FR3115875A1 - CERTIFICATION ARCHITECTURE AND METHOD FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF ENERGY PRODUCED BY PHOTOVOLTAIC PANELS, AND PLATFORM FOR ELECTRICAL ENERGY TRANSACTIONS - Google Patents

Abstract

TITLE OF THE INVENTION: CERTIFICATION ARCHITECTURE AND METHOD FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF ENERGY PRODUCED BY PHOTOVOLTAIC PANELS, AND PLATFORM FOR ELECTRICAL ENERGY TRANSACTIONS The certification architecture for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels (100) comprises:- a first oracle device (105), comprising an interface (110) configured to be fixed at the output of a photovoltaic panel meter and photovoltaic panel counter output signal conversion means (115), and- first distributed register write means (120), configured to store in a distributed register data corresponding to the counter output signal of photovoltaic panel. Figure for abstract: Figure 1

Description

CERTIFICATION ARCHITECTURE AND METHOD FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF ENERGY PRODUCED BY PHOTOVOLTAIC PANELS, AND PLATFORM FOR ELECTRICAL ENERGY TRANSACTIONS

Technical field of the invention

The present invention relates to a certification architecture for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels, a method corresponding to this certification architecture and an electrical energy transaction platform. It applies in particular in the field of intelligent energy management.

State of the prior art

In the area of intelligent energy management, new systems work on the principle of decentralized, centrally managed energy production.

In these systems, energy producers (individuals, communities or companies) install energy production devices, and the energy thus produced is then sold to energy distributors.

The problem inherent in these systems is the certification of the quantity of energy supplied by the producer to the distributor, the impact of which is financial.

In current systems, these quantities are assessed using meters provided by third parties, placed on the production and consumption sites. However, these systems are not reliable because malicious users can falsify the counters and make it difficult to resolve disputes.

To date, there is no reliable solution to track and certify the amount of energy produced and/or consumed by parties independent of the distributor.

Presentation of the invention

The object of the present invention is to remedy all or part of these drawbacks.

According to a first aspect, the present invention relates to a certification architecture for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels, comprising:
- a first oracle device, comprising an interface configured to be fixed at the output of a photovoltaic panel meter and a means for converting the photovoltaic panel meter output signal, and
- A first means of writing in a distributed register, configured to store in a distributed register data corresponding to the output signal of the photovoltaic panel counter.

By virtue of these provisions, the quantity of energy produced by the photovoltaic panel is determined by the oracle device, which is independent of the photovoltaic panel and plays the role of a trusted secure third party. Data collected by the oracle device are then stored securely on a distributed register, which gives them the resistance to falsifications specific to this type of system.

In certain embodiments, the architecture according to the present invention comprises:
- a second oracle device, comprising an interface configured to be fixed at the output of an electricity consumption meter and an electricity consumption meter signal conversion means and
- A second means of writing in a distributed register, configured to store in a distributed register transaction data associated with data corresponding to the signal of the electricity consumption meter.

These embodiments allow the amount of power consumed by a power consuming unit to be determined by the oracle device, which is independent of the power consuming unit and acts as a trusted secure third party. Data collected by the oracle device are then stored securely on a distributed register, which gives them the resistance to falsifications specific to this type of system.

In certain embodiments, an oracle device is configured to be associated with an energy production or consumption site, the oracle device being associated with a private key representative of the energy production site, and the key being used by the registration means in a corresponding distributed ledger during these registration attempts.

These embodiments make it possible to limit registration attempts by devices associated with a given site.

In certain embodiments, an oracle device is configured to connect to a photovoltaic panel or an electrical consumption meter output, this oracle device comprising:
- an optical pulse output measurement unit,
- an ammeter clamp and/or
- an information system output sensor.

These embodiments allow the external measurement of energy consumption or production directly from the consumption or production device.

In some embodiments, an oracle device includes a radio module configured to transmit converted signal data to a distributed ledger write means.

These embodiments allow modular deployment of the architecture, which limits the need for connected oracle devices.

According to a second aspect, the present invention relates to an electrical energy transaction platform, comprising:
- at least one photovoltaic panel configured to produce electrical energy, and
- a certification architecture for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels according to the present invention, comprising at least a first oracle device configured to convert the output signal of the photovoltaic panel(s) in question.

The advantages of the platform according to the present invention are identical to the advantages of the architecture according to the present invention.

In certain embodiments, the platform according to the present invention comprises:
- at least one electrical consumption device,
- a second oracle device, comprising an interface configured to be fixed at the output of the electrical consumption device(s) in question and an electrical consumption meter signal conversion means, and
- A second means of writing in a distributed register, configured to store in a distributed register transaction data associated with data corresponding to the signal of the electricity consumption meter.

These embodiments make it possible to determine the transactions between the production and consumption sites.

