KR101611623B1 - A network system - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a network system.
A network system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a utility network including an energy generating unit; A home network including an energy consuming unit for consuming energy generated in the energy generating unit; An energy measuring unit provided in the utility network or the home network and recognizing additional information other than energy information or energy information; An energy management unit provided in the utility network or the home network and managing the energy information or the additional information with respect to the energy consuming unit; And a power measuring unit for controlling the amount of power or current applied to the energy consuming unit and for sensing the amount of power or current consumed by the energy consuming unit.

Description

A network system

The present invention relates to a network system.

Suppliers simply supply energy sources such as electricity, water, and gas, and demanders simply use the supplied energy sources. Therefore, effective management in terms of energy production, distribution, or energy use is difficult to perform.

In other words, energy is a radial structure that is distributed from an energy supplier to a large number of consumers, that is, from the center to the periphery, and is characterized by a one-way supplier center rather than a consumer center.

The price information of electricity can not be known in real time, but it can be seen only through the power exchange, and because the price system is also a fixed price system, incentives such as incentives for consumers through price changes can not be used There was also a problem.

In order to solve these problems, there has been a lot of efforts recently to implement a horizontal, cooperative and distributed network that can efficiently manage energy and enable interaction between a consumer and a supplier.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a network system capable of effectively managing an energy source and reducing electricity bill and / or energy consumption.

A network system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a utility network including an energy generating unit; A home network including an energy consuming unit for consuming energy generated in the energy generating unit; An energy measuring unit provided in the utility network or the home network and recognizing additional information other than energy information or energy information; An energy management unit provided in the utility network or the home network and managing the energy information or the additional information with respect to the energy consuming unit; And a power measuring unit for controlling the amount of power or current applied to the energy consuming unit and for sensing the amount of power or current consumed by the energy consuming unit.

In addition, the network system according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a utility network including an energy generation unit; A home network including an energy consuming unit for consuming energy generated in the energy generating unit; And an energy management unit provided in the utility network or the home network and managing the energy consuming unit according to additional information other than the recognized energy information or energy information; And a power regulator for measuring a power or an amount of current consumed in the energy consuming part and regulating a power or an amount of current supplied to the energy consuming part.

According to the present invention, it is possible to efficiently produce, use, distribute, and store an energy source, thereby effectively managing the energy source.

In addition, it is possible to drive and control the electric appliances in the home using the energy information transmitted from the supplier, and it is possible to reduce the energy usage fee or power consumption.

1 is a schematic diagram of a network system according to the present invention.
2 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a network system according to the present invention.
3 is a block diagram illustrating an information delivery process on the network system of the present invention.
4 (a) is a graph showing TOU (Time of use) information and CPP (critical peak pattern) information, and FIG. 4 (b) is a graph showing RTP real time pattern) information.
5 is a block diagram schematically showing a first embodiment of a network system according to the present invention.
6 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a second embodiment of a network system according to the present invention.
7 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a third embodiment of a network system according to the present invention.
8 is a schematic diagram of a home network according to the present invention.
9 is a schematic view of a first embodiment of a power regulator according to the present invention.
10 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a network system including the power regulator of FIG.
11 is a block diagram schematically showing a second embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.
12 is a schematic view of a third embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.
13 is a schematic view of a fourth embodiment of the power regulator according to the present invention.
FIG. 14 is a schematic view of a fifth embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.
15 is a block diagram schematically showing a network system including a sixth embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.
16 is a schematic view of a seventh embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

1 is a schematic diagram of a network system according to the present invention.

The network system is a system for managing energy sources such as electricity, water, and gas. The energy source means that the generated amount or the used amount can be measured.

Therefore, an energy source not mentioned above can also be included in the management of the present system. Hereinafter, the electricity will be described as an example of the energy source, and the contents of this specification can be similarly applied to other energy sources.

Referring to FIG. 1, the network system of one embodiment includes a power plant that produces electricity. The power plant may include a power plant that generates electricity through thermal power generation or nuclear power generation, and a power plant that uses eco-friendly energy such as hydro, solar, and wind power.

Electricity generated by the power plant is transmitted to a power station through a transmission line, and electricity is transmitted to a substation in a substation so that electricity is distributed to consumers such as a home or an office.

Electricity generated by environmentally friendly energy is also transmitted to the substation and distributed to each customer. Electricity transmitted from the substation is distributed through an electric storage device or directly to the office or each household.

In the home using a home network (HAN, home area network), electric power can be produced, stored, distributed, or distributed through a solar cell or a fuel cell mounted on a PHEV (Hybrid Electric Vehicle) The remaining electricity can be sent back to the outside (for example, a power company).

In addition, the network system includes a smart meter for real-time monitoring of electricity consumption of a consumer (home or office), an AMI (Advanced Metering infrastructure) for measuring electricity usage of a large number of consumers, May be included. That is, the measurement apparatus can measure the amount of electricity used by receiving information measured by a plurality of smart meters.

In this specification, the measurement includes not only what the smart meter and the measuring apparatus itself measure, but also what the smart meter and the measuring apparatus can recognize by receiving the amount of generated or used amount from other components.

In addition, the network system may further include an energy management system (EMS: Energy Management System) for managing energy. The energy management device can generate information about the operation of one or more components in relation to energy (generation, distribution, use, storage, etc.) of the energy. The energy management device may generate at least instructions related to operation of the component.

