Pretty soon, you might be able to adjust your light switch and your dishwater remotely through a smart management system called EcoView Residential System.
The new generation service is paving the way for smart management systems by cutting down the cost of installation. The dashboard will reduce your energy usage, utility bills, and carbon emissions.
General Electric
Advanced Telemetry president Gus Ezcurra said the new home system is an evolution of a previous effort with GE. It's much improved from the ecomagination dashboard project because it introduces a flexible platform -- it allows the owner to add new devices or take them away. It's also a wireless system, so it's easier to install.
"One thing is the flexibility of having it be wireless. Each homeowner has the ability to customize it. I have a lot of lighting in my house, so I want to be able to control my lights. That's important to me," said Ezcurra. And for someone else, controlling air conditioning might be more important.
"I have my own unique needs," he said. This creates relevancy because the consumer can see in real-time the impact of their energy choices.
The EcoView will not only help cut household energy usage by 20%, but will also allow consumers to review real-time indoor water consumption data and monitor their carbon footprint.
"Our initial interest wasn't water, but many customers are interested in their water consumption," said Ezcurra. On the touch panel for electricity and water, you can see graphs. You can see real-time usage for the day, the month, and the year (and the previous year). You can even compare these figures to the national average.
The residential management system gives the consumer real-time information on energy usage and lets the owner figure out which gadgets are guzzling the most energy. And it only takes two hours to hook the system up to thermostats and light switches.
The management system is connected to the broadband internet, so the owner can remotely monitor how much energy is consumed in the house.
As we've mentioned before, Telemetry's EcoView commercial product has been used to implement demand response to fast-food restaurants, stores, and small businesses.
"Most of our commercial customers have a return of investment in less than six months and have seen a substantial reduction in their energy bill, by as much as 20% to 30%," said Ezcurra. The customers might have 10 buildings, so they use the system to manage their energy usage or turn off loads inside multiple buildings.
"By paying closer attention from the store or managing it remotely, the consumer can realize major savings. We give them tools [to reduce their energy usage], so they need to do it cost effectively," he added.
More from GreenTechMedia:
