An Energy Information Gateway for use in residential and commercial environments

Growing demands for products which enable consumers to manage their energy use more efficiently has led to the development of Energy Information Gateways, which are just beginning to gain traction in the marketplace. Such devices are envisioned to provide a communications and control infrastructure for appliances within their domain of influence, as well as communication with metering equipment. All relevant energy consumption information is expected to be relayed to the occupant in a practical manner. This paper outlines a software architecture for an EIG which is applicable to both residential and commercial environments. The software package utilizes the highly modular Open Services Gateway Initiative (OSGI) JAVA software framework to allow customization of individual EIG functionality and facilitates interoperability for existing smart grid products. In addition, the software in question provides a connection to external demand response resources and hosts a dynamic web based user interface to facilitate occupant interaction.