The function or solution performed by the energy management apparatus in this specification may be referred to as an energy management function or an energy management solution.

In the network system of the present invention, the energy management device may be included in one or more components in a separate configuration, or may be included as an energy management function or solution in one or more components.

2 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a network system according to the present invention.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the network system of the present invention is configured by a plurality of components. For example, power plants, substations, power stations, energy management devices, household appliances, smart meters, capacitors, web servers, measuring devices, and home servers are components of the network system.

Further, in the present invention, each component can be constituted by a plurality of detailed components. For example, when one component is a household appliance, the microcomputer, the heater, the display, and the motor constituting the household appliance may be detailed components.

That is, in the present invention, everything that performs a specific function may be a component, and these components constitute the network system of the present invention. And the two components can communicate by communication means.

Further, one network may be a single component or may be composed of a plurality of components.

In this specification, a network system in which communication information is related to an energy source may be referred to as an energy grid.

The network system of one embodiment may be composed of a utility network (UAN) 10 and a home network (HAN) 20. The utility network 10 and the home network 20 can be wired or wirelessly communicated by communication means.

In this specification, assumption means a group of specific components such as a building, a company, and the like, as well as assumptions of a dictionary meaning. A utility is a collection of specific components outside the home.

The utility network 10 includes an energy generation component 11 for generating energy, an energy distribution component 12 for distributing or transferring energy, and an energy storage unit An energy storage component 13 for managing energy, an energy management component 14 for managing energy, and an energy metering component 15 for measuring energy related information.

When one or more components of the utility network 10 consume energy, the energy consuming component may be an energy consuming part. That is, the energy consuming part may be a separate component or included in another component.

The energy generating unit 11 may be, for example, a power plant. The energy distribution unit 12 distributes or transfers the energy generated by the energy generation unit 11 and / or the energy stored in the energy storage unit 13 to the energy consuming unit. The energy distribution unit 12 may be a power transmission unit, a substation, a power station, or the like.

The energy storage unit 13 may be a battery and the energy management unit 14 may include an energy generation unit 11, an energy distribution unit 12, an energy storage unit 13, an energy consumption unit 26). ≪ / RTI > In one example, the energy management unit 14 may generate commands relating to operation of at least a specific component.

The energy management unit 14 may be an energy management device. The energy measuring unit 15 may measure information related to energy generation, distribution, consumption, storage, and the like, and may be, for example, an AMI. The energy management unit 14 may have a separate configuration or may be included as an energy management function in another component.

The utility network 10 may communicate with the home network 20 by a terminal component (not shown). The terminal component may be, for example, a gateway way. These terminal components may be provided in at least one of the utility network 10 and the home network 20. [

Meanwhile, the home network 20 includes an energy generation component 21 for generating energy, an energy distribution component 22 for distributing energy, an energy storage component for storing energy a storage component 23, an energy management component 24 for managing energy, an energy metering component 25 for measuring energy related information, and an energy consuming part a consumption component 26, a central management component 27 for controlling a number of components, an energy grid assistance component 28, an accessory component 29, a consumable handling component 29, component: 30).

The energy generation component 21 may be a household power generator and the energy storage component 23 may be a battery and the energy management component 24 may be an energy management device. have.

The energy metering component 25 may measure information related to energy generation, distribution, consumption, storage, and the like, for example, a smart meter.

The energy consuming unit 26 may be a heater, a motor, a display, or the like that constitutes a home appliance (a refrigerator, a washing machine, an air conditioner, a cooking appliance, a cleaner, a drier, a dishwasher, a dehumidifier, . It is to be noted that there is no limitation in the kind of the energy consuming section 26 in the present embodiment.

The energy management unit 24 may be an individual component or may be included as an energy management function in another component. The energy management unit 21 may communicate with one or more components to transmit and receive information.

The energy generating unit 21, the energy distributing unit 22, and the energy storing unit 23 may be individual components or a single component.

The central management unit 27 may be, for example, a home server for controlling a plurality of appliances.

The energy network auxiliary unit 28 is a component having an original function while performing an additional function for the energy grid. For example, the energy network auxiliary unit 28 may be a web service providing unit (e.g., a computer), a mobile device, a television, and the like.

The accessory component 29 is a dedicated energy network component that performs an additional function for the energy network. For example, the accessory component 29 may be an energy-network-dedicated weather-receiving antenna.

The Consumable handling component 30 is a component that stores, supplies, and delivers a consumable, and can confirm or recognize information on a consumable. The consumable may be an article or a material to be used or processed in the operation of the energy consuming unit 26, for example. The consumable processing unit 30 may be managed by the energy management unit 24 in the energy network.

For example, the consumable may be a food in a washing machine, a cooking appliance in a washing machine, a detergent or a fabric softener for washing laundry in a washing machine, or a seasoning for cooking a food.

The energy distributing units 12 and 22, the energy storing units 13 and 23, the energy managing units 14 and 24, the energy measuring units 15 and 25, The central management unit 26, and the central management unit 27 may exist independently of each other, or two or more may constitute a single component.

For example, the energy management units 14 and 24, the energy measurement units 15 and 25, and the central management unit 27 exist as a single component, and each of the smart meters, the energy management device, Or the energy management units 14 and 24, the energy measurement units 15 and 25, and the central management unit 27 may constitute a single component mechanically.

Further, in performing a single function, the functions may be sequentially performed in a plurality of components and / or communication means. For example, an energy management function may be sequentially performed in a separate energy management unit, an energy measurement unit, and an energy consumption unit.

