Remember a few years ago when the utility companies sent meter readers from home to home to read and jot down energy usage? Not too long ago technology changed and a new process, the automatic meter reading, allowed meters to send a signal to a utility truck that drove through neighborhoods collecting the data.
Sounds smart, right? But it gets even better. We’re now seeing an advanced metering infrastructure able to send data to the billing department at your utility company and then back home to you, the consumer.
As this article explains, it’s just one of many ways the new Smart Grid systems are evolving our electricity. Read on:
Image via Mashable.com
The “smart grid” is a rapidly growing set of technologies, processes, devices and applications that affect and enhance the traditional electric grid. These advances are partially driven by exponentially growing demands worldwide for energy as expressed in a commonlyrepeatedstatistic that “global electricity demand is expected to increase 75% by 2030.” What’s happening with the smart grid also reflects developments made in communications, from Internet to cellular to wireless, as well as higher expectations from consumers regarding energy availability, rising energy costs and access to their energy information. A smarter grid will also help integrate renewable energy including wind and solar into the energy mix.
To understand the smart grid, you first need to get familiar with the 125-year-old electric grid. Most people don’t think about where the electricity they’re using comes from or how it gets to their homes and offices. The electric grid consists of several main touchpoints in an overall system that gets electricity from creation to the end user:
Read the rest via mashable.com, and let me know what you think i the comment’s area.
Here is a great example – one of many innovative approaches taken to help eastern Japanese farmers bounce back from the tsunami, modernize the region’s agriculture and increase farming output. SENDAI, Japan – Even before a tsunami swamped fields east of the Japanese city of Sendai in March 2011, Chikako Sasaki and her husband, a…
As 2021 comes to a close, our team at Innovationedge has been reflecting on the trends that impacted each industry. This year has certainly been full of innovative new developments and changes! While the future may be unpredictable, there are some significant trends that shaped 2021 that we expect to carry over into the new…
Aside from being a taxing week in the U.S., mid-April is also when BusinessWeek Magazine publishes its top 50 list of the most innovative companies all over the world. This year’s rankings are definitely pointing to a trend I’ve talked about before: That a majority of companies recognized as top innovators are based outside the…
Color used in advertizing and branding can inspire, create excitement, or even make one wistful for bygone days. The color studies I’ve seen go way beyond trends and right into key learnings about our psyches and what makes us tick. It’s a fascinating phenomenon, and one that global corporations have leveraged for years. But now…
As we’re seeing in the job placement industry, finding and keeping top-notch employees takes far more than the promise of a nice paycheck even in a down economy. (Don’t take my word for it; this video is a must-see for anyone looking to retain talented workers.) If you want to create a strategy around hiring…
I recently shared FastCompany’s most innovative companies to watch in 2014, and along with that, there are some lessons learned that these companies have shared. Many of these you’ve heard me talk about in the past, and as I work with clients I am continually finding new ways to hone these lessons for the specific…
