JP2003153347A - Power consumption control method and apparatus for home electric appliance - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make it possible to manage and control a higher limit of integral power consumption. SOLUTION: In the power consumption control method, a home electric appliance 2 capable of controlling the power consumption and a controller 1 for remote-controlling the power consumption of the home electric appliance 2 are connected with each other through a communication network including a home distribution line for feeding power to the home electric appliance 2. The integral power consumption of the home electric appliance 2 is detected periodically, and a regression coefficient as a correlation between time information (x) and consumption information (y) on the basis of the time information (x) at each detection and the consumption information (y) of detected integrated power. At the same time, the integrated power consumption at the term end is estimated by using the regression coefficient and when the estimated integrated power consumption becomes over the previously set threshold, the power consumption of the home electric appliance 2 is limited under control.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a power consumption control method and apparatus for home electric appliances, and more specifically, one or more home electric appliances capable of controlling power consumption, and remote control of the power consumption of the home electric appliances. The present invention relates to a power consumption control method and device for a system in which a power consumption control device is connected to each other via a communication network including a home distribution line for supplying power to the home electric appliances.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, the consumption pattern that power consumption is high in the daytime and low in the nighttime is repeated every day. However, it is necessary to accurately follow the power consumption of an electric power company to the consumption pattern of equipment and the economical efficiency. It is considered unrealistic from the point of view. For this reason, electric power companies have load leveling (DS
M: Demand Side Management), and individually load adjustment contracts (contracts that reduce electricity charges by actively cooperating in energy conservation) with customers who have high-voltage / high-voltage contracts with factories, etc. As a result, we are doing this mainly in summer when power consumption peaks.

On the other hand, by using surplus power at midnight, the water used for power generation at a hydroelectric power station is pumped to an upper dam, and it is also recommended for ordinary households to use surplus power by an electric water heater. There is.

[0004]

However, the leveling effect is not sufficient only for the customers of extra high / high voltage. Also,
Manpower is required to adjust the load to cooperate in energy saving, and it is almost impossible to perform such work in a general household that cuts down most of the power demand. For this reason, in the past, not only the leveling (saving) of power demand has not progressed, but also many households are often charged with unexpected electricity charges due to changes in lifestyle and seasons.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to control the power consumption of a home electric appliance capable of efficiently managing and controlling the upper limit of the integrated power consumption (electricity charge). A method and apparatus are provided.

[0006]

The above-mentioned problem is solved, for example, by referring to FIG.
It is solved by the configuration of. That is, in the power consumption control method of the present invention (1), an electric home appliance 2 capable of controlling the electric power consumption and a control device 1 for remotely controlling the electric power consumption of the electric home appliance are used for supplying power to the electric home appliance. A method for controlling power consumption of a system interconnected via a communication network including a distribution line, which periodically detects an integrated power consumption amount of a home electric appliance 2, and time information at each detection point and a detected integrated power consumption amount. A regression coefficient that represents the correlation between the two is obtained based on the sample sequence with the information, and the integrated power usage at the end of the period is estimated using the regression coefficient, and the estimated integrated power usage is preset. When the power consumption exceeds the threshold value, the power consumption of the home electric appliance is controlled.

Therefore, even if the customer does not carry out any additional device management work for power saving, the accumulated power usage at the end of the period is set to a predetermined value (power usage corresponding to the previously declared power usage charge) or You can manage below it.

Next, according to the insets (a) to (c), an example of
The progress of power consumption control will be specifically described. In (a) of the figure
The horizontal axis is the date x at the time of each detection._i, Vertical axis is detection integration
Electric power consumption y_iIndicates. For example, focusing on the 10th day,
Each sample series x₁~ X_Ten, Y ₁~ Y_TenPresent based on
Regression coefficient at the time point (slope of regression line) a_TenUsing the term
(X_i= 30) estimated integrated power consumption y₃₀’(=
a_TenX30) is calculated. In this example, from the beginning of the period
As a result of using a little more, the estimated integrated power consumption at the end of the period
y₃₀′ Is y as shown by the regression line in the figure.₃₀＞＞ TH
(For example, TH = 100).