In addition, a plurality of components of a specific function configuring the utility network and the home network may be provided. For example, the energy generating unit or the energy consuming unit may be plural.

On the other hand, the utility network 10 and the home network 20 can communicate by communication means (first interface). At this time, a plurality of utility networks 10 can communicate with a single home network 20, and a single utility network 10 can communicate with a plurality of home networks 20.

For example, the communication means may be a simple communication line or a power line communication means. Of course, the power line communication means may include a communicator (e.g., a modem or the like) connected to each of the two components. As another example, the communication means may be zigbee, wi-fi, Bluetooth, or the like.

In the present specification, there is no limitation on a method for wired communication or a method for wireless communication.

The two components constituting the utility network 10 can communicate by communication means.

In addition, the two components constituting the home network 20 can be communicated by communication means (second interface). The energy consumption unit 26 may be connected to at least one of the energy management unit 24, the energy measurement unit 25, the central management unit 27, the energy network auxiliary unit 28, As shown in Fig.

The microcomputer of each of the components (for example, the energy consuming unit) can communicate with the communication unit (the second interface) (third interface). For example, when the energy consuming unit is an appliance, the energy consuming unit may receive information from the energy management unit by a communication means (second interface), and the received information is transmitted to the microcomputer Lt; / RTI >

Further, the energy consuming unit 26 can communicate with the accessory component 29 through a communication means (fourth interface). Further, the energy consuming unit 26 can communicate with the consumable processing unit 30 through a communication means (fifth interface).

3 is a block diagram illustrating an information delivery process on the network system of the present invention. 4 (a) is a graph showing time of use (TOU) information and critical peak pattern (CPP) information, and FIG. 4 (b) is a graph showing RTP real time pattern) information.

Referring to FIG. 3, in the network system of the present invention, the specific component C can receive information related to energy (hereinafter, "energy information") by communication means. Further, the specific component (C) can be configured to include additional information (environmental information, program update information, time information, operation or status information of each component (failure), and consumer habit information using the energy consumption unit Can be further received.

The environmental information may include carbon dioxide emission amount, carbon dioxide concentration in air, temperature, humidity, rainfall amount, rainfall amount, insolation amount, air amount, and the like.

In another aspect, the information includes internal information such as information relating to each component (operation or status information (failure) of each component, energy usage information of the energy consumption unit, consumer habits information using the energy consumption unit, etc.) (Energy-related information, environmental information, program update information, and time information), which are information.

At this time, the information can be received from other components. That is, the received information includes at least energy information.

The specific component may be one component that constitutes the utility network 10 or one component that constitutes the home network 20.

The energy information I may be one of electricity, water, gas, and the like as described above.

For example, the types of information related to electricity include time-based pricing, energy curtailment, grid emergency, grid reliability, energy generation amount, (operation priority), and energy consumption amount (energy consumption amount). In this embodiment, the charge related to the energy source is an energy charge.

That is, energy related information can be classified into charge information (energy charge) and non-charge information (energy reduction, emergency situation, network safety, power generation, operation priority, energy consumption, etc.).

Such information can be divided into scheduled information generated in advance based on previous information and real time information that varies in real time. The schedule information and the real-time information can be classified according to the prediction of the information after the present time (future).

The energy information I may be divided into time of use (TOU) information, critical peak pattern (CPP) information, or real time pattern (RTP) information according to a change pattern of data over time. The energy information I may vary with time.

Referring to FIG. 4 (a), according to the TOU information, data is changed stepwise according to time. According to the CPP information, the data changes stepwise or real-time with time, and emphasis is displayed at a specific time point. That is, in the case of the CPP pattern, the general charge is cheaper than the charge of the TOU pattern, but the charge at the specific point in time is significantly more expensive than the charge in the TOU pattern.

Referring to FIG. 4 (b), according to the RTP information, data changes in real time according to time.

On the other hand, the energy information I may be transmitted or received as true or false signals such as Boolean on the network system, actual price information may be transmitted or received, or a plurality of levels may be transmitted and received. Hereinafter, an example of information related to electricity will be described.

When the specific component C receives a true or false signal such as a Boolean signal, it recognizes one of the signals as an on-peak signal and the other signal as an off-peak ) Signal.

Alternatively, a particular component may recognize information about at least one drive that includes an electricity bill, and the particular component may compare on-peak and off-peak values by comparing the recognized information value with a reference information value off-peak.

For example, when a specific component recognizes leveled information or actual price information, the specific component compares the recognized information value with the reference information value to determine on-peak and off-peak values, Lt; / RTI >

At this time, the information value about the driving may be at least one of an electricity rate, a power rate, a rate of change of the electricity rate, a rate of change of the electric power rate, an average value of the electricity rate and an average value of the electric power amount. The reference information value may be at least one of an average value, an average value of a minimum value and a maximum value of power information during a predetermined section, and a reference change rate of power information during a predetermined section (for example, a slope of power consumption amount per unit time).

The reference information value may be set in real time or set in advance. The reference information value may be set in a utility network or set in a home network (input by a consumer direct input, energy management unit, central management unit, etc.).

If the specific component (for example, the energy consuming unit) recognizes an on-peak (for example, a recognition time point), the output may be set to 0 (stop or stop) and the output may be reduced. The specific component may determine the driving method in advance before starting the operation, and may change the driving method when the on-peak is recognized after the operation starts.

