy architecture within ODC.
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
Slack (or Teams) Automation for Bonterra Impact Management (fka Social Soluti...Jeffrey Haguewood
Sidekick Solutions uses Bonterra Impact Management (fka Social Solutions Apricot) and automation solutions to integrate data for business workflows.
We believe integration and automation are essential to user experience and the promise of efficient work through technology. Automation is the critical ingredient to realizing that full vision. We develop integration products and services for Bonterra Case Management software to support the deployment of automations for a variety of use cases.
This video focuses on the notifications, alerts, and approval requests using Slack for Bonterra Impact Management. The solutions covered in this webinar can also be deployed for Microsoft Teams.
Interested in deploying notification automations for Bonterra Impact Management? Contact us at sales@sidekicksolutionsllc.com to discuss next steps.
Transcript: Selling digital books in 2024: Insights from industry leaders - T...BookNet Canada
The publishing industry has been selling digital audiobooks and ebooks for over a decade and has found its groove. What’s changed? What has stayed the same? Where do we go from here? Join a group of leading sales peers from across the industry for a conversation about the lessons learned since the popularization of digital books, best practices, digital book supply chain management, and more.
Link to video recording: https://bnctechforum.ca/sessions/selling-digital-books-in-2024-insights-from-industry-leaders/
Presented by BookNet Canada on May 28, 2024, with support from the Department of Canadian Heritage.
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 3DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 3. In this session, we will cover desktop automation along with UI automation.
Topics covered:
UI automation Introduction,
UI automation Sample
Desktop automation flow
Pradeep Chinnala, Senior Consultant Automation Developer @WonderBotz and UiPath MVP
Deepak Rai, Automation Practice Lead, Boundaryless Group and UiPath MVP
LF Energy Webinar: Electrical Grid Modelling and Simulation Through PowSyBl -...DanBrown980551
Do you want to learn how to model and simulate an electrical network from scratch in under an hour?
Then welcome to this PowSyBl workshop, hosted by Rte, the French Transmission System Operator (TSO)!
During the webinar, you will discover the PowSyBl ecosystem as well as handle and study an electrical network through an interactive Python notebook.
PowSyBl is an open source project hosted by LF Energy, which offers a comprehensive set of features for electrical grid modelling and simulation. Among other advanced features, PowSyBl provides:
- A fully editable and extendable library for grid component modelling;
- Visualization tools to display your network;
- Grid simulation tools, such as power flows, security analyses (with or without remedial actions) and sensitivity analyses;
The framework is mostly written in Java, with a Python binding so that Python developers can access PowSyBl functionalities as well.
What you will learn during the webinar:
- For beginners: discover PowSyBl's functionalities through a quick general presentation and the notebook, without needing any expert coding skills;
- For advanced developers: master the skills to efficiently apply PowSyBl functionalities to your real-world scenarios.
Key Trends Shaping the Future of Infrastructure.pdfCheryl Hung
Keynote at DIGIT West Expo, Glasgow on 29 May 2024.
Cheryl Hung, ochery.com
Sr Director, Infrastructure Ecosystem, Arm.
The key trends across hardware, cloud and open-source; exploring how these areas are likely to mature and develop over the short and long-term, and then considering how organisations can position themselves to adapt and thrive.
Software Delivery At the Speed of AI: Inflectra Invests In AI-Powered QualityInflectra
In this insightful webinar, Inflectra explores how artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming software development and testing. Discover how AI-powered tools are revolutionizing every stage of the software development lifecycle (SDLC), from design and prototyping to testing, deployment, and monitoring.
Learn about:
• The Future of Testing: How AI is shifting testing towards verification, analysis, and higher-level skills, while reducing repetitive tasks.
• Test Automation: How AI-powered test case generation, optimization, and self-healing tests are making testing more efficient and effective.
• Visual Testing: Explore the emerging capabilities of AI in visual testing and how it's set to revolutionize UI verification.