Since the number of samples of the data y _i is small in this initial section, the predicted value of usage amount y ₃₀ 'at the end of the period is obtained.
(= A ₁₀ × 30) does not necessarily reflect (estimate) the actual cumulative usage amount at the end of the period. That is, the regression coefficient a _i can still change to any value depending on the actual usage record of the home electric appliances. Therefore, in this example, the power suppression control in the initial section is not performed or the weighting of the power suppression control is reduced.

Next, focusing on the 20th day in (b) of the figure, at the end of the period using the current regression coefficient a ₂₀ obtained based on each sample series x _{1 to} x ₂₀ , y _{1 to} y ₂₀ Estimate the power consumption y ₃₀ ′ (= a ₂₀ × 30). In this example, since the power consumption in this section is limited by the control device 1 and / or the power is not used voluntarily, the estimated power consumption y ₃₀ ′ at the end of the period is as shown by the regression line in the figure. , Y ₃₀ '<TH.

Since the number of samples of the data y _i has increased in this intermediate section, the estimated integrated power consumption y ₃₀ ′ at the end of the period can be predicted more accurately. In addition, when it becomes necessary to limit the power consumption, rather than restricting it intensively at the end of the term, rather gradually restricting it from this midpoint, the impact on consumers' lifestyles is small. Therefore, from this intermediate section, electric power suppression control is performed when necessary.

Next, focusing on the 30th day in (c) of the figure, at the end of the period using the current regression coefficient a ₃₀ obtained based on each sample series x _{1 to} x ₃₀ , y _{1 to} y ₃₀ Estimate the power consumption y ₃₀ ′ (= a ₃₀ × 30). Since the number of samples of the data y _i has sufficiently increased in this section, the actual integrated power consumption y ₃₀ at the end of the period can be estimated with high accuracy by the estimated integrated power consumption y ₃₀ ′ at the end of the period. Therefore, based on this, by strictly controlling the power consumption if necessary, the actual integrated power consumption y ₃₀ at the end of the period can be reliably limited to the set threshold value TH or less. Therefore, the consumer can use the power with a relatively free lifestyle from the beginning of the period, and can ensure the accumulated power consumption at the end of the period (that is, the accumulated power consumption corresponding to the electricity usage charge declared in advance (subunit portion)}. Can be below the threshold.

In the power consumption control device of the present invention (2), a home electric appliance capable of controlling power consumption and a power consumption control device for remotely controlling the power consumption of the home electric appliance supply power to the home electric appliance. A power consumption control device for a system interconnected via a communication network including a home distribution line, a detection means for periodically detecting an integrated power consumption amount of home electric appliances, time information at each detection time point, and detection integration. Estimating means for determining a regression coefficient representing the correlation between the two based on the sample series with the power consumption information, and estimating the integrated power consumption at the end of the period using the regression coefficient, and the estimated integrated power consumption And a control means for controlling the electric power consumption of the home electric appliance so as to be limited when the electric power exceeds a preset threshold value.

Preferably, in the present invention (3), in the above-mentioned present invention (2), the control means does not limit the power consumption of the home electric appliance at the beginning of the controlled period or reduces the weighting of the limitation. Therefore, the consumer can use the electric power with a relatively free lifestyle from the beginning of the period, and can surely make the cumulative usage amount at the end of the period less than or equal to the threshold value.

The power consumption control device of the present invention (4) is
Wide area power supply in which a home electric appliance that can control power consumption and a power consumption control device that remotely controls the power consumption of the home electric appliance are mutually connected through a communication network including a home distribution line for supplying electric power to the home electric appliance A power consumption control device for the system, which is a database that holds the declared value of the power usage charge per predetermined period in each customer's house and the power connected to the distribution line in each customer's house via a dedicated or public communication line Communication means capable of communicating with a meter and home electric appliances, detection means for periodically detecting the integrated power consumption of the watt-hour meter through the communication means, time information at each detection time point, and detected integrated power consumption information Estimating means for estimating the integrated power consumption at the end of the period by using the regression coefficient between the two obtained based on the sample sequence of By exceeding the threshold (power usage) corresponding to the gold, via said communication means in which a control means for limiting the power consumption of appliances in the demand house.