And, if a particular component recognizes off-peak, it can recover or increase its output when needed. That is, when a particular component that recognizes an on-peak recognizes an off-peak, the output can be restored to its previous state or increased further than the previous output.

At this time, the total consumed power and / or the total electricity use charge during the entire driving time of the specific component is reduced, even when the output of the specific component is recovered or the output is increased after recognizing the off-peak.

Alternatively, if the specific component recognizes an on-peak (for example, a recognition time point), the output can be maintained if the condition is operable. At this time, the operable condition means that the information value of the driving is below a certain standard. The information value of the driving may be information on an electric charge, an amount of power consumption, or an operation time. The constant criterion may be a relative value or an absolute value.

The predetermined criteria may be set in real time or may be set in advance. The predetermined criteria may be set in the utility network or in a home network (input by a consumer direct input, energy management unit, central management unit, etc.).

Alternatively, the output may be increased if the particular component recognizes an on-peak (for example, a point-in-time). However, even when the output is increased at the time when the on-peak is recognized, the total output amount during the entire driving period of the specific component can be reduced or maintained to be less than the total output amount when the specific component operates at the normal output.

Alternatively, the total power consumption or total electricity charge during the entire drive period of a particular component, even when the output increases at the time of recognizing the on-peak, It can be reduced than the electricity rate.

If the specific component recognizes an off-peak (for example, a recognition time point), the output can be increased. For example, when the operation reservation is set, a component whose operation starts before a setting time or a component having a large output among a plurality of components can be driven first.

Further, in the case of a refrigerator, it is possible to store the hot water in the hot water tank by supercooling the output by increasing the output from the existing output, or in the case of a washing machine or a washing machine, by driving the heater ahead of the scheduled operation time of the heater. This is to operate in off-peak in advance to be operated at an on-peak to be reached in the future, thereby reducing electric charges.

Or when a particular component recognizes an off-peak (for example, when it is recognized).

In the present invention, the particular component (e.g., the energy consuming unit) may maintain, reduce or increase the output. Thus, a particular component may include a power changing component. Since the power can be defined by current and voltage, the power variable component may include a current regulator and / or a voltage regulator. The power variable component may, for example, be operated according to an instruction issued from the energy management unit.

On the other hand, the energy curtailment information is information related to a mode in which the component is stopped or the electricity fee is reduced. The energy reduction information may be transmitted or received as a true or false signal, such as a Boolean on a network system. That is, a stop signal (turn off signal) or a reduction signal (lower power signal) can be transmitted and received.

When the specific component recognizes the energy reduction information, it can reduce the output (when the lower power signal is recognized) or to zero the output as described above (if the stop or stop state is maintained) have.

The emergency information (Grid emergency) is information related to a power failure or the like, and can be transmitted and received as a true or false signal, for example, as a Boolean. The information related to the power failure or the like is related to the reliability of components using energy.

If the particular component recognizes the emergency information, it may be immediately shut down.

When the specific component receives the emergency information as the schedule information, the specific component may increase the output before arriving at the emergency time point and perform the same operation as the operation at the off-peak of the specific component described above . And, at the time of the emergency, the specific component can be shut down.

The grid reliability information is information about the amount of electricity supplied or the amount of electricity supplied or information about the quality of electric power. The grid reliability information is transmitted or received as a true or false signal such as a Boolean or supplied to a component (for example, The component may determine the frequency of the AC power source.

That is, when the underfrequency of the AC power supplied to the component is detected (recognized), it is determined that the supplied electricity quantity is small. If an overfrequency higher than the reference frequency of the AC power supply is detected (recognized) Can be judged to be many.

When the specific component recognizes that the amount of electricity is low or the quality of the electricity is poor, the specific component may set the output 0 (stop or stop) depending on the case, as mentioned above, The output can be reduced, the output can be maintained, or the output can be increased.

The electricity generation excess information is information about the state where the electricity consumption of the component consuming energy is smaller than that of the electricity generation and the surplus electricity is generated and can be transmitted or received as a true or false signal such as Boolean.

The output can be increased if the specific component recognizes the generated electricity excess information (eg, when it recognizes grid overfrequency or recognizes an over energy signal). For example, when the operation reservation is set, a component whose operation starts before a setting time or a component having a large output among a plurality of components can be driven first. Further, in the case of a refrigerator, it is possible to store the hot water by supercooling the output by increasing the output from the existing output, or by driving the heater in advance of the operation time of the heater in the case of the washing machine or the washing machine.

Specifically, each type of information related to the energy includes first information (I1) that is not processed, second information (I2) that is information processed in the first information, And third information (I3), which is information for performing a function of the component. That is, the first information is raw data, the second information is refined data, and the third information is a command for performing a function of a specific component.

And, energy related information is included in the signal and transmitted. At this time, at least one of the first to third information may be converted only the signal, but the content may be transmitted a plurality of times without being converted.

For example, as shown in the figure, a component receiving a signal including the first information I1 may simply convert a signal and transmit a new signal including the first information I1 to another component.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the conversion of the signal and the conversion of the information are described as different concepts. At this time, it can be easily understood that the signals are also converted when the first information is converted to the second information.

However, the third information may be transmitted a plurality of times in a state in which the contents are converted, or may be transmitted a plurality of times in a state in which signals are converted while maintaining the same contents.

In detail, when the first information is unprocessed electricity rate information, the second information may be processed electricity rate information. The processed electricity bill information is information or analytical information in which electric bill is divided into multiple levels. The third information is an instruction generated based on the first information or the second information.