In certain embodiments, the platform according to the present invention comprises means for executing a decentralized application, configured to execute an intelligent contract triggering actions according to the data recorded on the distributed ledger.

These embodiments make it possible to execute transactions on the basis of a pre-established digitized contract.

In some embodiments, the platform according to the present invention includes means for transferring digital tokens, such token transfer being enabled as a function of the register enrollment means.

These embodiments allow the quantification of transactions between operators of the platform.

According to a third aspect, the present invention relates to a certification method for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels, comprising:
- a step of fixing a first oracle device at the output of a photovoltaic panel meter,
- a step of converting a photovoltaic panel meter output signal, and
- A step of writing in a distributed register data corresponding to the output signal of the photovoltaic panel counter.

The advantages of the method according to the present invention are identical to the advantages of the architecture according to the present invention.

Brief description of figures

Other advantages, purposes and specificities of the invention are highlighted in the following non-exhaustive description of at least one architecture, a platform and a method according to the present invention, associated with the drawings appearing in the appendix, in which:

schematically represents a particular embodiment of the architecture according to the present invention,

schematically represents a particular embodiment of the platform according to the present invention, and

schematically represents in the form of a flowchart a particular sequence of steps of the method according to the present invention.

Detailed description of the invention

This description is not exhaustive since each element of one embodiment can be advantageously combined with any other element of another embodiment.

Figures are not to scale.

The term "site" refers to a physical space. Such a site can be for professional or personal use. The term “site” can for example designate a building or a photovoltaic farm.

The term "distributed register" designates a computer register simultaneously recorded and synchronized on a network of computers, which evolves by the addition of new information previously validated by the entire network and intended never to be modified or deleted. A distributed ledger has no central administrator or centralized data storage. A peer-to-peer network and a consensus algorithm are necessary to ensure the operation of the system. The blockchain system is a form of distributed ledger, which can be public, private, permissioned or consortium.

Figure 1, which is not to scale, is a schematic representation of an architecture according to the present invention. This certification architecture for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels 100 includes:
- a first oracle device 105, comprising an interface 110 configured to be fixed at the output of a photovoltaic panel meter and a photovoltaic panel meter output signal conversion means 115, and
- A first means of writing in a distributed register 120, configured to store in a distributed register data corresponding to the output signal of the photovoltaic panel counter.

The first oracle device 105 provides the interface between the photovoltaic panel and the distributed register. The first oracle device 105 is preferably embedded in an independent box, which facilitates its maintenance.

The interface 110 can operate at the physical and/or logical level, as long as the conversion means 115 is connected to the output of the photovoltaic panel counter.

At the physical level, interface 110 can be any physical securing mechanism, whether temporary or permanent. In some examples, interface 110 may be a clamp configured to attach first oracle device 105 to the photovoltaic panel meter.

At the logical level, the interface 110 can be a radio or cable connection between the photovoltaic panel meter and the first oracle device 105, this connection being configured to provide output data from the photovoltaic panel meter to the conversion means 115 .

The output signal of the photovoltaic panel counter depends on the photovoltaic panel system in place. Some systems, for example, produce optical pulses that measure a predetermined unit of energy produced. In other systems, the output of the counter is the electrical signal itself, which does not provide measurement information on its own. In other systems, the counter output produces digital data.

The photovoltaic panel meter output signal conversion means 115 is for example software executed on a calculation unit of the first oracle device 105 configured to transform the output signal into a standard writable format. The exact nature of the conversion means 115 depends on the nature of the output considered.

In some variants, the output signal is an optical pulse. In these variants, the conversion means 115 can comprise an optical sensor capturing images representative of the optical pulses, and pulse detection software configured to detect the optical pulses on the captured images.

In some variants, the output signal is quite simply the electric current generated directly by the photovoltaic panel. In these variants, the conversion means 115 can comprise an ammeter clamp configured to detect the current intensity at a given point of the electrical transmission circuit and intensity calculation software configured to detect a total quantity of electricity produced in a given time interval.

In some variants, the output signal is already digital, which allows a device connected to the output to read the amount of electricity produced at a given instant. In these variants, the conversion means 115 can be signal reading and conversion software in another format.

The first means of registration in a distributed register 120 can be at the level of the first oracle device 105 or accessible via a computer network, such as for example the Internet.

The first means of registration in a distributed register 120 is for example software executed on a calculation unit configured to perform registration attempts in a chain of blocks. Registrations can be done on blockchains like Bitcoin (trademark) or Ethereum (trademark).

The ability of an oracle device to add an entry to the distributed ledger may depend on permissions granted by a smart contract.

If the registration is successful, that is to say validated by the consensus mechanism of the distributed ledger, a new entry is created; this input contains at least one item of information representing a quantity of electricity produced.