According to the present invention (4), by providing such a power consumption control device on the power company side, it is possible to systematically operate the power supply to a large number of customers' homes and level the power consumption at day and night. (Demand side management) can be achieved. In addition, even in each home, the monthly power consumption (power consumption fee) can be limited to a predetermined amount or less, and the lifestyle of one's own can be maintained and performed with peace of mind.

Further, the power consumption control device of the present invention (5) is
A home in which a home electric appliance that can control power consumption and a power consumption control device that remotely controls the power consumption of the home electric appliance are mutually connected through a communication network using a home distribution line for supplying power to the home electric appliance A power consumption control device for the power supply system, which is a communication means capable of communicating with home electric appliances via a home distribution line, a detection means for periodically detecting the integrated power consumption of the watt hour meter, and a time at each detection time point. Estimating means for estimating the integrated power consumption at the end of the period by using the regression coefficient between the two obtained based on the sample series of the information and the detected integrated power consumption information; and the estimated integrated power consumption in advance. And a control unit for limiting the power consumption of the electric home appliance via the communication unit when the set threshold value is exceeded.

According to the present invention (5), even if the existing wide area power supply system is not modified, by providing such a power consumption control device in each house, monthly power consumption can be achieved in each house. The amount (that is, the power usage charge) can be limited to a predetermined value or less, and the power consumption of the power company can be leveled.

[0019]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A plurality of preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numerals denote the same or corresponding parts throughout the drawings.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the power consumption control system according to the embodiment, and shows the case of a wide area power supply control system in which an electric power company remotely controls the power consumption of many consumer homes. In the figure, 10 is a power company, 11 is a central processing unit for performing remote meter reading and remote control of power consumption of each consumer's home, 12 is its CPU, and 13 is C.
A main memory (MM) composed of RAM, ROM, etc. used by the PU 12, 14 is a disk device (DSK) for storing a database of power usage charge declaration values from each customer's house,
15 is an external private or public network (NW) 10
A communication control unit (COM) 16 for connecting to 0 is a console device used by a maintenance / administrator of this power supply control system.

Note that the power usage charge generally declared by the consumer here is, for example, (power usage charge) = (basic charge) + (power usage per month) × (unit price). From the relationship, it is easy to find the monthly power consumption so as not to exceed the declared power usage fee.

Further, 30 is a pole transformer for stepping down high-voltage (6600V) power supply to low-voltage (AC100 / 200V) power supply, and the low-voltage side 100/20 of the transformer 30.
0V is supplied to each customer's home 50 through the service line. In this state, the central processing unit 11 of the electric power company 10 is connected to the modem 20 installed on the pillar via the network 100, and further, via the modem 20, an ECHONET (Energy Conservation) installed in each customer's home. an
d Homecare Network) system can be connected. The details of the Echonet system conform to the well-known Echonet standard "THE ECHONET SPECIFICATION".

As described above, by using the service line to the home or the distribution line in the home as a part of the communication line between the central processing unit 11 and the home 50 of the customer, each home of the customer can be in the urban area, the countryside, or the like. Regardless of the regional disparity and the presence or absence of special communication equipment, the power supply control service can be received fairly. If the transformer 30 is interposed in the middle of the data communication line, data transmission becomes difficult. Therefore, in this example, the power company 10 is connected to the network 100 via the modem 20.

In the customer's home 50, 51 is a watt-hour meter capable of automatic (remote) meter reading from a power company, and 52 is a no-fuse breaker (NF) for protecting the in-home power supply path.
B) and 53 are capable of receiving / decoding commands from the central processing unit 11, and are also capable of remotely controlling various home electric appliances in the domain (home).
N) and 54 to 57 are home appliances compatible with Echonet. For example, 54 is a lighting fixture, 55 is a refrigerator, 56 is an air conditioner, and 57 is an electric water heater.