The specific component may generate, transmit, or receive one or more of the first to third information. The first to third pieces of information are not necessarily sequentially transmitted and received.

For example, a plurality of third information can be transmitted and received in sequence or in parallel without first and second information. Alternatively, the first and third information may be transmitted or received together, the second and third information may be transmitted or received together, or the first and second information may be transmitted or received together.

In one example, when a particular component receives the first information, the particular component may transmit the second information, transmit the second information and the third information, or transmit only the third information.

When a specific component receives only the third information, the specific component can generate and transmit new third information.

On the other hand, in the relationship between two pieces of information, one piece of information is a message and the other piece of information is a response to a message. Accordingly, each component constituting the network system can transmit or receive a message, and can respond to a received message when receiving a message. Therefore, the transmission and correspondence of a message is a relative concept for individual components.

The message may comprise data (first information or second information) and / or instructions (third information).

The command (third information) includes at least one of a data storage command, a data generation command, a data processing command (including generating additional data), an additional command generation command, a further generated command transmission command, Command, and the like.

In this specification, responding to a received message means that it is necessary to store data, to process data (including generating additional data), to generate a new command, to send a newly created command, ), Operation, transmission of stored information, transmission of an acknowledge character or negative acknowledge character, etc.

For example, if the message is first information, the component that received the first information may generate a second information by processing the first information, generate second information, and generate new third information, Only the third information can be generated.

Specifically, when the energy management unit 24 receives the first information (internal information and / or external information), the energy management unit 24 generates the second information and / or the third information, And may be transmitted to one or more constituent components (e.g., an energy consuming unit). The energy consuming unit 26 may operate according to the third information received from the energy managing unit 24. [

5 is a block diagram schematically showing a first embodiment of a network system according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, the first component 31 of the home network 20 may communicate directly with the utility network 10. The first component 31 may communicate with a plurality of components 32, 33, 34 (second to fourth components) of the home network. It is noted that there is no limit to the number of components of the home network that communicate with the first component 31 at this time.

That is, in this embodiment, the first component 31 serves as a gateway. The first component 31 may be, for example, one of an energy management unit, an energy measurement unit, a central management unit, an energy network auxiliary unit, an energy consumption unit, and the like.

A component acting as a gateway in the present invention not only enables communication between components communicating using different communication protocols, but also enables communication between components communicating using the same communication protocol.

Each of the second to fourth components 32, 33 and 34 may be one of an energy generating unit, an energy distributing unit, an energy managing unit, an energy storing unit, an energy measuring unit, a central managing unit, have.

The first component 31 may receive information from the utility network 10 or one or more components that make up the utility network 10 and may forward or process the received information so that the second component- (32, 34). For example, when the first component 31 is an energy measurement unit, the first component may receive electric bill information and transmit it to an energy management unit, an energy consumption unit, and the like.

And each of the second to fourth components can communicate with another component. For example, the first component 31 may be an energy measurement unit, the second component may be an energy management unit, and the energy management unit may communicate with one or more energy consumption units.

6 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a second embodiment of a network system according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, a plurality of components constituting the home network 20 of the present invention can communicate with the utility network 10 directly.

That is, in the present invention, a plurality of components (first and second components 41 and 42) serving as a gateway are included. The first and second components may be homogeneous components or other types of components.

The first component 41 may communicate with one or more components (e.g., the third and fourth components 43 and 44), and the second component 42 may communicate with one or more components And the sixth component 45, 46).

For example, each of the first and second components may be one of an energy management unit, an energy measurement unit, a central management unit, an energy network auxiliary unit, an energy consumption unit, and the like.

Each of the third to sixth components may be one of an energy generation unit, an energy distribution unit, an energy management unit, an energy measurement unit, a central management unit, an energy network auxiliary unit, and an energy consumption unit.

7 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a third embodiment of a network system according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, each of the components 51, 52, 53 constituting the home network of the present embodiment can directly communicate with the utility network 20. [ That is, there is no component acting as a gateway as in the first and second embodiments, and each of the components 51, 52 and 53 can communicate with the utility network.

8 is a schematic diagram of a home network according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 8, the home network 20 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes an energy measuring unit 25 for measuring in real time power and / or electricity rates supplied from the utility network 10 to homes, For example, a smart meter, the energy measurement unit 25, and an energy management unit 24 connected to and controlling the operation of the electric product.

On the other hand, the electricity rate of each household can be charged by the hourly rate, and the electricity rate per hour becomes high in the time interval in which the electric power consumption is rapidly increased, and the electricity rate per hour becomes low when the electric power consumption is relatively low .

The energy management unit 24 controls the energy consumption unit 26 such as the refrigerator 81, the washing machine 82, the air conditioner 83, the dryer 84, or the cooking appliance 85, And can be used for bi-directional communication.

Communication in the home can be done through wired such as Zigbee, wifi, or a power line communication (PLC, Power line communication), and one household appliance can be connected to communicate with other household appliances.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a first embodiment of a power regulation apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 10 is a block diagram schematically showing a network system including the power regulation apparatus of FIG.

Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, the power control apparatus 100 according to the present invention is provided between the power supply unit 500 and the electrical product connection line 600. The power regulator 100 includes a first coupling unit 101 coupled to the electrical product connection line 600 and a second coupling unit 102 coupled to the power supply unit 500.