• Inflectra's AI Solutions: See demonstrations of Inflectra's cutting-edge AI tools like the ChatGPT plugin and Azure Open AI platform, designed to streamline your testing process.
Whether you're a developer, tester, or QA professional, this webinar will give you valuable insights into how AI is shaping the future of software delivery.
Software Delivery At the Speed of AI: Inflectra Invests In AI-Powered Quality
NDS Research Group - 0
1. Number 92, January 2013
ERCIM
NEWS
www.ercim.eu
Special theme:
Smart
Energy
Systems
Also in this issue:
Keynote
Smart Energy Systems –
A European Perspective
by Ariane Sutor, Siemens AG
Joint ERCIM Actions
PaaSage – An €8.4 Million Investment
for Bridging Clouds
Research and Innovation
A Projector as Mobile Visualization
Device on an Assistive Robot
2. Contents
SPECIAL THEME
2 Editorial Information
This special theme section “Smarty Energy Systems” has been
coordinated by Carl Binding, IBM Research Lab, Switzerland and
Han La Poutré, CWI and Utrecht University, the Netherlands
KEYNOTE
3 Smart Energy Systems – A European
Perspective
by Ariane Sutor
JOINT ERCIM ACTIONS
6 PaaSage – An €8.4 Million Investment for
Bridging Clouds
by Pierre Guisset
6 Formal Methods for Intelligent Transportation Systems - A track at ISOLA’12
by Alessandro Fantechi, Francesco Flammini
and Stefania Gnesi
7 Paweł Parys Winner of the 2012 Cor Baayen
Award
Introduction to the special theme
8 Smart Energy Systems
by Carl Binding and Han La Poutré
Invited articles
10 Development of the European Virtual Smart Grid
Laboratory
by Kai Strunz and and Christian Wiezorek
11 Forecasting the Conditional Dynamic Elasticity of Electricity
Consumers
by Pierre Pinson and Henrik Madsen
12 Putting Neurons in the Smart Grid
by Bram Vonk, Robert de Groot and Han Slootweg
IT for smart grids
14 Smart Energy Consumption Feedback – Connecting
Smartphones to Smart Meters
by Markus Weiss, Friedemann Mattern and Christian Beckel
15 Meter Data Management for Smart Monitoring Power
Networks
by Agustín Yagüe, Juan Garbajosa and Mercedes Lopez-Perea
17 Designing and Simulating Smart Grids
by Jennifer Pérez, Jessica Díaz and Eloy González
18 Smart Management of Renewable Energy for Green
Transport
by Raffaele Bruno, Luca Valcarenghi, Molka Gharbaoui and
Barbara Martini
20 Real-Time Visualization of MV/LV Energy Alarms on GIS
Web Applications
by Christophe Joubert, Vicente Monrabal, Miguel Montesinos and
Carlos Sánchez
21 Using Wireless Smart Meter Networks for Power Quality
Monitoring
Joel Höglund and Stamatis Karnouskos
Supply/demand coordination
22 Smarter Energy: Opportunities and Challenges
by Olle Sundström, Fabian Müller, Carl Binding, Bernhard Jansen
and Dieter Gantenbein
24 Smart Demand-Side Response at Home
by Armin Wolf, Thomas Luckenbach and Mario Schuster
25 Market Garden: A Scalable Research Environment for
Heterogeneous Electricity Markets
by Felix Claessen, Nicolas Höning, Bart Liefers, Han La Poutré
and Peter Bosman
27 The Power Trading Agent Competition
by Wolfgang Ketter and John Collins
4
ERCIM NEWS 92 January 2013
3. 28 A Model-Free Flexibility Management System at KU Leuven
and VITO
by Stijn Vandael, Bert Claessens, Tom Holvoet and Geert Deconinck
RESEARCH ANd INNOVATION
29 Demand Side Management for Multiple Devices