The Echonet node 53 includes a transmitter TX using a direct spread spectrum method or the like, a receiver RX using a direct spectrum inverse spread method or the like, and a CPU (including a memory) for performing main control / processing of the node 53. , AC1
A power supply unit (PWU) for receiving 00V and supplying DC voltage to the CPU and the like is included.

Further, the brightness of the lighting fixture 54 is manually operated and remotely controlled (set) from the ENN 53.
In addition, the refrigerator 54, the air conditioner 55, and the electric water heater 57 can be operated by manually operating the set temperature.
It can be remotely controlled (set) from N53. For example, the air conditioner 56 includes a manually operable cooling / heating mode switch and a temperature setting function part that can be manually operated and remotely set from the ENN 53. When the set temperature is lowered in the cooling mode or the set temperature is raised in the heating mode. The power consumption increases, and conversely, if the set temperature is raised in the cooling mode or the set temperature is lowered in the heating mode, the power consumption is reduced. The same applies to other home appliances.

Although not shown, an air conditioner or a lighting device that operates in conjunction with a human body detection sensor, or an air cleaner that operates in conjunction with an air pollution sensor can be provided. With regard to the above device, the power consumption can be saved by controlling the sensor sensitivity.

Therefore, basically, the consumer can manually set each home electric appliance to a desired value and use it. However,
When the monthly power usage fee exceeds the declared value of the customer's house, the required amount of power consumption is reduced by remote control from the central processing unit 11.

In order to realize this control, the database of the disk device 14 stores the upper limit value of the monthly power usage charge declared by each consumer in advance for each consumer.
The CPU 12 compares the declared upper limit value of the consumer (that is, the accumulated power usage amount corresponding to the declared upper limit usage charge) with the monthly predicted power usage amount, and when it determines that the power consumption needs to be reduced, the power consumption is reduced. The amount is notified to the Echonet node 53. Upon being notified of the power reduction amount, the connet node 53 reduces the power of the corresponding home electric appliance.

The mode of power reduction can be set variously according to the amount of power to be reduced. In order to realize this, the consumer can set a reduction target for each home electric appliance in advance according to the amount of power to be reduced, and this information is stored in, for example, the Echonet node 53. If the power reduction amount in the summer is 30 W (30 Wh), the breakdown can be set up to the temperature rise of the air conditioner of 26 ° C. and the dimming of the lighting of 10%. If the amount of power reduction is 100 W, the breakdown is as follows:
It can be set to 0% and refrigerator temperature rise up to 5 ° C.
Further, when the power reduction amount is 200 W, the details can be set such that the temperature of the air conditioner rises up to 28 ° C, the light is turned off and the refrigerator temperature rises up to 8 ° C.

When the Echonet node 53 receives a power reduction command from the central processing unit 11, it reads the prestored setting information for each home electric appliance and executes control according to the magnitude of the reduction amount. . Therefore, the environmental change in the customer's house due to the power reduction is within the range that the customer can predict in advance, and therefore does not give the customer any unpleasant sensation.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the power consumption control process according to the embodiment, which is executed by the CPU 12 of the power company 10. For example, at the turn of the month, input to this process. In step S11, the day counter i is set to 1 (initialized on the first day). In step S12, it waits until a predetermined time (for example, 23:59 at the end of the day). Eventually, when the predetermined time comes, in step S13, the integrated power consumption y _i of the customer's home 50 is remotely metered.
In step S14, the metered integrated electric energy y _i is stored in the array. In step S15, the regression coefficient a _i representing the slope of the regression line is calculated using the data string y _i of the integrated electric energy recorded up to the current number of days i, for example,

[0033]

[Equation 1]

It is obtained by In this embodiment, since the power usage charge (power usage) of the previous month is settled, the power usage at the beginning of the month is set to 0. That is, the regression coefficient a ₀ = 0 representing the bias amount (y when x = 0) of the regression line is set.

In step S16, the regression coefficient a obtained as described above is used.
Power consumption as of the end of the current month using _i (sub-unit)
The y _eom is _estimated by the following equation, y _eom = a _i × number of months and days.

