KR20130124499A - Power management apparatus for controlling consumption power and method of operating the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A power management device comprises a communication unit and a control unit. The communication unit communicates with a power management network. The control unit transmits a power limitation request including a limitation quantity for each device to an electronic device after determining a power limitation quantity and assigning the limitation quantity for each device to the electronic device connected to the power management network. The control unit receives the response for the power limitation request and controls a power usage quantity of the power management network based on the response. [Reference numerals] (AA) End;(S100) Set a power limitation quantity;(S110) Obtain each electronic device's limitation quantity;(S120) Transmit a request for limiting power consumption;(S130) Receive a corresponding response;(S140) Has the request been accepted ?;(S150) Have negotiations

Description

POWER MANAGEMENT APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING CONSUMPTION POWER AND METHOD OF OPERATING THE SAME}

The present invention relates to a power management apparatus for controlling an electronic device to operate within a limited power consumption by limiting power consumption, and a control method thereof.

Recently, the introduction of an intelligent power grid (smart grid) for the efficient use of power in the power demand in the state of energy saving and efficiency has become a big issue, and when such an intelligent power grid is introduced, the electric power bill is changed according to the power demand. Variable rates may be introduced.

In accordance with this trend, there is a demand for the development of a technology that can efficiently control various electronic devices used in the home in connection with the introduction of the smart grid.

An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic device and a method of controlling the electronic device, which receive a request for limiting power consumption required for operation and operate according to the determined operating power.

Technical problems to be achieved by the present invention are not limited to the technical problems mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned above will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description. Could be.

In order to solve the above technical problem, according to an aspect of the present invention, the communication unit for communicating with the power management network; And determining a power limit amount, determining a limit amount for each device to be allocated to an electronic device connected to the power management network, and then transmitting a power limit request including the limit amount for each device to the electronic device and requesting the power limit request. A power management apparatus including a control unit for receiving a response to the control unit and controlling power consumption of the power management network based on the received response is disclosed.

In order to solve the above technical problem, according to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a power management device for controlling the power consumption of a power management network including a plurality of electronic devices. The power management device, the display unit; A communication unit communicating with the power management network; And displaying, via the display unit, operations performed in the plurality of electronic devices, and transmitting a control signal for degrading or stopping at least one selected operation among the operations to the electronic device performing the selected at least one operation. It includes a control unit.

In order to solve the above technical problem, according to another aspect of the present invention, a power management apparatus for controlling power consumption of a power management network including a plurality of electronic devices is disclosed. The power management device includes a communication unit for communicating with the power management network; And receiving a power reassignment request from a first electronic device, which is one of the plurality of electronic devices, selecting based on the required power and the allocated operating power of the plurality of electronic devices, and selecting the selected second electronic device. And a control unit for transmitting the power limit request.

The present invention has the following effects.

First, power management can be easily performed by managing power consumption by electronic devices connected to a network.

Second, based on the power consumption allocated to the network, by allocating power consumption to be allocated to each of the electronic devices connected to the network, it is possible to effectively control the amount of power consumed by the entire network.

Third, when the power consumption allocated to one electronic device needs to be changed, it is possible to secure the spare power from other electronic devices connected to the network, thereby more effectively and efficiently within the range of power consumption allocated to the network. The network can be made operational.

1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a smart grid.
2 is a view for explaining the network network according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a block diagram of an energy management device connected to a power management network according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a block diagram of a DTV, which is one of electronic devices connected to a power management network.
5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an energy management apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a flowchart illustrating a method of operating an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
7 is a diagram for explaining a negotiation procedure performed by an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an energy management apparatus displaying a user interface for querying a priority of a user.
FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an energy management device displaying a user interface for querying a user for an electronic device to be stopped.
10 is a flowchart illustrating an example in which an electronic device performs a power limiting operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.
11 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure for requesting reallocation of power by an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
12 is a flowchart illustrating a method of monitoring power consumption of an electronic device connected to a power management network by an energy management device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The foregoing objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Like reference numerals designate like elements throughout the specification. In the following description, well-known functions or constructions are not described in detail since they would obscure the invention in unnecessary detail.

<Full system configuration>

1 is a schematic diagram of a smart grid, a smart grid includes a power plant for generating power through thermal power, nuclear power or hydropower, and a solar power plant and a wind power plant using solar or wind power as renewable energy. .

In addition, the thermal power plant or nuclear power plant or hydroelectric power station transmits power to a power station through a transmission line, and the power station sends electricity to a substation so that the electricity is distributed to a demand destination such as a home or an office.

The electricity produced by the renewable energy is also sent to substations to be distributed to each customer. Then, the electricity transmitted from the substation is distributed to the office or each home via the power storage device.

Even in homes that use the Home Area Network (HAN), they can produce their own electricity through fuel cells mounted on solar or Plug in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs). The remaining electricity can also be resold to the outside.

In addition, smart measuring devices and / or smart servers are installed in offices or homes to identify power and power rates used in each demand in real time. Measures can be taken to reduce power consumption and electricity bills.

On the other hand, since the power plant, power station, storage device and the source of demand are bidirectional communication, only the unilaterally receive electricity from the source of demand, and notify the storage, power station, and power plant of the demand source to produce electricity according to the situation of the source of demand. Electric distribution can be performed.

Meanwhile, in the smart grid, an energy management system (EMS), which is responsible for real-time power management and real-time prediction of power consumption, and an advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) that measures power consumption in real time are pivotal. Play a role of person.

Here, the measuring device under the smart grid is a basic technology for integrating consumers on the basis of open architecture, and provides consumers with the ability to efficiently use electricity, and provides power providers with the ability to operate the system efficiently by detecting problems in the system. do.

Here, the open architecture refers to a standard that allows all electric devices to be connected to each other regardless of which manufacturer the electric device is manufactured in the smart grid system, unlike a general communication network.

Thus, the instrumentation used in the smart grid enables a consumer friendly efficiency concept such as "Prices to Devices."

That is, the real-time price signal of the electric power market is relayed through the energy management device (EMS) installed in each home, and the energy management device (EMS) communicates with and controls each electric device so that the user can control the energy management device (EMS). By recognizing the power information of each electric device and performing the power information processing such as the amount of power consumption or the limit of the power bill, the energy and cost can be saved.

