Trilliant, ABB partner to make Smart Grid technologies interoperable
Trilliant, provider of communications infrastructure used to beam energy consumption data between so-called smart meters, utilities and their customers, announced today that it is partnering with automation company ABB to make sure their technologies can talk to one another. This type of interoperability is one of the major issues impacting how and how fast the Smart Grid — a cleaner, more efficient electrical grid — takes hold in the U.S.
It seem to be all the… Continue Reading
British utilities lobby against consumer energy monitors — will the same happen in the U.S.?
Consumer-friendly devices used to monitor home energy consumption are only starting to gain traction. In the U.S., companies like Tendril (shown below), Greenbox and EnergyHub have pioneered systems that allow homeowners to easily view how much energy they are using and how much it is costing them. Even larger companies like Google, Microsoft, and Intel are developing energy management dashboards that will allow laymen users to view this data on their computers, phones and television… Continue Reading
Advanced Telemetry gets infusion for wireless energy-management dashboard
Advanced Telemetry has taken an undisclosed amount of second-round funding from existing investors Quercus Trust and 21Ventures to continue developing its energy consumption management platform for residential and commercial use.
The San Diego company’s lead product is a wireless panel called the EcoView that classifies energy consumption in a building as low, moderate or high. Some of the money raised in the recent round will be used to beef up its sales, with the rest going… Continue Reading
EnergyHub ropes first round for home energy management dashboards
EnergyHub, creator of electronic dashboards that let people track and reduce how much energy they are using in real time, closed its first round of funding today, gaining a certain degree of legitimacy in an increasingly crowded field of competitors. The money will fund a 50-home pilot test of the firm’s products in preparation for commercial release as early as this summer.
While it didn’t disclose the amount of the round, received from .406 Ventures and… Continue Reading
The Energy Detective investigates home energy use
A new device called the Energy Detective gives users a window into their home energy consumption and the appliances that suck the most power. Manufactured by Energy Inc., the system includes a transmission unit that connects directly into a building’s circuit breakers and a compact screen display that plugs into any electrical outlet. It retails for $145.
For maximum impact, the device not only tells you how many kilowatts you’re using but also how much your… Continue Reading
DEMO: Tendril releases mobile app for home energy management
Tendril Networks, a company that offers a portfolio of energy management tools to the utility industry, unveiled a web-based program for individual users at the DEMO conference today. The new application, called Tendril Vantage Mobile, lets users monitor their energy consumption, accumulating energy costs and pricing changes from their cell phones.
The application will also send users alerts and notifications of various changes in home energy use and pricing structure. One of program’s key features is… Continue Reading