The power supply unit 500 may be an electric socket connected to the energy consuming unit 26. The electric appliance connection line 600 may be an electric socket connected to the energy consuming unit 26.

In detail, the power control apparatus 100 is connected to at least one component constituting the utility network 10 or the home network 20, for example, the energy managing unit 24, the energy measuring unit 25, A switch unit 120 selectively turned on / off according to information (for example, energy information) received via the communication unit 110; a switch driver 120 for driving the switch unit 120; 130 and a control unit 140 for controlling the switch driving unit 130.

The communication unit 110 can be a wired / wireless communication system as a communication system.

In detail, a power line communication (PLC), a public switched telephone network (PSTN), a packet switched data network (PSDN), or the like may be employed as the communication method. As a wireless method, a code division multiple access (CDMA), a global system for mobile communications (GSM), a ZIGBEE, a Bluetooth (BLUETOOTH), a Wifi or a radio frequency (RF)

The communication unit 110 may be detachably provided to the power regulator 100. When the communication unit 110 is coupled to the power control unit 100, whether or not the communication unit 110 is recognized can be confirmed and whether the communication unit 110 can communicate can be confirmed.

Then, an identification code of the power control apparatus 100 may be given on the network.

Meanwhile, when the communication unit 110 is detached from one power control apparatus 100 and is coupled to another power control apparatus 100, existing information stored in the communication unit 110 may be deleted. After the existing information of the communication unit 110 is deleted, the communication unit 110 may function as an identifier of the other power control device 100. [

This information is transmitted from the energy managing unit 24 or the energy measuring unit 25 to the communication unit 110 when the information on the electric bill or the power consumption is recognized as exceeding the preset reference value (on-peak period) Lt; / RTI > The information may include a command to cut off the current applied to the energy consuming unit 26 in order to reduce electric charges or power consumption.

According to the energy information transmitted to the communication unit 110, the controller 140 may control the switch driver 130 to turn off the switch 120. FIG.

On the other hand, when it is recognized that the information about the electric bill or the electric power consumption (energy information) exceeds the predetermined reference value (on-peak period), the energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25 The switch 120 may be turned on.

The energy information may include not only electricity rate related information but also energy curtailment, grid emergency, grid reliability, energy generation amount, and operation priority have.

Accordingly, when information on energy reduction, emergency, grid reliability, energy generation amount, or operation priority is recognized, The energy consuming unit 26 will be selectively powered.

On the other hand, when the user sets a predetermined reference (limit) amount of power consumption to the energy consuming unit 26 and the power consumed in the energy consuming unit 26 is out of the reference, the energy managing unit 24 or The energy measuring unit 25 may transmit an instruction (information) to the communication unit 110 to turn off the switch 120. [

Then, the control unit 140 controls the switch 120 to be turned off according to the received command.

On the other hand, by user setting, the power regulator 100 may be operated manually. For example, when the user goes out for a long period of time, the switch connected to the energy consuming unit 26 is turned off to cut off the power supply.

10, only the energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25 is started as a component communicating with the communication unit 110. However, the central management unit 27 or the energy network auxiliary unit 28 may communicate with the communication unit 110 It may also communicate.

Hereinafter, other embodiments different from the first embodiment will be described. However, the description of the first embodiment and the reference numerals are used for the same parts as those of the first embodiment.

11 is a block diagram schematically showing a second embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 11, the power control apparatus 100 according to the present invention includes a communication unit 110 capable of communicating with the central management unit 27. The central management unit 27 can be understood as a component that controls a plurality of energy consuming units 26. [

In detail, the power regulating device 100 is provided with a plurality of energy consuming parts 26, that is, a plurality of electric power supplying parts 26, such as a refrigerator 81, a washing machine 82 and an air conditioner 83, 1 switch 121, a second switch 122, and a third switch 123 may be included. The number of electrical appliances and switches is not limited.

The power regulator 100 includes a first switch driver 131, a second switch driver 132 and a third switch driver 133 for driving the switches 121, 122 and 123. The number of the switch driving units corresponds to the number of the switches.

The power control apparatus 100 further includes a controller 140 for controlling a plurality of switch drivers and a memory unit 150 for storing information related to driving of the plurality of electrical appliances.

The control unit 140 may control the plurality of switch drivers based on information (for example, a control command) transmitted from the central management unit 27. [ The plurality of switch drivers may be independently controlled.

The memory unit 150 may store information such as the priority of electrical appliances that should be driven first when limited power is supplied. Of course, the priority information of the electrical product may be stored in advance in the central management unit 27, the energy management unit (not shown), or the control unit of the electrical product.

The central control unit 27 can control whether the plurality of electric appliances are driven through the power regulating device 100 so that the power consumption in the home can be adjusted as a whole.

12 is a schematic view of a third embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.

12, the power control apparatus 100 according to the present invention includes a communication unit 110 that communicates with the energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25, A switch 120 for selectively turning on / off power supplied to the energy consuming unit 26, and a switch driving unit 130 for driving the switch 120.

The energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25 may transmit the electric power information or electric charge information to the communication unit 110.

The power control apparatus 100 further includes a timer 160 for counting time elapsed from a reference time point for the operation of the switch 120. [

The energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25 may store the power information or the electric bill information according to the time interval in advance.

Based on the stored information, the energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25 determines whether the amount of power supplied or the electricity price changes (for example, information indicating that the on-peak time period comes after 3 hours To the communication unit 110.