Here, the energy management device (EMS) processes the information collected by the local energy management device (EMS) by performing a two-way communication with the local energy management device (EMS) used in the office or home, and the local energy management device (EMS). It can be configured as a central energy management device (EMS). In addition, in the present specification, the energy management device (EMS) will be described and described, but the energy management device is a smart server (Smart server), smart home server (Smart Home Server), power management server (Power Managing Server), home server (Home) Server) and other similar names.

By enabling real-time communication of power information between suppliers and consumers in the smart grid, “real-time grid response” can be realized, thereby reducing the high cost of meeting peak demand.

2 illustrates a power management network 10 in a home, which is a major consumer of a smart grid.

The power management network 10 includes a measuring device (smart meter) 20 or an energy management device (EMS) 30 capable of measuring in real time the power and power rates supplied to each home.

In this case, the electricity rate may be charged based on the hourly rate plan, and the hourly electricity rate becomes cheaper in a time section in which the power consumption is rapidly increased, or in a late-night time section where power consumption is relatively low. Can be done.

Here, the energy management device 30 has a screen 31 for displaying the current state of electricity consumption and the external environment (temperature, humidity), and a terminal having an input button 32 or the like that can be operated by a user. It may be provided in the form.

The energy management device 30 or the measuring device 20 is again connected to a DTV (Digital Television, 100), a refrigerator, a washing machine, a dryer, an air conditioner, a lighting device, a light shield, a dishwasher, a cooking appliance, It can be connected to an electronic device such as a home server or a personal computer to communicate with them bidirectionally. That is, the energy management device 30 may manage power consumed by the electronic devices included in the power management network 10 to supply power to the electronic devices, and in some cases, operate the electronic devices. You can also control. For example, the energy management device 30 may control the on / off states of the electronic devices through the power management network 10. On the other hand, when the electronic device is an air conditioner, the energy management device 30 may control the set temperature, air volume or operation mode of the air conditioner.

Communication inside the house can be via wireless or wired. For example, communication between the energy management device 30 and the electronic device may be made through a wireless communication technology such as ZigBee, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth, and power line communication. Or wired communication technology such as PLC). The electronic devices may communicate with other electronic devices.

On the other hand, the power management network 10 has an auxiliary power source 50 provided in the home, that is, a self-generating facility 51, such as a solar power generation device, and a storage battery capable of storing power generated from such a self-generating facility. (52).

In addition to the storage battery 52, the fuel cell 53 may also be connected to the power management network 10 to serve as an auxiliary power source.

Here, the auxiliary power source 50 serves to supply power to the home in a state in which power is not supplied from an external power source such as a power company.

The amount of power that can be supplied from such an auxiliary power source or the amount of power charged in the auxiliary power source 50 can be displayed on the energy management device 30 or the measuring device 20.

<Configuration of Energy Management Device>

3 is a block diagram of an energy management device connected to a power management network.

The energy management device 30 may include a communication unit 31, an input unit 32, an output unit 33, a memory 34, a power supply unit 35, and a control unit 36. In this case, the output unit 33 may include a display unit 33a for outputting an image and a sound output unit 33b for outputting a sound.

The communication unit 31 may transmit / receive data with an electronic device included in the power management network 10 or an external device external to the power management network 10. For example, the energy management device 30 may receive power information related to the smart grid including the power bill telegram from the power supplier through the communication unit 31 (hereinafter referred to as smart grid information). . In addition, the communication unit 31 may include one or more modules that enable communication between the DTV 100 and a network (eg, the Internet).

In addition, the communication unit 31 may receive smart grid information by wire (eg, Ethernet, PLC, etc.) or wirelessly (eg, Zigbee, etc.).

Also, for example, the communication unit 31 may receive the smart grid information through various communication protocols such as wired internet, wireless internet, portable internet, and mobile communication network.

Sources of the smart grid information including the power rate information and transmission and reception schemes of the smart grid information may vary.

The input unit 32 generates input data for the user to control the operation of the energy management device 30 or for input of data.

The input unit 32 has no special proposal in its implementation. In general, a keypad type, a wheel key type, a touch pad type, a touch screen type, or the like may be used in combination. Recently, a large number of touch screen systems have been adopted due to increased space utilization, demand for enlargement of display screens, and design considerations. In this case, the input unit 32 and the display unit 33a to be described later may be integrated into one. .

The output unit 33 outputs various necessary data. The output unit 33 is to generate an output related to visual or auditory sense, and may include a display unit 33a and a sound output unit 33b. In addition, the output unit 33 may also output an output (for example, vibration) related to tactile sense. It may further include a haptic module (not shown) for generating.

The memory 34 stores data necessary for the operation of the energy management device 30. For example, the memory 34 may store data received through the communication unit 31 and / or data input through the input unit 32.

The power supply unit 35 receives power from the external power source and / or the auxiliary power source, and supplies power required for the operation of each component of the energy management device 30. The power supply unit 35 may include a battery mounted inside the energy management device 30 in addition to an external power source and / or the auxiliary power source.

The control unit 36 generally manages the overall operation of the energy management apparatus 30. The control unit 36 also controls the operations of the communication unit 31, the input unit 32, the output unit 33, the memory 34, and the power supply unit 35.

The energy management device 30 described above with reference to FIG. 3 is, in an embodiment according to the present invention, based on the smart grid information and the like, various electronic devices (for example, connected to the power management network 10). , Refrigerators, washing machines, dryers, air conditioners, lighting devices, shading devices, dishwashers, cooking appliances, home servers or personal computers, perform a series of operations to consume limited power. For example, the energy management device 30 may transmit an electric power limit request to the electronic devices and receive a response thereto. A detailed operation method for the energy management device 30 will be described later.

On the other hand, the amount of power used in the present specification means the amount of electrical energy used per unit time, it will be used to include the concept of the instantaneous amount of power.

<Configuration of Electronic Equipment>

4 illustrates a block diagram of a DTV, which is one of electronic devices connected to a power management network. Although only the DTV 100 is illustrated in FIG. 4, the following description will focus on the operation of the DTV 100, but the present invention may be applied to other electronic devices in addition to the DTV 100. It is self-evident.

Referring to FIG. 4, the DTV 100 may include a communication unit 101, an input unit 102, an output unit 103, a memory 104, a power supply unit 105, and a control unit 106. In this case, the output unit 103 may include a display unit 103a for outputting an image and a sound output unit 103b for outputting a sound.

The communication unit 101 may transmit / receive data with the energy management device 30 and / or other electronic devices included in the power management network 10 through the power management network 10. In addition, the communication unit 101 may communicate with an external electronic device through a separate network from the power management network 10.