In some embodiments, architecture 100 includes:
- a second oracle device 125, comprising an interface 130 configured to be fixed at the output of an electricity consumption meter and an electricity consumption meter signal conversion means 135, and
- A second means of writing in a distributed register 140, configured to store in a distributed register transaction data associated with data corresponding to the signal of the electricity consumption meter.

The second oracle device 125 is similar to the first oracle device 105, except for the power consumption device with which it is associated. This difference can in turn affect the nature of the interface 130 considered.

The interface 130 corresponds to the interface 110 of the first oracle device 105 and its nature depends on the logical or physical nature of the connection to be established as well as on the form taken by the output of the electricity consumption meter.

The power consumption meter signal conversion means 135 is essentially similar to the photovoltaic panel meter output signal conversion means 115. The exact implementation of the conversion means 135 depends on the nature of the signal produced by the power consumption unit associated with the conversion means 135.

The second distributed ledger entry means 140 is similar to the first distributed ledger entry means 120, except that the second distributed ledger entry means 140 registers a consumer transaction rather than a production transaction.

In certain embodiments, an oracle device, 105 or 125, is configured to be associated with an energy production or consumption site, the oracle device being associated with a private key representative of the energy production site, and the key being used by the registration means in a distributed register, 120 or 140, corresponding during its registration attempts.

The private key of the account owner of the smart contract can be used to modify data of a smart contract, while the corresponding public key allows the identification of an account. The private key controls permissions.

In certain embodiments, an oracle device, 105 or 125, is configured to connect to a photovoltaic panel or an electrical consumption meter output, this oracle device comprising:
- an optical pulse output measurement unit 145,
- a 150 current clamp and/or
- an information system output sensor 155.

These outputs are well known to those skilled in the art, which may typically be a manufacturer of photovoltaic panels.

In some embodiments, an oracle device, 105 or 125, includes a radio module 160 configured to transmit converted signal data to a distributed ledger write means.

The radio module 160 is for example a network card associated with an antenna, this antenna being configured to communicate on a given wireless network. The wireless network in question may for example be a Wi-Fi or LoRaWan network.

In some embodiments, an oracle device, 105 or 125, includes a self-contained power source. The autonomous energy source in question can for example be an electric battery.

In some embodiments, an oracle device, 105 or 125, includes a pairing mechanism with a photovoltaic panel output, such as a button. Such a mechanism can be put in place to reset the pairing attempt of the oracle device.

Figure 2, which is not to scale, is a schematic representation of a platform according to the present invention. This 200 electric power trading platform includes:
- at least one photovoltaic panel 205 configured to produce electrical energy, and
- a certification architecture for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels 100 as represented in FIG. 1, comprising at least a first oracle device configured to convert the output signal of the photovoltaic panel(s) in question.

In some embodiments, platform 200 includes:
- at least one electrical consumption device 210,
- a second oracle device 125, comprising an interface configured to be fixed at the output of the electrical consumption device(s) in question and an electrical consumption meter signal conversion means, and
- A second means of writing in a distributed register 140, configured to store in a distributed register transaction data associated with data corresponding to the signal of the electricity consumption meter.

Figure 2 shows a platform 200 comprising two production sites and two consumption sites.

In certain embodiments, the platform 200 comprises means for executing a decentralized application 215, configured to execute an intelligent contract triggering actions according to the data recorded on the distributed ledger.

Remember that a decentralized application is characterized by code running in the background on a decentralized peer-to-peer network.

It should also be remembered that a smart contract is software executed on certain blockchains, such as Ethereum, and designed to digitally facilitate, verify or guarantee the negotiation or execution of a contract. Smart contracts make it possible to execute credible transactions without a third party. These transactions are traceable and irreversible.

The smart contract is a decentralized application (also called "dApp"), and its means of execution 215 is a peer-to-peer network based on a blockchain architecture.

In some embodiments, the platform 200 includes means for transferring digital tokens 220, such token transfer being enabled as a function of the registry enrollment means.

In some embodiments, the smart contract includes elements representative of a financial share of the production of a photovoltaic panel, linked to an initial investment in a photovoltaic panel for example.

In some embodiments, the smart contract includes elements representative of a number of power generation units, converted into digital tokens, owned by a user or site.

In some embodiments, the smart contract includes elements representative of a number of electricity consumption units, converted into digital tokens, granted to a user or site.

In some embodiments, the smart contract includes elements representative of a financial value, or such value converted into digital tokens, associated with a power generation unit.

For each transaction, a transaction cost is paid to the computer running the mining for that transaction.