In step S17, it is determined whether or not y _eom > TH (set value of the consumer). If y _eom > TH, in step S18 the amount of power consumption of the customer's home is limited. In that case, for example, the difference ( _yeom- TH) between _yeom and TH is obtained, and the difference is _{calculated as} to what level (30Wh, 100Wh, 200Wh).
Etc.) and send the amount of power reduction to the demanded homes.
Upon receipt of this, the consumer's home changes the preset setting value of the home electric appliance according to the amount of reduction. Also, y
_{If eom} > TH is not satisfied, the restriction on the amount of power used by the customer's home (which has been executed before) is canceled in step S19. Even if y _eom > TH, these differences (y _eom −T
When H) is smaller than the predetermined value, the power consumption may not be reduced (that is, the process proceeds to step S19).
Even if the control is performed in this manner, the purpose of this power suppression control can be achieved unless the cumulative usage amount at the end of the period significantly increases from the declared upper limit value (the cumulative usage amount corresponding to the declared fee).

In step S20, the number of days counter i is incremented by +
1. In step S21, i> number of months (for example, September is 3
It is determined whether it is 0 day, 31 day in October, etc.). When i> number of months / day is not reached, the process returns to step S12, and waits for a predetermined time on the next day. Therefore, the above steps S18 / S1
The restrictions set / released in 9 are valid for the next day for one day.
If i> the number of months in the determination in step S21, Exit control processing for the month.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a numerical example of the power consumption flattening control according to the embodiment. The consumer offers the desired upper limit charge to the electric power company in advance, signs an intention to control the electric home appliance with the electric power company, and concludes an implementation contract. In this example, the upper limit declared value (power usage corresponding to the declared upper limit charge) of the usage amount portion is set to 100. FIG. 4 specifically shows a control example in which a certain month (for 30 days) is divided into 5 days and focused on 6 times. In the figure, x _i is the date,
y _i is the detected cumulative power consumption, and p _i is the cumulative consumption up to the end of the month obtained by multiplying the regression coefficient a _i at each time point by the date.

In the first column of FIG. 4, the 1st and 2nd are weekdays (Monday, Tuesday), but since there were visitors, 5 electric powers were used and the integrated electric power consumption y ₁ , y _{2 was used.} Has changed to 5,10. The following 3-5 days are weekdays (Wed-Fri),
Electric power is used in the usual three, and the integrated electric power consumption y ₃ ,
The numbers of y ₄ and y ₅ are 13, 16 and 19, respectively. The regression coefficient a ₅ = 3.4 for the past 5 days obtained on the 5th day,
If the power is used in this condition, the estimated cumulative usage at the end of the month p _eom = 102, which is the upper limit value TH (= 1)
It is close to 00). A graph in this state is shown in FIG.
Here, the solid line is the metered integrated power consumption, and the dotted line is the regression line. In this example, remote control for limiting the power consumption in this section is not performed.

In the second column of FIG. 4, since the following 6th and 7th are holidays (Saturday, Sunday), the electric power is used every 5 times as usual.
The accumulated electric power consumptions y ₆ and y ₇ are changing to 24 and 29. For the weekdays from 8 days to 10 days following (Monday to water), power is the use normal three at a time, the integrated power usage y _8, y _9, y
₁₀ has changed to 32, 35, and 38. The regression coefficient a ₁₀ = 3.7 for the past 10 days obtained on the 10th day, and if the power is used in this condition thereafter, the estimated cumulative usage at the end of the month p _eom = 111, which is the upper limit of the declared value. TH (=
100) is greatly exceeded. A graph of this state is shown in Fig. 5.
It shows in (B). In this case, it is necessary to perform remote control that limits power consumption.

In the third column of FIG. 4, the following 11 days to 1
On the 5th (Thursday-Month), the daily power consumption is limited by the central processing unit 11. That is, weekdays are limited to the usual 3 to 2, and holidays are limited to the usual 5 to 4. As a result, the integrated power consumption y _{11 to} y _{15 in} this section is 4
The numbers are 0, 42, 46, 50 and 52. And
The regression coefficient a ₁₅ = for the past 15 days obtained on the 15th day
It is 3.3, and if the electricity is used in this condition, the estimated cumulative usage amount p _eom = 100 at the end of the month will be obtained, which exactly matches the declared upper limit value TH (= 100). A graph in this state is shown in FIG. In this case, remote control is performed to release the set power consumption limit.