The controller 140 resets the timer 160 based on the information transmitted to the communication unit 110. The time point at which the timer 160 is reset may be a reference time point for driving the timer 160.

After the timer 160 is reset, a new time is accumulated. When the predetermined time has elapsed, the timer 160 notifies the controller 140 that the energy information has been changed, and the controller 140 turns the switch 120 on or off.

That is, if it is recognized that the changed energy information exceeds a predetermined standard related to the electric bill or the power consumption, the switch 120 is turned off to cut off power supplied to the energy consuming unit 26.

On the other hand, if it is recognized that the energy information does not exceed a certain criterion related to the electric bill or the power consumption, the switch 120 will be turned on to supply power to the energy consuming unit 26. [

13 is a schematic view of a fourth embodiment of the power regulator according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 13, the power control apparatus 100 according to the present invention includes a power measuring unit 170 that can measure the amount of power consumed by the energy consuming unit 26. The power consumption amount information detected by the power measurement unit 170 may be transmitted to the energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25 through the communication unit 110.

The energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25 may generate information for driving the switch 120 based on the delivered energy amount information.

More specifically, the information for driving the switch 120 determines whether or not the power consumption of the energy consuming unit 26 is supplied or the power supply amount based on the power consumption amount information and the electric charge or power information recognized by the network system Information.

Information for driving the switch 120 is transmitted to the controller 140 through the communication unit 110. The controller 140 controls the on or off operation of the switch 120 according to the information can do.

The energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25 calculates the amount of power required by the energy consuming unit 26 based on the energy amount information transmitted from the energy consuming unit 26 and the energy information recognized by the network system. The energy consumption unit 26 can be controlled to be transmitted to the energy consuming unit 26.

When a plurality of energy consuming units 26 are connected to the power regulating apparatus 100, the energy managing unit 24 or the energy measuring unit 25 calculates the amount of power measured by the plurality of energy consuming units 26 Based on the information and the energy information, the energy consuming unit 26 may be controlled to be transmitted to the energy consuming unit 26 only by the required amount of power.

Other embodiments are suggested.

The power control apparatus 100 includes a memory unit 150 that stores reference power or current amount information of the energy consuming unit 26. The reference power amount information may be previously set as information to be compared with the power consumption amount information detected by the power measuring unit 170. [

If the amount of power consumption exceeds the reference amount of power, it can be recognized as a signal for reducing power or saving electricity, so that the control unit 140 controls the on / off operation of the switch 120 itself .

Other embodiments are suggested.

The power control apparatus 100 may include the timer described with reference to FIG. If the energy consuming unit 26 is detected to be unused by the controller 140 or the like, the timer may be activated. When the time accumulated in the timer becomes equal to or longer than a predetermined time, the switch 120 is turned off and the power supplied to the energy consuming unit 26 can be cut off.

A case where a component to which a memory function is added is included in the energy consuming unit 26 will be described. A capacitor may be provided in the energy consuming unit 26 to supply power to the component to which the memory function is added even if the power supplied to the energy consuming unit 26 is shut off.

FIG. 14 is a schematic view of a fifth embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.

14, the power control apparatus 100 according to the present invention calculates the current applied to the energy consuming unit 26 according to the energy information transmitted from the energy managing unit 24 or the energy measuring unit 25 Can be performed.

In detail, the power regulator 100 includes a power reduction unit 180 that reduces power supplied to the energy consuming unit 26 or current applied to the energy consuming unit 26.

The power reduction unit 180 is configured to reduce the power (current) input from the power supply unit 500 at a predetermined ratio and output to the electrical product connection line 600. Here, the predetermined ratio may be varied corresponding to the energy information (for example, power reduction or electricity rate reduction information).

The maximum value of the predetermined ratio is 100%. In this case, the power reduction unit 180 corresponds to a state in which the switch 120 is turned off.

On the other hand, when the energy reduction or reduction of electric charge information is recognized on the network system, that is, when energy information related to the power maintenance or power increase is recognized, the energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25, And may transmit the energy information for maintaining or increasing the current applied to the consuming unit 26 to the power regulating device 100.

Of course, the current ratio applied to the energy consuming unit 26 through the power regulator 100 may vary according to the energy information. The maximum value of the current ratio is 100%. In this case, all the power input from the power supply unit 500 is output to the electrical product connection line 600.

Other embodiments are suggested.

The power control apparatus 100 may further include a power measuring unit 170. The power measuring unit 170 measures the amount of power consumed by the energy consuming unit 26 and transmits the measured amount of power to the control unit 140.

The control unit 140 compares the amount of power consumption with the reference amount of power stored in the memory 150 and controls the power reduction unit 180 to reduce the power consumption of the energy consuming unit 26 when the amount of power consumption exceeds the reference amount of power. It is possible to reduce the current applied to the transistor.

If the amount of power consumption drops below the reference amount of power, the controller 140 may increase the current applied to the energy consuming unit 26 again.

15 is a block diagram schematically showing a network system including a sixth embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 15, the network system according to the present invention includes a first electrical product 200 and a second electrical product 300. Here, the first electric appliance 200 may be referred to as a first energy consuming portion, and the second electric appliance 300 may be referred to as a second energy consuming portion.

The first electrical product 200 may be defined as an energy consuming unit 26 that is itself provided with an environment capable of communicating with the network system, And an energy consumption unit 26 in which an environment capable of communicating with the energy consumption unit 26 is not provided.