For example, the communication unit 101 may be connected to the energy management device 30 or an external electronic device by wire (for example, Ethernet, PLC, etc.) or wirelessly (for example, Zigbee, etc.). The smart grid information can be received from. In other words, the communication unit 101 may receive the smart grid information through various communication protocols such as a wired internet, a wireless internet, a portable internet, and a mobile communication network.

The input unit 102 generates input data for the user to control the operation of the DTV 100 or for inputting data. Like the input unit 32 of the energy management device 30, the input unit 102 of the DTV 100 also has no particular limitation on its implementation. That is, a keypad method, a wheel key method, a touch pad method, a touch screen method and the like may be used in combination of two or more thereof. Furthermore, the DTV 100 may receive an input signal through a remote controller (not shown) such as a spatial remote controller or a keypad remote controller.

The output unit 103 outputs various necessary data. The output unit 103 is for generating an output related to visual or auditory sound, and may include a display unit 103a and an audio output unit 103b. In addition, the output unit 103 may also output an output (for example, vibration) related to tactile sense. It may further include a haptic module (not shown) for generating.

The memory 104 stores data necessary for the operation of the DTV 100. For example, the memory 104 may store data received through the communication unit 101 and / or data input through the input unit 102.

The power supply unit 105 receives power from the external power source and / or the auxiliary power source, and supplies power required for the operation of each component of the DTV 100. The power supply unit 105 may include a battery mounted inside the DTV 100 in addition to an external power source and / or the auxiliary power source.

The controller 106 generally manages the overall operation of the DTV 100. The control unit 106 also controls the operations of the communication unit 101, the input unit 102, the output unit 103, the memory 104, and the power supply unit 105.

The DTV 100 described above with reference to FIG. 4, in the embodiment according to the present invention, receives information related to power limitation from the energy management apparatus 30 based on the smart grid information and the like, and is determined accordingly. A series of operations for controlling the operation of the DTV 100 is performed within a limited power range.

For example, the DTV 100 receives a power limit request from the energy management device 30, and based on the request and information on the current operating status of the DTV 100, the energy management device 30. Can send a response to the request. In addition, each component included in the DTV 100 may be properly operated within a range of operating power (limited power) determined based on the request and / or the current operating situation of the DTV 100, and the like. (Or each module) can be controlled.

Hereinafter, the operation of the energy management device according to an embodiment of the present invention, the operation of the electronic device connected to the energy management device and the interaction between the energy management device and the electronic device will be described in detail.

<Power allocation operation of energy management device>

5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an energy management apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, for convenience of description, it will be described that the operation of the energy management device according to an embodiment of the present invention by the energy management device 30 described above with reference to Figure 3, but one embodiment of the present invention The operation method of the energy management device according to the example is not limited to the above-described energy management device 30 is not applied.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 5, a series of operations for allocating the limited power to each electronic device will be described.

The energy management device 30 selects a power limit amount that can be consumed in the power management network 10 (S100). That is, the energy management device 30 may select a limit value for the total amount of power that can be consumed by various types of electronic devices included in the power management network 10 including the energy management device 30. Can be. For example, assuming that the power management network 10 is configured independently of each household, one power limit is a limit on the total amount of power consumed by one home. This can be

[Selection Criteria for Power Limit]

The energy management device 30 may select the power limit in step S100, and may automatically select the power limit in consideration of various criteria, policies, and / or user requests, and input by the user. The power limit can be selected manually. For example, the energy management device 30 may select the power limit amount to limit the power consumption in order to reduce the power cost in the high billing period in consideration of the smart grid information received through the communication unit 31. Can be. Alternatively, the energy management device 30 may select the power limit based on data input by the user through the input unit 32. Hereinafter, the criteria for selecting the power limit and the power limit point by the energy management device 30 will be described in more detail.

The energy management apparatus 30 may receive a power limitation amount from a user and select the power limitation amount based on this. That is, the energy management device 30 may control the operation of each electronic device so as not to exceed the power limit input by the user. In this case, the user may set the power limit amount by different time zones. For example, a user may enter a larger power limit during a relatively busy hour during breakfast (preparing for breakfast and preparing for work) and during evening (with high dinner preparing and watching TV). In the afternoon time (working time) when the power consumption is low, a smaller power limit can be input. Accordingly, the energy management device 30 checks the current time limit of power and accordingly, the operation of each electronic device is performed. Can be controlled.

On the other hand, the energy management device 30 may change the power limit amount instantaneously and momentarily based on a predetermined power usage fee value for a predetermined section. In this case, the power limit amount may be paid by the current use value, which may be a value determined by a power rate subscription or a value determined by a user's desired power use rate. The power limit amount may be changed / determined in consideration of a power usage fee value, the preset interval, and / or a current power usage fee. For example, when the user inputs / sets 50,000 won as the monthly electricity use rate, the energy management device 30 operates each electronic device to consume power within a range of the electricity use rate input by the user. Can be controlled. That is, when the user inputs a desired electric charge as 50,000 won for one month in August, and the electric charge used since August 01 as of August 10 is 30,000 won, the energy management device 30 remains in the remaining August month. Power limit can be determined to be less than usual to control each electronic device. On the contrary, if the electricity usage fee used since August 01 as of August 25 is 20,000 won, the energy management device 30 determines the power limit for the remaining August month to be larger than usual to control each electronic device. can do.

In addition, the algorithm for selecting the power limit by the energy management device 30 can be very diverse, it is obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art, the electronic device belonging to a certain group For the purpose of limiting the total amount of power consumed by the above, modifications to the algorithm described above will only be a choice for those skilled in the art.

Subsequently, the energy management apparatus 30 limits the amount of power limited to each electric device to be allocated to each electronic device included in the power management network 10 within the range of the selected power limit. ) Is obtained (S110).

The energy management apparatus 30 may select the limit amount for each device automatically in consideration of various criteria and policies and / or user's request in selecting the limit amount for each device (S110). It is possible to manually select the limit for each device by the input of.

For example, the energy management device 30 analyzes past power usage patterns of the electronic devices connected to the power management network 10 at the time when the power limit is selected, and based on the analysis result, the respective electronic devices are analyzed. A device-specific limit to be allocated to devices can be obtained.

At this time, the algorithm for the energy management device 30 to obtain the limited amount for each device by analyzing the power usage pattern of the electronic devices can be very diverse. For example, the average value of the amount of power used by the electronic device in the past may be determined as the limit for each device. Alternatively, the average value of past power consumption corresponding to the section to which the current time belongs may be determined as the limit for each device. Alternatively, the energy management device 30 may check an operation currently being performed by the electronic device, and determine the average value of power consumption used to perform the operation in the past as the limit for each device.