In the fourth row of FIG. 4, the following 16th to 1st
The 9th is a weekday (Tuesday-Friday), and the electric power is used for every three. The following 20th is a holiday (Saturday), but I used only 1 power because I went out on a trip to leave my house. As a result, the integrated power consumptions y _{16 to} y _{20 in} this section are changing to 55, 58, 61, 64, 65. Then, the regression coefficient a ₂₀ for the past 20 days obtained on this 20th day
= 3.2, and if the power is used in this condition, the estimated cumulative usage amount p _eom = 95 at the end of the month, which is below the declared upper limit value TH (= 100). A graph in this state is shown in FIG. In this section, the processing proceeds while the power consumption restriction remains released.

In the fifth column in FIG. 4, the following 21st is a holiday (Sunday), but since he went out on a trip and was out of his house, he uses only one electric power. 22nd to 25th
The day is a weekday (Monday-Thursday), and the electric power is used every three times. As a result, the integrated power consumption in this section y _{21 to} y ₂₅
Has changed to 66, 69, 72, 75, 78. Then, the regression coefficient a ₂₅ for the past 25 days obtained on the 25th day
= 2.96, and if power is used in this condition,
The estimated cumulative usage p _eom = 89 at the end of the month, which is far below the declared upper limit TH (= 100). A graph in this state is shown in FIG. Therefore, also in this section, the processing proceeds with the restriction on the power consumption being released.

In the sixth column of FIG. 4, the following 26th to 3rd
On the 0th day, there was no special event, and the situation was normal.
As a result, the integrated power consumptions y _{26 to} y _{30 in} this section are 81,
The numbers have changed to 86, 91, 94, and 97. The regression coefficient a ₃₀ = 2.99 for the past 30 days obtained on the 30th day, and if the electricity is used in this condition, the estimated cumulative usage at the end of the month p _eom = 90, which is the upper limit of the declaration. Value T
It is below H (= 100). A graph in this state is shown in FIG. In this example, as a result of performing necessary power reduction based on the estimation result at each time point in the past, 3
The actual integrated power consumption y ₃₀ on day 0 is 97, which is below the declared upper limit value of 100. It should be noted that the actual accumulated power consumption y ₃₀ does not necessarily have to be strictly below the declared upper limit value. it can.

FIG. 8 is a graph of the annual electric power consumption results according to the embodiment. FIG. 8A shows that the consumer has a fixed upper limit (eg, 10) for the monthly accumulated electric power consumption throughout the year.
It shows the case where 0) is declared. Since January is a warm winter, the monthly accumulated usage estimated from daily usage records is the declared upper limit value (monthly accumulated usage corresponding to the declared upper limit fee).
Therefore, the electric power company 10 is not subject to any particular restriction, and thus the cumulative electric power consumption for January is 100 or less. In February, since it was cold, the heating equipment frequently operated or the set temperature was raised by the user's manual operation. Therefore, the monthly cumulative usage estimated from daily usage records exceeded the declared upper limit. Therefore, although there were many days when the electric power company 10 restricted the amount of electric power consumption, as a result of such restrictions, the cumulative amount of electric power used in February was finally less than 100. Thereafter, the process proceeds in the same manner, and thus, in this example, the monthly power consumption does not exceed the declared upper limit value (= 100).

FIG. 8 (B) shows the case where the consumer declares the upper limit value of the monthly cumulative power consumption amount which varies depending on the season and lifestyle changes. In this example, similarly to the above, the electric power is limited in February, but the declared upper limit value (monthly accumulated usage amount corresponding to the declared upper limit fee) is about 110, which is relatively high. The degree of endurance that is forced is much less than in the case of FIG. Therefore, consumers are likely to spend a harsh winter. On the other hand, by setting a lower upper limit for March when the cold is somewhat lessened, it is possible to offset the consumption that has been moderated (increased) in February. In the same manner, the consumer can spend more comfortably without increasing the annual fee as compared with the one in FIG. 8 (A).