In detail, the first electrical product 200 includes a power output terminal 250 connected to the second electrical product 300. The power supplied from the power supply unit 500 may be output to the second electrical product 300 through the power output unit 250. The power output terminal 250 can be understood as a socket through which an electrical product can be connected.

A switch unit 220 is provided between the power supply unit 500 and the power output unit 250 to selectively supply power to the second electrical product 300. The switch unit 220 may be selectively turned on or off based on additional information other than energy information or energy information transmitted from the energy manager 24 or the energy measuring unit 25 to the communication unit 210.

The controller 240 controls the switch driver 230 to turn off the switch 220 when the energy information is information that exceeds a preset reference value, have.

On the other hand, when the energy information is less than or equal to the reference value, the switch 220 is turned on and power can be supplied from the power supply unit 500 to the second electrical product 300.

As described above, since one electric appliance communicable with the network system and other electric appliances incommunicable with each other coexist and an output terminal capable of connecting the other electric appliances to the one electric appliance is provided, the use of electric power of the other electric appliances is also monitored. There is an effect that can be possible.

As a result, there is an effect that the energy consumption portion can be efficiently coped with in response to the fluctuating energy information.

The first electrical product 200 further includes a power measuring unit 270 for measuring electrical power used in the second electrical product 300. The power used by the second electrical product 300 is recognized by the power measuring unit 270 via the power output terminal 250.

The amount of power consumption of the second electrical product 300 sensed by the power measuring unit 270 may be compared with a predetermined reference amount of electricity. If it is detected that the amount of power consumption is larger than the reference power amount, the controller 240 may turn off the switch unit 220 by controlling the switch driver 230.

As a result, since the current applied to the second electrical product 300 is limited, it is possible to reduce the power consumption of the energy consuming unit 26 or reduce the electricity bill.

On the other hand, if it is detected that the amount of power consumption is less than the reference amount of power, the switch unit 220 may be turned on, so that current is applied to the second electrical product 300, Can be performed.

The energy information is transmitted / received between the first electric product 200 and the energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25, but the additional information may be transmitted / received, The product 300 may be controlled according to the additional information.

16 is a schematic view of a seventh embodiment of the power control apparatus according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 16, the power regulator 100 according to the present invention may be disposed inside the electrical product 400. The power regulator 100 will be described with reference to the power regulator 100 described with reference to FIG.

The power regulator 100 is connected to a power supply 480 by an electrical product connection line 450.

The power control apparatus 100 may communicate with the energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25 and the control unit 440 may receive the energy information transmitted from the energy management unit 24 or the energy measurement unit 25, In response, the power supply can be selectively cut off.

10: utility network 20: home network
30: Component 40: Information
100: communication means 200: electric appliance
300: Network registration device

Claims (15)

A home network including an energy consuming part consuming energy, which is supplied from a utility network including a first energy generating part;
An energy measuring unit provided in the utility network or the home network and recognizing additional information other than energy information or energy information;
An energy management unit provided in the utility network or the home network and managing the energy information or the additional information with respect to the energy consuming unit; And
A power regulator for regulating an amount of electric power or an electric current applied to the energy consuming unit and connecting the energy consuming unit to the outlet,
In the power regulating device,
A communication unit communicable with the energy measurement unit or the energy management unit;
A power measuring unit for sensing a power or an amount of current consumed from the energy consuming unit;
A memory unit for storing information on a reference power amount or a reference amount of current; And
And a power reduction unit that adjusts a current supplied to the energy consuming unit,
The power-
And a control unit that reduces the current applied to the energy consuming unit when the amount of power detected by the power measuring unit exceeds the reference amount of power,
And increases the current applied to the energy consuming unit when the amount of power detected by the power measuring unit is less than the reference power amount. The method according to claim 1,
In the energy information,
A network system that includes information about energy bills and non-energy bills. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the energy charge information is at least one of an electric charge, a quantity of electricity, a rate of change of the electric charge, a rate of change of the quantity of electricity, an average value of the electric charges and an average value of the electric quantity. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein said non-energy rate information is one of energy reduction, emergency, network security, power generation, operation priority, and energy consumption. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the additional information is one of environmental information, program update information, time information, operation or status information of each component, and consumer habit information using an energy consumption unit. The method according to claim 1,
In the utility network,
A first energy distribution unit for distributing energy generated in the first energy generation unit; And
And a first energy storage unit for storing the energy generated by the first energy generation unit or the energy distributed by the first energy distribution unit. The method according to claim 6,
In the home network,
A second energy generating unit for generating energy;
A second energy distribution unit for distributing energy generated in the second energy generation unit; And
And a second energy storage unit for storing energy generated by the second energy generation unit or energy distributed by the second energy distribution unit. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the power control unit cuts off power or current applied to the energy consuming unit when the energy information is recognized as exceeding the reference value. 9. The method of claim 8,
Wherein the reference value is at least one of an average value, an average value of a minimum value and a maximum value of power information during a predetermined period, and a reference change of power information during a predetermined period. delete delete delete The method according to claim 1,
In the power regulating device,
And a control unit for applying power or current to the energy consuming unit by an amount of power or current sensed by the power measuring unit. The method according to claim 1,
The power regulator further includes a timer for accumulating a time when the energy consuming unit is not used,
And the power supplied to the energy consuming unit is shut off when the time accumulated in the timer exceeds a preset time. delete

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