Although not shown in the drawing, the energy management device 30 may be an electronic device that consumes power among electronic devices connected to the power management network 10 in order to obtain a limit for each device. For example, the operation of identifying the electronic device with the power on may be performed.

Furthermore, the energy management device 30 may further perform an operation of checking whether there is an electronic device that is currently in a power-off state but needs to perform a scheduled operation in a time interval applied to the power limit. In this case, the energy management device 30, in acquiring the limit amount for each device, further considers the limit amount for each device to be allocated to the electronic device that should perform the scheduled operation, and the device to be allocated to each electronic device. Star limit can be obtained.

Subsequently, the energy management apparatus 30 transmits a power restricting request including the obtained restriction amount for each device to an electronic device corresponding thereto (S120). The power limit request may be sent in the form of a message. The power limit request may be written in an XML-based text format.

The power limit request is a request for the target electronic device to operate under a limited power, and the electronic device that has received the power limit request may be configured to refer to the device-specific limit amount included in the power limit request. The operating power to be operated can be determined. At this time, if the operating power is determined, the electronic device should operate within the range of the determined operating power, unless special circumstances occur.

When the electronic device receives the power limit request, the electronic device considers the limit for each device included in the power limit request, and transmits a response to the energy management device 30. A detailed operation of the electronic device according to the reception of the power limit request will be described later.

The energy management apparatus 30 receives a response thereto from the electronic device that has transmitted the power limitation request (S130). The response may include an accept-response and a reject-response. A detailed description of the acceptance response and rejection response will be described later.

Subsequently, the energy management apparatus 30 determines whether the response is an acceptance response or a rejection response (S140).

If the response is an acceptance response, the energy management device 30 ends the limited power allocation operation with the electronic device. This does not mean that all operations of the energy management device 30 are terminated. If the limited power allocation operation with other electronic devices is not terminated, the limited power allocation operation with other electronic devices may be continued. .

On the other hand, if the response is a rejection response, the energy management device 30 performs a series of negotiation procedures for allocating the limited power to the electronic device again (S150). A detailed description of the negotiation procedure performed by the energy management device 30 will be described later.

On the other hand, while the energy management device 30 has been described for transmitting a power limit request to one electronic device, the energy management device 30 is a plurality of electronic devices connected to the power management network 10 As described above, the power limitation request may be transmitted. The energy management device 30 may transmit the power limit request to the plurality of electronic devices in a batch or sequentially. For example, the energy management device 30 may transmit the power limit request to each device at once, after all the device-specific limits are determined for the plurality of electronic devices. Alternatively, when a device-specific limit is determined for one electronic device, a power limit request may be transmitted to the one electronic device without waiting for the device-specific limit amount to be determined for other electronic devices.

In the above, the power allocation operation of the energy management device according to an embodiment of the present invention has been described. Hereinafter, an operation of an electronic device operating by allocating limited power for each device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

<Power allocation operation of the electronic device>

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 6, a description will be given of how each of the electronic devices operates according to a series of operations for allocating the limited power for each device to each electronic device.

6 is a flowchart illustrating a method of operating an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Hereinafter, for convenience of description, it will be described that the operation of the electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention is implemented by the DTV 100 described above with reference to FIG. 4, according to an embodiment of the present invention. The operation method of the electronic device is not limited to the above-described DTV 100.

The DTV 100 receives a power limit request from the energy management apparatus 30 according to the above-described step S120 (S200).

Subsequently, the DTV 100 compares the limit for each device included in the power limit request with the required power considering the current situation of the DTV 100 (S210).

As described above, the limit amount for each device is a limit power amount allocated to the DTV 100.

The required power means power consumption required for the operation of the DTV 100. On the other hand, comparing the limited amount and the required power for each device, the operation is performed by the DTV 100 to select the 'operating power', in this specification, the required power and the operating power is a concept that is distinguished from each other.

The required power may be determined by various criteria. These various criteria are described in more detail.

[Determination of required power]

When the DTV 100 is performing a predetermined operation by a request of a user, a request of the controller 106, or a request of the energy management device 30, the required power is performed by the DTV 100. It may be determined by the amount of power required to perform.

For example, when the DTV 100 is displaying 'movie A' through the display unit 33a at the request of the user, when the power consumption required to display the 'movie A' is X, The DTV 100 may determine X as the required power.

Meanwhile, the required power may be determined as the amount of power required to perform an operation mode set in the DTV 100 by a user request, a request of the controller 106, or a request of the energy management device 30. have.

For example, the DTV 100 is outputting 'music B' through the sound output unit 33b under the control of the energy management device 30, and at the request of the user to the 'maximum power saving mode'. In case of setting and operating, it is assumed that the power consumption required to output the 'music B' is Y, and the value set as the power required to operate in the 'hibernate mode' is Z (Z is greater than Y). ), The DTV 100 may determine Z as the required power. Of course, this is because it is assumed that the algorithm that determines the required power prioritizes the power consumption required in the operation mode, so that the DTV 100 needs to be determined because Z is required power. If the algorithm for determining power is different, the DTV 100 may determine Y as the required power.

Referring to FIG. 6 again, the operation of the DTV 100 will be described. As a result of the comparison in step S210, if the limit for each device is greater than the required power, step S220 is performed. If the limit for each device is less than the required power, step S250 is performed.

First, a description will be given of the case where the limit for each device is more than the required power.

The DTV 100 determines the operating power of the DTV 100 when the limit for each device is greater than or equal to the required power (S220). The operating power is determined based on the limited amount of the device and the required power. When the operating power is determined, the DTV 100 should operate within the determined operating power range unless there is a special situation. do. That is, the DTV 100 should control the operation of each component (or each module) constituting the DTV 100 so as not to consume power exceeding the determined operating power.

[Determination of operating power]

When the limit for each device is greater than or equal to the required power, the DTV 100 may determine the operating power according to various criteria.

First, the DTV 100 may determine the operating power to the same value as the limit for each device. This determination is made when the DTV 100 is expected to consume more power than the current required power in the future, although the current required power is less than the device-specific limit allocated to the DTV 100. can do. Alternatively, the DTV 100, although the current required power is less than the limit for each device, if it is determined that the user's operation request is irregular or the user's request to perform the operation frequently, the additional requested by the user This determination can be made when there is a desire to reserve reserved power to perform the operation.

