Making Energy Visible
A real-time, direct feedback electricity monitor (Both household and appliance specific)
Design Rights apply
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Energy is generally considered to be an invisible commodity, but design can help make it more visible to consumers. This project focuses on designing a particular product that raises awareness, through direct feedback, of household’s electricity consumption to users. The project will review the market requirements for existing products and define a gap in the market therefore producing a final concept that meets these requirements
Project Brief:
Design Solution:
The final concept that resulted from extensive concept generation and evaluation features 5 main components (Light cubes, Bluetooth plug-end, USB receiver, USB charger and base unit). The direct feedback about users electricity consumption is provided in the form of 6 'light cubes'. Each light cube is paired with a respective Bluetooth plug-end that an appliance, such as a TV, is plugged into the mains through. These plug-ends measure the electrical load that the specific appliance is using and transmits this numerical data to its respective light cube. The light cubes PCB then processes this data and supplies the user with light feedback i.e. dim if little electricity is being used and bright if excessive amounts.
Research shows that real time, appliance specific feedback generates more savings to users than that of in-direct feedback such as billings. The 6 light cubes are designed to be scattered around a household providing room/appliance specific feedback, but can then be placed within a base unit to provide a household overview.
The Bluetooth plug-ends also transmits the numerical data to a USB receiver that processes the data and provides a series of graphs and tables that users can view via a computer screen to gain more quantitative feedback.