Such a platform 200 allows:
- to keep track of the shares of production/consumption/possession of electricity for a photovoltaic panel operating at the level of a community,
- for residents and other members of a community, to invest in the purchase of a photovoltaic panel and to share the profits obtained by selling the excess energy produced,
- to record the individual energy production of photovoltaic sites,
- to record the individual energy consumption of consumers,
- to design a secure device installed at the level of a meter,
- transfer measurement values from a secure oracle device to a blockchain or another distributed ledger (or DLT, for "Distributed Ledger Technology"),
- to design and develop a decentralized application based on a chain of blocks (for example services for secure automatic billing of consumption, or purchase/sale of shares in an asset such as a photovoltaic panel, etc.),
- keep track of the end-to-end value chain, from energy production to consumption, unit by unit, and
- to keep track of the remaining units on the account of a producer/consumer.

It is best if at least one site is added to the decentralized blockchain-based application and the public key account is associated with that site. Only oracle devices with access to the private key of this public account can send data into the blockchain. Thus, any fraudulent transaction involving the energy production site is impossible.

It is preferable that a counter associated with a consumer is added to the blockchain-based decentralized application and that the public key account is associated with this consumer. Only oracle devices with access to the private key of this public account can send data into the blockchain. Thus, any fraudulent transaction involving the consumer is impossible.

It is preferable that partners who invest in a specific asset to buy shares in it receive certificates of ownership stored and certified thanks to the blockchain, and accessible via a specific application developed for this management task. These shares give access to gains proportional to the amount invested by the partner. Shares can be bought and sold through the app.

Figure 3 schematically represents a method according to the present invention. This certification method for measuring the energy produced by 300 photovoltaic panels includes:
- a step 305 of fixing a first oracle device at the output of a photovoltaic panel meter,
- a conversion step 310 of a photovoltaic panel counter output signal, and
- A step 315 of writing in a distributed register data corresponding to the output signal of the photovoltaic panel counter.

The fixing step 305 is represented in connection with FIG. 1 and the description of the equivalent interface 110.

The conversion step 310 is represented in connection with FIG. 1 and the description of the conversion means, 115 and/or 135, equivalent.

The registration step 315 is represented in connection with FIG. 1 and the description of the registration means, 120 and/or 140, equivalent.

Claims (10)

Certification architecture for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels (100), characterized in that it comprises:
- a first oracle device (105), comprising an interface (110) configured to be fixed at the output of a photovoltaic panel meter and a photovoltaic panel meter output signal conversion means (115), and
- a first means of writing in a distributed register (120), configured to store in a distributed register data corresponding to the output signal of the photovoltaic panel counter. An architecture (100) according to claim 1, further comprising:
- a second oracle device (125), comprising an interface (130) configured to be fixed at the output of an electricity consumption meter and an electricity consumption meter signal conversion means (135), and
- a second means of writing in a distributed register (140), configured to store in a distributed register transaction data associated with data corresponding to the signal of the electricity consumption meter. Architecture (100) according to claim 1 or 2, in which an oracle device (105, 125) is configured to be associated with an energy production or consumption site, the oracle device being associated with a private key representative of the site of energy production, and the key being used by the registration means in a corresponding distributed ledger (120, 140) during these registration attempts. Architecture (100) according to one of Claims 1 to 3, in which an oracle device (105, 125) is configured to connect to a photovoltaic panel or an output of an electricity consumption meter, this oracle device comprising:
- an optical pulse output measurement unit (145),
- an ammeter clamp (150) and/or
- an information system output sensor (155). Architecture (100) according to one of Claims 1 to 4, in which an oracle device (105, 125) comprises a radio module (160) configured to transmit converted signal data to a writing means in a distributed register. Electrical energy transaction platform (200), characterized in that it comprises:
- at least one photovoltaic panel (205) configured to produce electrical energy, and
- a certification architecture for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels (100) according to one of claims 1 to 5, comprising at least a first oracle device configured to convert the output signal of the photovoltaic panel(s) into question. A platform (200) according to claim 6, further comprising:
- at least one electrical consumption device (210),
- a second oracle device (125), comprising an interface configured to be fixed at the output of the electrical consumption device(s) in question and an electrical consumption meter signal conversion means, and
- a second means of writing in a distributed register (140), configured to store in a distributed register transaction data associated with data corresponding to the signal of the electricity consumption meter. A platform (200) according to claim 6 or 7, further comprising means for executing a decentralized application (215), configured to execute a smart contract triggering actions according to the data recorded on the distributed ledger. The platform (200) of one of claims 6 to 8, further comprising means for transferring digital tokens (220), which token transfer is enabled as a function of the register entry means. Certification method for measuring the energy produced by photovoltaic panels (300), characterized in that it comprises:
- a step of fixing (305) a first oracle device at the output of a photovoltaic panel meter,
- a conversion step (310) of a photovoltaic panel counter output signal, and
- a step of writing (315) in a distributed register data corresponding to the output signal of the photovoltaic panel counter.