For example, when the limit for each device is A and the power required for the operation of the DTV 100 (for example, 'AAB news' display) is B (B <A), the current operation is terminated by the user. When another operation (eg, display and recording of 'movie D') is scheduled after the operation is performed, if the power required to perform the other operation is C greater than B, the DTV 100 performs the reserved other operation. The operating power may be determined as A in order to secure power required for performance.

Second, the DTV 100 may determine the operating power to the same value as the required power. The DTV 100 may make this determination if it is anticipated that it will not consume more power in the future than the current power.

Third, the DTV 100 may determine the operating power as one value between the required power and a limit amount for each device allocated to the DTV 100. For example, in the above example, when the power C required to perform the other scheduled operation is greater than the power B required for the currently performing operation, but smaller than the limit amount A for each device, the DTV 100 may include: The required power may be determined as C (C is smaller than the limit A for each device but larger than the current power B). In addition, when the DTV 100 may determine the operation power as one value between the required power and the limit for each device in consideration of various situations and past power consumption patterns. It can vary.

The DTV 100 transmits a response to the power limit request when the limit for each device is greater than or equal to the required power (S230). In this case, the response transmitted by the DTV 100 is an accept-response. The acceptance response may perform a function of notifying the energy management apparatus 30 that the DTV 100 has determined operating power according to the power limit request.

The acceptance response may include the required power and / or operating power determined by the DTV 100. When the required power and the operating power are included in the acceptance response and transmitted, the energy management device 30 may perform the necessity when performing a negotiation procedure that may occur in a process of allocating a limited amount of power with other electronic devices. Power and the operating power can be used. This will be described later in detail.

Subsequently, based on the determined operating power, the DTV 100 performs a power limiting operation so that power consumed according to the operation of the DTV 100 does not exceed the operating power (S240).

Next, a description will be given of the case where the limit for each device is less than the required power.

The DTV 100 transmits a response to the power limit request when the limit for each device is less than the required power (S250). In this case, the response is a reject-response. The rejection response may perform a function of notifying the energy management apparatus 30 that the DTV 100 has rejected the power limit request.

The rejection response may include the required power determined by the DTV 100. Meanwhile, the rejection response may include a priority for an operation currently performed by the DTV 100. When the required power or priority is included in the rejection response and transmitted, the energy management device 30 may perform a series of processes for reallocating a limit amount for each device to the DTV 100 later. The required power or the priority may be used.

Meanwhile, when transmitting the rejection response, the DTV 100 may temporarily perform a power limit operation (S260). For example, the DTV 100 may determine the determined required power as the above-described operating power and control the operation of the DTV 100 based on the determined operating power. That is, the operation of the DTV 100 may be controlled temporarily so as not to use more than the power currently being used.

In addition, the DTV 100 may wait until a repower limit request is received from the energy management apparatus 30 (S270). When the repower limit request is received, the DTV 100 may return to step S210 to perform the above-described series of operations again.

<Negotiation procedure>

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the operation of limiting the power consumed by each of the electronic devices by transmitting the power limit request to each electronic device has been described above. However, while all the electronic devices may smoothly complete the power allocation procedure by accepting the power limit request, some electronic devices may also reject the power limit request. Hereinafter, when some electronic devices do not accept and reject the power limit request, a negotiation procedure for allocating power to the some electronic devices will be described again.

7 is a diagram for explaining a negotiation procedure performed by an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 shows that the energy management apparatus EMS selects 500 as the power limit in step S100 described above, and in step S110, each device for the first electronic device Device A and the second electronic device Device B, respectively. The case where 300 and 200 were selected as the allocation, respectively. In addition, in FIG. 7, the first electronic device Device A determines its required power to be 250 according to the predetermined criterion described above, and the second electronic device Device B sets its required power to 250. The decision is made.

In this case, the energy management device EMS may first transmit a power limit request including a device-specific limit value 300 determined by the first electronic device Device A. FIG. Accordingly, the first electronic device Device A may transmit an acceptance response as described above. This is because the device-specific allocation value is larger than the required power value 250 determined by the first electronic device (Device A). Accordingly, the energy management device EMS may be regarded as having succeeded in allocating the limited power to the first electronic device Device A. In this case, the acceptance response may include the required power determined by the first electronic device Device A.

Subsequently, the energy management device EMS may transmit a power limit request including a device-specific limit value 200 determined by the second electronic device Device B. It is not necessary to transmit a power limit request to the second electronic device Device B after the energy management device ESM receives a response from the first electronic device Device A, but not the first electronic device Device A. ) And the reception of a power limit request and response to the second electronic device Device B may proceed in parallel. In response to the power limit request, the second electronic device Device B may transmit a rejection response as described above. This is because the allocation value for each device is smaller than 250, which is a required power value determined by the second electronic device (Device B). Accordingly, the energy management device EMS may be regarded as having failed to allocate the limited power to the second electronic device Device B. In this case, the rejection response may include the required power determined by the second electronic device (Device B). The rejection response may include a priority given to one or more operations performed by the second electronic device (Device B).

When receiving the rejection response to the power limit request as described above, the EMS secures the extra power or allocates the extra power to allocate the insufficient power 50 to the first electronic device Device A. If not, the first electronic device Device A may stop the current operation or deteriorate the current operation quality, thereby forcing the first electronic device Device A to operate according to the device-specific limit value.

The energy management device (EMS) may check whether or not spare power that can be allocated to the second electronic device (Device B) can be secured. The energy management device (EMS) may refer to the required power included in the acceptance response to confirm whether the surplus power can be secured. For example, the energy management device EMS may be configured to generate the first electronic device based on device-specific limitations assigned to the first electronic device Device A and required power received from the first electronic device Device A. FIG. From A), it can be seen that the spare power 50 can be secured.

The energy management device EMS may transmit a power limit request to the first electronic device Device A again. In this case, the limit value for each device included in the power limit request may be 250. That is, when the energy management device EMS reassigns power to the first electronic device Device A, the energy management device EMS may request to determine the required power value received from the first electronic device Device A as a device-specific limit. It is. On the other hand, the energy management device (EMS) responds to the acceptance response from the first electronic device (Device A), unless there is a special situation (for example, a special situation that the required power suddenly increased after the previous acceptance response). It can be received from this, it is possible to secure the extra power that can be allocated to the second electronic device (Device B).

