Non-Intrusive Load Shed Verification
Load-shed verification (LSV) can improve reliability and eliminate freeloaders who accept incentives without implementing direct controls. However, it generates many trust challenges because the consumer owns and operates the appliance and because effective demand response depends on the integrity of the appliances’ responses to load-shed instructions. Nonintrusive load monitoring (NILM) is a method of detecting the current energy consumption of a building, using a single set of sensors on the main building supply. To address the challenges of LSV, we implemented an algorithm based on a NILM learning phase that runs during an initialization period at the electricity service provider. The result is a distributed NILM algorithm—a nonintrusive load-shed verification (NILSV) algorithm deployed on the residential meter. This information gained can then be used to verify the effectiveness of smart-grid initiatives such as VAr control and demand-side management in addition to other energy-saving measures. In addition, this information can be used to select devices for distributed control by analyzing not only the type of device but also the real-world operating characteristics. We built a prototype and conducted experiments in a residence to illustrate NILSV’s promise along with some of its challenges.