In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the Echonet node 53 is provided in the house, and
The case where the internal CPU analyzes the command accompanied by the power reduction amount sent from the remote central processing unit 11 and changes and controls the set value and the like of the corresponding home electric appliance has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this.

For example, the declaration data from the consumer (the data defining the adjustment amount of each home electric appliance whose setting can be changed according to the power reduction amount) is not stored in the Echonet node 53 side, but It is possible to store it in the database side of the central processing unit 11, so that the command translation function of the Echonet node 53 can be executed in the CPU 12 side, and the home electric appliances in each home in this case can be stored in the electric power company 10. It will be controlled directly from the side. In this case, since the remote CPU 12 can substitute the function of the Echonet node 53, it is possible to omit the Echonet node 53 from each home.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the configuration of a power consumption control system according to another embodiment, showing a case of an in-home power supply control system for locally controlling the power consumption of a customer's home. In the figure, 63 is an Echonet controller (E
NC) and performs remote control of various home appliances in the domain (home). The watt-hour meter 51 in this case may be capable of automatic (remote) meter reading from a power company (not shown), but may be a meter that is calibrated by a traveling meter-reading member, as is conventional. However, in this example, automatic (remote) meter reading can be performed by the Echonet control device 63 via the home distribution line. Alternatively, a dedicated wiring may be separately provided between the watt-hour meter 51 and the Echonet control device 63, and the integrated power consumption of the watt-hour meter 51 may be directly detected by the Echonet control device 63. .

The Echonet control unit 53 performs the same power consumption control service in each home as the central processing unit 11 of the electric power company provides to each home. In order to realize this, the Echonet control device 53 stores a monthly power consumption upper limit value set by the consumer in advance, and the built-in CPU uses the same power consumption control process as described in FIG. Locally in each home. Further, the Echonet control device 53 is equipped with a console means CSL operated by a consumer, and using this,
The consumer can easily set the information on how to control the set value of which home electric appliance according to the amount of power reduction.
Other configurations (home electric appliances, etc.) may be the same as those described in FIG.

In this other embodiment, each customer's house can control the accumulated usage amount for each month to a desired level or less by its own local control. On the other hand, on the power company side, the effect of power saving (leveling) reduced in each home is indirectly reflected.

Although the above embodiments have been described with reference to specific numerical examples, the present invention is not limited to these numerical examples.

Further, in the example of FIG. 2 described above, for example, due to the convenience of the electric power company 10, the power consumption of each customer's house is remotely controlled so as to be lower than the declared upper limit value, or conversely, from the declared upper limit value. It is possible to control so that it also exceeds. In this case, the power company 10 can monitor and analyze the actual power consumption states of a large number of consumer homes, and further promote the leveling of power consumption if necessary.
However, it is necessary to make a contract with the customer in advance so that control that deviates from such a declaration may be performed.

Further, although the above-mentioned embodiment has been mainly described with respect to the application to the general household, the present invention is not limited to this. Customers who are the target of this service include customers such as stores and offices.

In the above embodiment, an example of the Echonet communication path using the in-home distribution line (light line) has been described.
The Echonet communication path may include other communication paths such as infrared rays and radio waves.

In the above embodiment, an application example in which the Echonet standard is adopted has been described, but any form of network may be used as long as it can remotely control the power consumption of home electric appliances.

Although a plurality of preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it will be understood that various changes can be made to the configuration, control, processing and combinations of these parts without departing from the spirit of the present invention. There is no limit.