Accordingly, the energy management device EMS may transmit a power limit request in order to allocate power to the second electronic device Device B again. In this case, the limit for each device included in the power limit request may be a value increased to 250 in which the spare power 50 secured from the first electronic device Device A is added by the above procedure in the existing 200. As a result, the energy management device EMS will be able to receive an acceptance response from the second electronic device Device B.

On the other hand, when the energy management device (EMS) initially assigned a device-specific limit of 300 to the first electronic device (Device A), the first electronic device (Device A), as described above, determines itself In this case, the operation power may be determined as a required power value of 250, and the determined operating power may be transmitted together in the acceptance response. In this case, when the energy management device EMS receives a rejection response from the second electronic device Device B, the energy management device EMS does not go through a re-power allocation procedure for the first electronic device Device A and immediately returns the second electronic device. The power reassignment procedure may be performed to the device B. This is because the energy management device EMS already knows that the surplus power 50 has already been secured by the active operation of the first electronic device Device A.

In the above, in order to determine whether the energy management device (EMS) can secure the spare power, the use of the required power of each electronic device included in the acceptance response has been described above. When securing is necessary, a message may be transmitted from the plurality of electronic devices included in the power management network 10 to the plurality of electronic devices requesting a response to the required power currently being used. In this case, the message may be transmitted by broadcasting.

In addition, although the negotiation procedure according to the embodiment of the present invention described with reference to FIG. 7 has been described assuming that there are two electronic devices, the case where there are three or more electronic devices, the additional power is increased in a similar manner to the negotiation procedure described above. Being able to secure will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, the negotiation procedure according to an embodiment of the present invention described with reference to FIG. 7 may be performed when there is not enough power to be allocated to one electronic device, and triggers the negotiation procedure. Is not limited to the above description. That is, the negotiation procedure is not performed only when one electronic device transmits a rejection response to the power limit request. For example, when a new electronic device joins the power management network 10 to allocate power to the new electronic device, the negotiation procedure may proceed, and further, the electronic device that has already completed power allocation. In this case, even if a special situation occurs and requests more power allocation, the EMS can proceed with the negotiation procedure.

<Power allocation procedure when negotiation process fails>

On the other hand, despite the negotiation process between the energy management device and the electronic devices, there may be a case that the sufficient power to be allocated to the electronic device that transmitted the rejection response is not secured. That is, although the negotiation procedure is performed, there may be a case where the negotiation procedure has failed.

In this case, the energy management device 30 may proceed with the following forced allocation procedure.

First, the energy management device 30 may query the priority of power allocation for each electronic device from the user.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an energy management device displaying a user interface for querying a user's priority. Referring to FIG. 8, the energy management device 30 uses the display unit 33a. In addition, a window W1 is displayed for displaying a list of electronic devices that are currently operating or are expected to operate in the future, together with a phrase requesting the user to input the priorities. The window W1 matches and displays not only lists of the electronic devices but also brief descriptions related to the operation together with the current operation type or the reserved operation type of the electronic devices. As the window W1 is provided, the user may select the importance of each operation by referring to various electronic devices and operation information thereof.

In order for the user to select the importance of the operation through the energy management device 30, the user interface provided by the energy management device 30 to the user may be very diverse.

For example, a user interface may be provided to select the priority of each operation in order.

Alternatively, a user interface may be provided for inputting which of the preset priorities can be given to each operation. That is, the user may input the priority of each operation by inputting which priority the operation belongs to in the priority classified from the 1st to the 4th priority. At this time, each ranking may be provided with a description corresponding to each ranking. That is, for the 1st priority, 'the operation that must be performed at present. A description such as "no deterioration of operation quality" may be provided, and for the second rank, "the action that must be performed at present." An explanation such as "permission deterioration of operation quality", for the third place, is "an operation that does not need to be performed now. A description such as Need to resume operation later is described as 'Operation not required to perform now'. May be provided respectively. Of course, it is obvious that the classification of the ranking may be applied in various ways in addition to the above-described examples.

The energy management device 30 deteriorates the operation quality for various operations operating in each electronic device in consideration of the importance (or priority) selected or input through the window W1 and / or the user interface. And / or to stop the operation and the like to each electronic device. The spare power secured by the deterioration of the operation quality of each electronic device and / or the stop of the operation may be used as the device-specific limit amount required in the above-described negotiation procedure.

At this time, the energy management device 30 determines whether to deteriorate the operation of which operation (or which electronic device), or to what extent the operation of the energy management device is to be deteriorated or to stop which operation. The algorithms used can vary widely.

However, despite the fact that the energy management device 30 operates based on the importance input / selected by the user, it is an unexpected inconvenience for the user to automatically deteriorate or stop the operation quality of each electronic device. Can give For example, while the user is watching a movie through the DTV 100 or the like, the size of the movie displayed on the DTV 100 is severely reduced due to an operation deterioration request by the energy management apparatus 30. In some cases, the volume may be severely reduced, in which case the user may feel uncomfortable.

Accordingly, it may be more convenient for the user to allow the energy management device 30 to select an operation that may be stopped at each electronic device than to allow the user to select the importance or priority for the operation at each electronic device. have.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an energy management device displaying a user interface for querying a user to stop an electronic device. Referring to FIG. 9, the energy management device 30 may include the display unit 33a. Through the display, a window W2 is displayed for displaying a list of electronic devices that are currently operating or are expected to be operated in the future together with a phrase requesting the user to input an operation to stop. Furthermore, the user may be provided with information on the spare power to be secured at present. The window W2 matches and displays not only lists of the electronic devices but also brief descriptions related to the operation together with the current operation type or the reserved operation type of the electronic devices. In addition, the window W2 may display the amount of power consumed by each operation. Optionally, when the operation to be stopped is selected, the window W2 may be provided with a check box for receiving a selection of whether to resume the operation, for example, when the stopped operation is free of power in the future. . By providing the window W2, a user may select an operation to stop by referring to various electronic devices, power consumption information thereof, and spare power information to be secured.

In order for the user to select the importance of the operation through the energy management device 30, the user interface provided by the energy management device 30 to the user may be very diverse.

In the embodiment described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, the energy management apparatus 30 has been described as displaying all the information. However, the present invention is not limited to the information being displayed on the energy management apparatus 30. For example, the information may be displayed through the DTV 100 connected to the power management network 10. Alternatively, the information may be displayed through a general-purpose computer connected to the power management network 10. This will allow the user to receive and enter information through a larger screen and a more convenient interface. In addition, the present invention is not limited to displaying the information, and the information may be output as sound.