by Albert Molderink, Vincent Bakker and Gerard J.M. Smit
31 The Gamification of Agent-Based Smart Grids
by Radu-Casian Mihailescu, Matteo Vasirani and Sascha Ossowski
32 A Marketplace-Based Approach to Demand-Side Management
in the Smart Grid
by Luigi Briguglio, Massimiliano Nigrelli, Frank Eichinger, Javier
Lucio Ruiz-Andino and Valter Bella
Smarter buildings
34 Using an Intelligent Management System for Smart
Residential Storage Systems
by Vicente Botón, Máximo Pérez, Adolfo Lozano-Tello and
Enrique Romero
35 The Last One out Turns off the Light - Optimizing the Energy
Efficiency of Buildings
by Lutz Ehrig and Danilo Hollosi
36 Ambient Intelligence for Energy Efficiency in a Building
Complex
by Giuseppe Lo Re, Marco Ortolani and Giuseppe Anastasi
Security
38 Secure Smart Grids or Say ‘Goodnight Vienna!’
by Florian Skopik, Paul Smith and Thomas Bleier
39 Preparing for the Smart Grids: Improving Information
Security Management in the Power Industry
by Maria Bartnes Line
40 Cybersecurity in the Smart Grid
by Magnus Almgren, Davide Balzarotti, Marina Papatriantafilou
and Valentin Tudor
This section features news about research
activities and innovative developments from
European research institutes
48 A Projector as Mobile Visualization Device
on an Assistive Robot
by Paul Panek, Christian Beck, Georg Edelmayer, Peter Mayer and Wolfgang L. Zagler
49 ATLAAS-P2P: A Two-Layer Architecture for
Approximated Search in Peer to Peer
by Ranieri Baraglia, Patrizio Dazzi, Matteo
Mordacchini and Laura Ricci
50 Epeerdemics: A Peer-to-Peer Simulator Targeting Epidemic-Based Protocols
by Patrizio Dazzi and Emanuele Carlini
51 gRecs: Exploiting the Power of Data Mining
Techniques for Efficient Computation of
Group Recommendations
by Kostas Stefanidis and Kjetil Nørvåg
52 Utility-Theoretic Ranking for Semi-Automated Text Classification
by Giacomo Berardi, Andrea Esuli and Fabrizio
Sebastiani
53 A Radio Telescope of the Superlative
by Ton Engbersen
55 The Green-Wake Project Targets both Air
Traffic Security and Airport Throughput
by Sébastien Lugan and Benoit Michel
EVENTS, IN BRIEf
41 CoppEnd – A Security System for Power Equipment
by Dimitrios Serpanos, Athanasios Safacas and Dimitrios
Stachoulis
Green IT
43 PowerAPI: A Software Library to Monitor the Energy
Consumed at the Process-Level
by Aurélien Bourdon, Adel Noureddine, Romain Rouvoy and
Lionel Seinturier
56 International Workshop on Information
Technology for Energy Applications
by Paulo Carreira and Vasco Amaral
57 ERCIM/EWICS/Embedded (Cyber-Physical)
Systems Workshop 2012
by Erwin Schoitsch
57 Announcements
44 Smart Energy Management for Greener Supercomputing
by Mohammed el Mehdi Diouri, Olivier Glück and Laurent Lefèvre
59 In Brief
Novel energy forms
45 AI4B: Accountable IT Infrastructures for Optimizing Supply
Chains in Bioenergy Symbiotic Networks
by Theodore Dalamagas and Antonis Kokossis
47 Hydrodynamics-Biology Coupling for Algae Culture and
Biofuel Production
by Olivier Bernard, Jacques Sainte-Marie, Bruno Sialve and
5
ERCIM NEWS 92 January 2013
5
4. Special Theme: Smart Energy Systems
1
8
1
8
1
8
1
8
1
8
1
8
...
Audio System
Acoustic
Processing
System
...
...
...
...
...
Satellite
Unit 1
Satellite
Unit 2
Satellite
Unit 3
Satellite
Unit 1
Satellite
Unit 2
Satellite
Unit 3
8 Ch. ADAT
Audio Signal
...
