Plugwise

Available in Holland. 9 plugs cost 369 euro (July 2009)

The usability of connecting your stuff

Setting up: clear and simple

When installing the Power Trakcer, the consumer should be able to start tracking in only minutes time. So no hassle, no complex scenarios. No wiring or re-wiring should be required. On my way home, after a good session with Peter Robinett and James Burke I came up with the following.

Connecting through Named devices

To connect devices to Power Trackers, and read the tracking results, we need a clean and simple way.

1. Why not give each tracker a (semi) unique fun factory provided name easy to understand. Like the names of pets. So “tracker #1″ would be named “Fluffy”. Tracker #2 could be “Rainbow”, Tracker #3: “Droplet”. The box/packaging containing the tracker could even display the name and the personality attached to it in colering and lettering. And if you want more tough macho names: “Killer”, “Powerblade”, “Trasher”
2. Names make my Trackers have “personality”. Like little invisible helpers.
3. For people who do not like names, we can issue a separate (and likely easier selling) line of abstract, “numbered” devices: “AS124″, “BQ267″, “AG623″
4. “Rainbow” is tracking my “Whirlpool Refridgerator”. “AG623″ is tracking my “Philips home cinema set”. “Droplet” my PC.
5. If the connector is a splitter/exention cord, the block would be “Scoobidoo” and each socket would have a letter: “Scoobidoo A”, “Scobidoo B” and “Scoobidoo C”.
6. Each socket is released to the market with its own (semi) unique name (or number) you can change by yourself.

Renaming devices? Naming conventions?

Maybe, I want to be able to rename my devices. I was thinking of using a switch on each device: “1 = Fluffy”, “2 = Killer”, “3 = Chevrolet”. But maybe that is stupid since naming is very personal and if we offer the option to buy “abstract named” devices this might be irrelevant.

Wired communication vs bluetooth

The big advantage of bluetooth is that it is plug & play. No need to connect stuff. Just scan for the device and you are in. Safety can be applied by calling it via the (semi) unique name each device is given. A handshake will transfer the unique key to the computer and form that moment on, the device is secured. The device will inly respond to its own name and not broadcast its precense unless it is explicitly called to respond.

The big remaining disadvantage is that Bluetooth is a broadcasting medium and can be easily blocked by massive structures like a human body or a wall.

A wired connection will use the power cables to transmit the signal through. The big pro is that the signal can travel through the entire house with minimal loss. The big gontra is that you have at least 3 separate curcuits, due to the way houses are wired.

Collection boxes with Wifi

To overcome this, you can collect the signals using semi-stupid collection boxes. They operate as “routers” and connect to your WiFi or router (wired) as if they are “computers” or “printers” on your local network. You can connect to these devices via Wifi and read the data using your wireless network.

Solving secured network settings for the Connection box

When the Wifi is secured (let’s assume and hope so) you need to tell the collection box which protocol is used and what key is used. I see the following scenarios:

1. Insert an USB memory stick into the Connection Box with the correct key and connection info written on it. When inserting the USB stick in the PC it could auto-start the software you need to input the correct connection data. USB memory sticks are common tech, common use and cheap to enclose with the package.
2. Use a wired connection. Disadvantage is that you need A: a ethernet cable, which can be delivered in the box, B: the IP address of the box, C: to know a bit more than the common home and garden user.
3. Use the wireless connection

Use all of the above options.

Reading the data

I believe the PC should be the main device to set up shop and collect the data. Secondary, the Collection Boxes might be able to connect to the Internet themselves and send the data directly to the tracking service.

Using software

To configure the network of Trackers and read date via BlueTooth I think specificsoftware might do the trick the best. It will ping the bluetooth devices, ping the Collection Boxes and keep a local track of things. Next, it will give the user the choice to share the info online.

Multiple groups

Each house comes with multiple power groups with its own safety and possibly distributed over multiple floors. When using Connction Boxes using WiFi or wired connections this might not pose any problem.

USB Stick

As written before, each Connection Box will operate as a accessible “device” on the LAN, configurable via a USB stick.

The procedure could be like this:

1. I input/save my Wireless Network settings on the USB stick using my PC/Laptop via software on that stick.
2. I insert the Memory stick in each Connection Box, which reads my Wireless Network settings and configures itself accordingly.
3. The Connection Box also saves its own security settings on the stick, to tell my PC/Laptop what key to use to read data. In this way not just anyone can access my Connection Boxes from the outside.
4. When I insert the memory stick in my PC, the software installed on my machine will read this data and uses it to access the Connection Boxes directly

It should be setup in such a way that even a computer illiterate can setup a secured environment like this.

Using software to run the show

On my PC I run the “Manager” to manage my devices/Trackers and read the data provided by the trackers. This software enables me to change settings on each Connection Box in my house and also to easily read these Trackers and assign the devices to them like “Fluffy = Refridgerator #1″ “Scary = Airconditioner”

Tracking your energy use

This is the first post on this blog.

The goal of this blog is to display our version of a Tracking system for Energy Usage.

The idea is to develop an open source energy tracker that allows you to track energy use per device and gives you feedback on your energy usage and possible ways to save energy through the online community of other users.

Read the pages on the different concepts for more info.