Smart home energy management system including renewable energy based on ZigBee and PLC

As home energy use is increasing and renewable energy systems are deployed, home energy management system (HEMS) needs to consider both energy consumption and generation simultaneously to minimize the energy cost. This paper proposes a smart HEMS architecture that considers both energy consumption and generation simultaneously. ZigBee-based energy measurement modules are used to monitor the energy consumption of home appliances and lights. A PLC-based renewable energy gateway is used to monitor the energy generation of renewable energies. The home server gathers the energy consumption and generation data, analyzes them for energy estimation, and controls the home energy use schedule to minimize the energy cost. The remote energy management server aggregates the energy data from numerous home servers, compares them, and creates useful statistical analysis information. By considering both energy consumption and generation, the proposed HEMS architecture is expected to optimize home energy use and result in home energy cost saving.