Acoustic
Processing
Unit A
Room 1
8 Ch. ADAT
Audio Signal
Figure 1 system
components for the
S4EeB project
Acoustic
Processing
Unit X
Room X
TCP/IP Occupancy Data and Training Audio Data
Management System
Building Management
Optimizer
All the data and semantic information
from the APU are collected and analyzed
by the building management system
optimizer, which is the interface to the
“classic” building management system.
Based on the building’s occupancy rate,
its thermal characteristics, outside
weather conditions, and other parameters, the optimal settings with respect to
energy efficiency and user comfort will
be determined. Thermal modelling of the
building is done beforehand, providing
the basis for the best strategy considering
the building’s energy consumption rate
and the interaction of the building management and automation system with the
HVAC system.
The main contributions of Fraunhofer
IDMT to the project are: sound
recording, audio signal processing, and
acoustic event detection. In particular,
Building Management
and Automation System
audio data captured is analysed by algorithms developed by Fraunhofer IDMT,
allowing the building’s occupancy rate to
be determined for the purpose of integrating this data into the building energy
management system.
This three-year project is funded by the
European Union, and its consortium
comprises research institutes and
industry partners from four European
countries, who have long-standing
experience in building control strategies, audiovisual applications, microelectronics and mechanical components
as well as in consulting and dissemination of results. The project recently finished its first year of collaborative
development of a prototype system and
the corresponding components. In the
first quarter of 2013, field tests will start
at the S4EeB demo sites, namely
Building Sensors
HVACL
Milano-Linate airport and two shopping
malls in Spain, Principe Pio in Madrid
and Maremagnum in Barcelona.
Links:
http://www.s4eeb.org
http://www.idmt.fraunhofer.de
Reference:
[1] P. Bertoldi and B. Atanasiu:
“Electricity Consumption and
Efficiency Trends in the Enlarged
European Union”, European
Commission, Institute for Environment
and Sustainability, 2007.
Please contact:
Lutz Ehrig, Danilo Hollosi, Fraunhofer
IDMT, Germany
E-mail: lutz.ehrig@idmt.fraunhofer.de,
danilo.hollosi@idmt.fraunhofer.de
Ambient Intelligence for Energy Efficiency
in a Building Complex
by Giuseppe Lo Re, Marco Ortolani and Giuseppe Anastasi
The quest for energy efficiency currently represents one of the most stimulating challenges both for
academic and industrial organizations. We address the issue of ensuring timely and ubiquitous
monitoring of a potentially large building complex in order to optimize their energy consumption.
Over 50% of energy produced worldwide
is consumed by the industrial sector,
whilst residential and commercial buildings account for about 20%, mainly due
to inappropriate use of appliances, such
as heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and artificial
lighting [1]. Hence, the International
Energy Agency’s (IEA) roadmap has set
the goal of reducing energy consumption
by HVAC systems by 30% and 17% in
residential and commercial buildings
36
respectively by the year 2030. Similarly,
the goal is to reduce energy consumption
by artificial lighting by 3% and 14% for
residential and commercial buildings
respectively [2]. Consequently, recent
years have seen a growth in research on
energy efficiency in residential/commercial buildings.
Studies show that providing appropriate
feedback to building occupants can help
reduce overall energy consumption, but
in the long term this is not an effective
approach [3]. Using an automated
Building Management System (BMS),
in addition to user cooperation, is a
more viable solution, especially in the
context of ambient intelligence (AmI).
AmI is a new paradigm in Artificial
Intelligence that relies on the assumption that the environment is permeated
by a set of sensors and actuators,
remotely controllable according to
some policy, in order to bring the enviERCIM NEWS 92 January 2013
5. ronmental conditions closer to the
user’s ideal conditions while taking into
account particular global constraints.
Within the “SmartBuildings” project,
we are currently designing and prototyping an AmI-based BMS targeted to a
building complex (eg, a campus or a residential complex), rather than just a
single building. In our approach, the
remote sensor infrastructure acts as the
termination of a centralized reasoner,
where sensed data are processed to
extract higher-level information and
perceive high-level features such as who
is in a specific area or what this person is
doing there (eg reading, talking,
standing). Finally, a set of actuators
modifies the environmental conditions.