[0058]

As described above, according to the present invention, power consumption can be saved and leveled. In addition, at each customer's home, the upper limit of the electricity rate can be flattened without the need for complicated monitoring and control of electricity usage, which stabilizes household spending. In addition, the power company contracts with a large number of consumers (general households, etc.) to forecast peak demand and take countermeasures (peak cut).
Can be realized more effectively.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the principle of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a power consumption control system according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a power consumption control process according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a numerical example of power consumption flattening control according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a graph diagram (1) of usage charge flattening control according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a graph diagram (2) of usage charge flattening control according to the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a graph diagram (3) of the usage charge flattening control according to the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a graph of an annual electric power consumption result according to the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration of a power consumption control system according to another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 power companies 11 Central processing unit 12 CPU 13 Main memory (MM) 14 Disk device (DSK) 15 Communication control unit (COM) 16 console devices 20 modem 30 pole transformer 50 customer home 51 electricity meter 52 No-fuse breaker (NFB) 53 Echonet Node (ENN) 54 Lighting equipment 55 refrigerator 56 air conditioner 57 Electric water heater 63 Echonet Controller (ENC) 100 networks (NW)

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Takuya Suzuki             4-1, Kamiodanaka, Nakahara-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa             No. 1 within Fujitsu Limited F-term (reference) 5G066 KA12 KB01 KC02                 5K048 AA16 BA01 DA05 DC06 EB10                       FC04 HA34

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A home electric appliance capable of controlling power consumption and a control device for remotely controlling the power consumption of the home electric appliance are mutually connected via a communication network including a home distribution line for supplying electric power to the home electric appliance. This is a power consumption control method for the system to be connected, in which the integrated power consumption of home electric appliances is periodically detected, and the correlation between the two is based on the sample sequence of the time information at each detection time and the detected integrated power usage information. Along with obtaining the regression coefficient to represent, the integrated power usage at the end of the period is estimated using the regression coefficient, and the estimated integrated power usage exceeds a preset threshold value A power consumption control method characterized by controlling so as to limit the power consumption. 2. A home electric appliance capable of controlling power consumption and a power consumption control device for remotely controlling the power consumption of the home electric appliance are connected via a communication network including a home distribution line for supplying power to the home electric appliance. A power consumption control device for interconnected systems, based on a detection means that periodically detects the accumulated power consumption of home appliances and a sample sequence of time information at each detection time and detected accumulated power consumption information. By obtaining a regression coefficient that represents the correlation between the two and estimating means that uses the regression coefficient to estimate the integrated power usage at the end of the period, and the estimated integrated power usage exceeds a preset threshold value. A power consumption control device, comprising: a control unit that controls to limit the power consumption of the home electric appliance. 3. The power consumption control device according to claim 2, wherein the control means does not limit the power consumption of the home electric appliance or reduces the weighting of the limitation at the beginning of the controlled period. 4. A home electric appliance capable of controlling power consumption and a power consumption control device for remotely controlling the power consumption of the home electric appliance are mutually connected via a communication network including a home distribution line for supplying electric power to the home electric appliance. A power consumption control device for a wide area power supply system connected to a customer, and a database that holds the declared value of the power usage charge per predetermined period in each customer's home, and the distribution in each customer's home via a dedicated or public communication line. Communication means capable of communicating with an electric power meter connected to an electric wire and a home electric appliance, detection means for periodically detecting the accumulated electric power consumption of the electric power meter via the communication means, time information at each detection time point and detection Estimating means for estimating the integrated power consumption at the end of the period by using the regression coefficient between the two obtained based on the sample series of the integrated power consumption information and the estimated integrated power consumption. Is by exceeding a threshold corresponding to a power rate was, the power consumption control device, characterized in that it comprises a control means for limiting the power consumption of appliances in the demand house via the communication means. 5. A home electric appliance capable of controlling power consumption and a power consumption control device for remotely controlling the power consumption of the home electric appliance are connected via a communication network using a home distribution line for supplying electric power to the home electric appliance. A power consumption control device for an in-home power supply system that is connected to each other, a communication means capable of communicating with a home electric appliance via an in-home distribution line, and a detection means for periodically detecting the integrated power consumption of an electricity meter, Estimating means for estimating the integrated power consumption at the end of the period by using the regression coefficient between the two obtained based on the sample series of the time information at each detection time point and the detected integrated power consumption information, and the estimated integration. A power consumption control device comprising: a control unit that limits the power consumption of the home electric appliance via the communication unit when the power consumption exceeds a preset threshold value.