In the above, by the mutual operation between the energy management device 30 and the electronic devices, the power limit amount allocated to the power management network 10 selected by the energy management device 30 is determined by each electronic device. The process of allocating and assigning them is explained.

Hereinafter, according to an embodiment of the present invention, a description will be given in detail of how each electronic device operates, that is, how to perform a power limiting operation, based on a device-specific limit assigned to each electronic device.

<Power Limiting Operation of Electronic Devices>

10 is a flowchart illustrating an example in which an electronic device performs a power limiting operation according to an embodiment of the present invention. According to the first embodiment, the electronic device is assigned by the device-specific limit allocated to the electronic device. Hereinafter, for convenience of description, the electronic device is described by the DTV 100 described above with reference to FIG. 4. Although the power limiting operation according to an embodiment is described, the power limiting operation method of the electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention is not limited to the above-described DTV 100.

Referring to FIG. 10, as described above, the DTV 100 determines operating power (S300).

Subsequently, while monitoring the power consumption of the DTV 100, the DTV 100 determines whether the power consumption exceeds the determined operating power (S310). The monitoring operation of the DTV 100 may be performed in real time. Alternatively, the monitoring operation may be performed periodically.

If it is determined that the power consumption during the monitoring operation exceeds the operating power, the DTV 100 analyzes an operation that is being performed or requested to be performed (S320). For example, the DTV 100 determines whether the operation is watching a moving image content such as a movie in which the operation is stored, whether the operation is watching a moving image content such as TV broadcasting, whether the operation is recording of the moving image content, or the operation is broadcast. Whether the content is acoustic content, such as music received by a signal, or whether the operation is an operation such as Internet browsing may be analyzed.

The DTV 100 determines a component (or module) necessary for the operation based on the analyzed result (S330). For example, when the DTV 100 is viewing a moving image content in which the operation is stored, the memory 104, the output unit 103, the input unit 102, the control unit 106, and the like may be used. It may be determined that the component is necessary for operation. Alternatively, when the operation is the output of the sound content by the broadcast signal, the DTV 100, the communication unit 101, the sound output unit 103b, the input unit 102 and the control unit 106, It may be determined that the component is necessary for operation.

Subsequently, the DTV 100 allocates power for each module to each of the determined components (S340). For example, through pattern analysis of power consumption by each component in the past, power for each module may be allocated to each component used to perform the analyzed operation.

Meanwhile, when the power supply unit 105 of the DTV 100 includes a battery, the DTV 100 may control the operation power not to be allocated to the battery. That is, the DTV 100 may control not to consume operating power to charge the battery. However, when the requested operation is charging of the battery, the DTV 100 may control the operation power to be consumed only for charging the battery.

The DTV 100 distributes power for each component appropriately to each component, and then controls each component to operate within a range of allocated module-specific power (S350).

The total sum of the power for each module allocated through the pattern analysis may exceed the operating power. In this case, the DTV 100 may induce deterioration of operating performance of each module. For example, when displaying content through the display unit 103a, when the normal and general operation is performed, as much as 500 power is consumed, the DTV 100 may display 400 on the display unit 103a. As many module-specific powers can be allocated. In this case, the display unit 103a reduces the power displayed by the display unit 103a by reducing the brightness of the content displayed on the display unit 103a or reducing the size at which the content is displayed. It can work.

The DTV 100 may monitor power consumption consumed by the DTV 100 in real time while performing the above-described power limiting operation. That is, the DTV 100 may continue to perform step 310. That is, the DTV 100 monitors power consumption in real time, and analyzes the operation being performed when the power consumption exceeds the operating power, and allocates the power of each module to be allocated to each component according to the analyzed operation. By determining / allocating, the requested operation can be performed within the range of the operating power allocated to the DTV 100. That is, the DTV 100 may dynamically control module-specific allocation power according to a requested operation.

Meanwhile, the DTV 100 may first allocate allocated operating power to each component (or modules), and then control each component to operate within a range of individually allocated power. .

 [Reassignment Request]

On the other hand, when the electronic device including the DTV 100 determines that the requested operation cannot be performed within the range of the operating power while performing the above-described power limiting operation, the electronic device may reset power to the energy management device 30. You can request an assignment.

Hereinafter, in this case, the electronic device will be described in detail for requesting power reallocation to the energy management device 30.

11 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure for requesting reallocation of power by an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 11, the DTV 100 receives a predetermined operation request from a user or an external device including the energy management device 30 (S400).

As described above, the DTV 100 may monitor whether the DTV 100 is operating within the determined operating power range (S410). That is, it is determined whether the power consumed for the requested operation exceeds the operating power (S410).

If the power consumption exceeds the operating power, the DTV 100 may query the user whether the requested operation should be performed, and may receive a response thereto from the user (S420). .

As a result of the query, if the operation is not necessarily performed, the DTV 100 may output a message indicating that the requested operation cannot be performed due to the power limit operation through the output unit 103 (S430). . In addition, the DTV 100 may ignore the requested operation and may monitor the power limit operation again.

As a result of the query in step S420, if the operation must be performed, the DTV 100 may query the user whether the performance may be performed by degrading the performance of the requested operation, and input a response thereto from the user. Can be received (S440).

As a result of the query in step S430, when the degradation of the operation performance is allowed, the DTV 100 performs the requested operation with the degraded performance (S450). For example, when requesting viewing of moving picture content through the DTV 100, the DTV 100 outputs moving picture content, but may reduce the brightness and size of the displayed content or reduce the size of the output sound. have.

If, as a result of the query in step S430, the operation performance deterioration is not allowed, the DTV 100 requests to reallocate power to the energy management device 30 (S460). That is, the DTV 100 may determine that the requested operation must be performed and request the energy management apparatus 30 to secure power for performing the operation.

To request to reassign power, the DTV 100 may transmit a power reassigning request to the energy management device 30. At this time, the power reassignment request may include the amount of power required for the requested operation. In addition, the power reassignment request may include priority information given to the requested operation.

When the energy management device 30 receives the power reallocation request, the energy management device 30 performs the above-described negotiation procedure based on the amount of power required for performing the requested operation and / or priority information assigned thereto. Accordingly, when the spare power is secured, power may be reassigned to the DTV 100 by transmitting a power allocation request to the DTV 100.

Accordingly, the DTV 100 operates according to the power allocation operation and the power limit operation of the electronic device described above.