Our system architecture has been conceived to guarantee the scalability of the
proposed solution with respect to the
number of buildings to be monitored
and the number of different devices to
be used. In order to efficiently organize
the system modules, each corresponding to a different logical task, we chose
a three-tier architecture as a model. The
physical layer consists of sensors and
actuators; the middleware layer defines
a set of AmI components that can be
composed to implement intelligent AmI
functionalities; the application layer
allows for applying the monitoring and
controlling rules in compliance with
energy constraints.
From the viewpoint of deployment, the
building premises constitute the basic
monitored units of our system, where
the sensor and actuator networks are
installed. These networks are heterogeneous both in terms of the adopted technology and of the performed monitoring/actuating tasks. Several basic
monitored units are coordinated by a
BuildingAgent, responsible for performing reactive control and further
data aggregation. Small buildings will
have a single BuildingAgent per
building, while medium or large buildings could have more. In our vision, an
individual building is part of a community coordinated by a central orchestra
leader, the AmIBox (see Figure 1). The
latter ensures coherence of the adopted
energy saving strategy, besides providing high-level AmI functionalities,
performing intelligent reasoning and
choosing the adopted energy saving
strategy. The AmiBox could also take
into account externally imposed conERCIM NEWS 92 January 2013
Figure 1: The architecture for energy
management of a “smart buildings” complex
straints, such as those arising from the
connection with an energy provider’s
Smart Grid infrastructure.
The project is currently in progress. We
have already deployed a minimal prototypal setup, by equipping one floor of
our department with commonly available sensor nodes for monitoring the
typical environmental quantities (temperature, humidity, light) and with the
corresponding actuators. Moreover, we
are able to monitor the globally consumed energy through a remotely controllable power meter. The research
group operating at the Lab of
Networking and Distributed Systems
(Univ. of Palermo) is currently focusing
on the design of core intelligent functionalities, such as user profiling, predicting the occupancy status of the
monitored premises, or detecting the
activity patterns of users, that will form
the basis for subsequent intelligent reasoning. For instance, we have developed a Bayesian inference system for
multi-sensor data fusion in order to reliably infer the presence of users from the
available sensory information.
Probabilistic reasoning accounts for the
partial correlation between sensory signals and states, and allows the system to
cope with noisy data, while the possibility of integrating data coming from
multiple sensors exploits the redundancy of such devices deployed
throughout the environment. In order to
reduce the costs of the overall system
and limit its intrusiveness, the number
of sensors should be kept as low as possible. To this end, the research group
operating at the Pervasive Computing
and Networking Lab (Univ. of Pisa) is
investigating the use of advanced
methods for extracting individual consumption estimates from aggregated
measurements.
This research is part of the
“SmartBuildings” Projects funded by
the Sicilian regional Government with
European funds.
Link: http://www.dicgim.unipa.it/
~networks/ndslab/
References:
[1] U.S. Energy Information
Administration: “International Energy
Outlook 2010 – Highlights”, report
DOE/EIA-0484(2010),
http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/ieo/highlig
hts.html
[2] International Energy Agency, 2011:
“Technology Roadmap, Energyefficient Buildings: Heating and
Cooling Equipment”,
http://www.iea.org/papers/2011/buildin
gs_roadmap.pdf
[3] X. Jiang, et al: “Experiences with
A High-Fidelity Wireless Building
Energy Auditing Network”, in proc.
ACM SenSys 2009.
Please contact:
Giuseppe Lo Re, Marco Ortolani
DICGIM, University of Palermo, Italy
E-mail: giuseppe.lore@unipa.it,
marco.ortolani@unipa.it
Giuseppe Anastasi
Dept. of Information Engineering,
University of Pisa, Italy
E-mail: giuseppe.anastasi@iet.unipi.it
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