Hereinafter, a method of monitoring power consumption by the energy management apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

According to one embodiment of the present invention described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 11, a method of monitoring and controlling the amount of power consumed by an electronic device individually is described. In other words, the electronic device controls itself to operate within the allocated range, and in the case of using power exceeding the allocated range, it has been described with respect to a procedure for requesting reassignment to the energy management apparatus 30. Hereinafter, according to another embodiment of the present invention, a method for monitoring and controlling the power consumption of each electronic device by the energy management device will be described.

12 is a flowchart illustrating a method of monitoring power consumption of an electronic device connected to a power management network by an energy management device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, for convenience of description, it will be described assuming that the electronic device is the DTV 100 described above.

Referring to FIG. 12, the energy management device 30 obtains power consumption of the DTV 100 connected to the power management network 10 (S500).

The power consumption consumed by the DTV 100 may be measured by the DTV 100 and transmitted to the energy management device 30, and the energy management device 30 directly consumes power consumed by the DTV 1000. Can be measured and / or calculated.

In this case, in the former case, the DTV 100 may include a measuring instrument (not shown) for measuring power consumption, or is measured by a smart meter connected to the power supply unit 105 of the DTV 100. Can be. For example, the amount of power consumed by the DTV 100 may be measured by a smart meter connected between a power plug of the power supply unit 105 and an outlet for power supply, and the measured value may be measured by the power management network ( 10) may be transmitted to the energy management device (30).

The energy management device 30 monitors the power usage of the DTV 100 based on the obtained power consumption (S510). That is, the energy management device 30 may determine whether the power consumption of the DTV 100 exceeds the operating power allocated to the DTV 100 (S510).

The operating power allocated to the DTV 100 may be obtained through a response to the power limit request described above. Or, if the operating power determined by the DTV 100 is not included in the response to the power limit request, the energy management device 30 obtains the operating power allocated to the DTV 100 through a separate request. can do.

If the power consumption exceeds the operating power during the monitoring operation S510, step S520 to be described below is performed. If the power consumption does not exceed the operating power, the process returns to step S500 and continues. The power consumed by the DTV 100 is monitored in real time.

The energy management apparatus 30 then checks whether power reallocation for the DTV 100 is necessary (S520). For example, the energy management device 30 obtains information on an operation currently being performed by the DTV 100, and displays a screen that asks the user whether an operation currently being performed by the DTV 100 is necessary. Step S520 may be performed by outputting through 33a) and receiving a user's response thereto. Alternatively, by requesting the DTV 100 to output such a query screen through the display unit 103a of the DTV 100 and receiving and transmitting a response thereto, the energy management apparatus 30 sends the DTV 100 to the DTV 100. It will be able to determine if power reassignment is required. If, before performing step S520, the power reassignment request according to step S460 described with reference to FIG. 11 is received from the DTV 100, the energy management device 30 can determine whether power reallocation is necessary. do.

If it is determined that power reallocation is necessary by the checking procedure of step S520, the energy management apparatus 30 performs a power reallocation procedure (S530). In this case, the power reallocation procedure may be performed by the same or similar method as the power reallocation procedure described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 9.

On the other hand, when it is determined that the power reassignment is not necessary by the confirmation procedure of step S520, the energy management device 30 controls the operation of the DTV 100 (S540). For example, the energy management device 30 may request the DTV 100 to stop performing at least one operation currently being performed. Alternatively, the DTV 100 may be requested to perform the power limiting operation described above with reference to FIG. 10.

As a result, the energy management apparatus 30 actively monitors the amount of power consumed by the power management network 10 and appropriately controls the operation of electronic devices connected to the power management network 10.

The various embodiments described in this document can be implemented in medium that can be read by a computer or similar device using, for example, software, hardware, or a combination thereof.

According to a hardware implementation, the embodiments described in this document may include application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). It may be implemented using at least one of processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, and electrical units for performing functions.

According to a software implementation, embodiments such as procedures or functions may be implemented with separate software modules that perform at least one function or operation. The software code may be implemented by a software application written in a suitable programming language. In addition, software codes may be stored in the memories 34 and 104 and executed by the controllers 34 and 106.

Claims (12)

Communication unit for communicating with the power management network; And
Determine the power limit,
After determining a device specific limit to be allocated to an electronic device connected to the power management network, and transmits a power limit request including the device specific limit to the electronic device,
Receive a response to the power limit request, and
And a control unit controlling power consumption of the power management network based on the received response.
Power management device. The apparatus of claim 1,
When there is not enough power to be allocated to other electronic devices connected to the power management network, a request for re-restriction of power is sent to the electronic device.
Power management device. The apparatus of claim 1,
When determining the limit for each device, determining based on at least one of the power consumption pattern of the electronic device and the current required power of the electronic device
Power management device. A power management device for controlling power consumption of a power management network including a plurality of electronic devices,
A display unit;
A communication unit communicating with the power management network; And
Displaying operations performed on the plurality of electronic devices through the display unit;
And a control unit which transmits a control signal for deteriorating or stopping at least one selected operation among the operations to an electronic device that performs the selected at least one operation.
Power management device. 5. The apparatus of claim 4,
Receiving priority information corresponding to the operations,
In consideration of the priority information, selecting the at least one operation
Power management device. 5. The apparatus of claim 4,
When there is insufficient power to be allocated to at least one of the plurality of electronic devices, the display unit displays operations performed by the plurality of electronic devices.
Power management device. A power management device for controlling power consumption of a power management network including a plurality of electronic devices,
A communication unit communicating with the power management network; And
Receiving a power reallocation request from a first electronic device, which is one of the plurality of electronic devices,
Selecting based on the required power and the allocated operating power for the plurality of electronic devices, and
And a control unit which transmits a power limit request to the selected second electronic device.
Power management device. 8. The apparatus of claim 7,
Among the plurality of electronic devices, an electronic device having a required power smaller than the allocated operating power is selected as the second electronic device.
Power management device. 9. The apparatus according to claim 8,
Among the plurality of electronic devices, an electronic device having a difference between a required power and an allocated operating power more than the amount of power to be allocated to the first electronic device is selected as the second electronic device.
Power management device. The method of claim 1,
The response indicates one of approving and rejecting the power limit request.
Power management device. The apparatus of claim 1,
When the response is a rejection response, selecting one of the plurality of electronic devices other than the electronic device based on the plurality of required powers and the allocated operating powers for the plurality of electronic devices.
Power management device. 12. The apparatus according to claim 11,
Sending a power limit request to the selected electronics for power reallocation;
Power management device.

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