Smart home energy management

The new challenges on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Automatic Home Systems (AHS) focus on the methods useful to monitor, control, and optimize the data management flow and the use of energy. An AHS is a residential dwelling, in some cases with a garden or an outdoor space, equipped with sensors and actuators to collect data and send controls according to the activities and expectations of the occupants/users. Home automation provides a centralized or distributed control of electrical appliances. Adding intelligence to the home environment, it would be possible to obtain, not only excellent levels of comfort, but also energy savings both inside and outside the dwelling, for instance using smart solutions for the management of the external lights and of the garden

A Solution Based on Bluetooth Low Energy for Smart Home Energy Management

The research and the implementation of home automation are getting more popular because the Internet of Things holds promise for making homes smarter through wireless technologies. The installation of systems based on wireless networks can play a key role also in the extension of the smart grid towards smart homes, that can be deemed as one of the most important components of smart grids. This paper proposes a fuzzy-based solution for smart energy management in a home automation wireless network. The approach, by using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), introduces a Fuzzy Logic Controller (FLC) in order to improve a Home Energy Management (HEM) scheme, addressing the power load of standby appliances and their loads in different hours of the day. Since the consumer is involved in the choice of switching on/off of home appliances, the approach introduced in this work proposes a fuzzy-based solution in order to manage the consumer feedbacks. Simulation results show that the proposed solution is efficient in terms of reducing peak load demand, electricity consumption charges with an increase comfort level of consumers. The performance of the proposed BLE-based wireless network scenario are validated in terms of packet delivery ratio, delay, and jitter and are compared to IEEE 802.15.4 technology

New Solutions Based On Wireless Networks For Dynamic Traffic Lights Management: A Comparison Between IEEE 802.15.4 And Bluetooth

Abstract The Wireless Sensor Networks are widely used to detect and exchange information and in recent years they have been increasingly involved in Intelligent Transportation System applications, especially in dynamic management of signalized intersections. In fact, the real-time knowledge of information concerning traffic light junctions represents a valid solution to congestion problems. In this paper, a wireless network architecture, based on IEEE 802.15.4 or Bluetooth, in order to monitor vehicular traffic flows near to traffic lights, is introduced. Moreover, an innovative algorithm is proposed in order to determine dynamically green times and phase sequence of traffic lights, based on measured values of traffic flows. Several simulations compare IEEE 802.15.4 and Bluetooth protocols in order to identify the more suitable communication protocol for ITS applications. Furthermore, in order to confirm the validity of the proposed algorithm for the dynamic management of traffic lights, some case studies have been considered and several simulations have been performed

Fuzzy Load Balancing for IEEE 802.11 Wireless Networks

AbstractWireless networks (WNs) are today used in many areas thanks to several benefits deriving from the ease of installation and maintenance and the high scalability. However, in large areas, the increasing number of nodes implies that Access Points (APs) are the main responsible of clients' connection. An overloaded access point may compromise requirements in terms of timeliness of data exchanged among the clients. This paper proposes a load balancing technique for IEEE 802.11 networks based on fuzzy logic in order to ensure the achievement of typical constraints that characterize a wireless scenario. To validate the goodness of the proposed approach several real test-bed scenarios were implemented and load distribution was evaluated

A Flexible Approach for Smart Management of Transmissions in Power Line Communications

Power line communications (PLCs) refer to a technology based on the existing electrical wiring to transmit data among the devices connected to the network. The PLC technology is an excellent solution widely studied and analysed by researchers, even in those areas characterized by strict requirements, such as industries. In this paper, a technique based on fuzzy logic, for the dynamic management of the amplitude of the signal emitted by the devices of a power line network, is proposed. The main aim is to manage the amplitude of the transmission signal in order to reduce the noise introduced into the network, and, as a consequence, the power consumption, increasing data transmission quality of network in terms of Quality of Service (QoS). This solution has been implemented into embedded systems based on the ADD1010, a power line System on Chip (SoC), and tested through a real scenario realized in laboratory

Deadline-Aware Scheduling Perspectives in Industrial Wireless Networks: A Comparison between IEEE 802.15.4 and Bluetooth

In industrial contexts, most of process control applications use wired communication networks. The reliability of wired networks is indisputable and extensively demonstrated by several studies in the literature. However, it is important to consider several disadvantages provided by the use of wired technologies, like high deployment and maintenance costs and low network scalability. Although it is difficult to fully replace wired networks, wireless communication protocols have features which could undeniably affect in positive way the production mechanisms in factories. The wireless networks (WNs) are effectively used to detect and exchange information. The main communication protocols, currently available for WNs, however, do not support real-time periodic traffic flows which, as known, mainly characterize industrial networks. In this paper, we will analyze a real-time scheduling algorithm for both periodic and aperiodic traffic management, applied to networks based on IEEE 802.15.4 and Bluetooth, respectively. The main purpose of this research is to reduce, as much as possible, the packet loss on the channel, increasing at the same time the reliability of the wireless technology. Furthermore, the comparison between IEEE 802.15.4 and Bluetooth will allow to identify the more suitable communication protocol for industrial process control systems

New challenges of real-time wireless sensor networks: Theory and applications:

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A Fuzzy Approach for Reducing Power Consumption in Wireless Sensor Networks: A Testbed With IEEE 802.15.4 and WirelessHART

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Smart management energy systems in industry 4.0

In its origins, the term Industry 4.0 was associated with the computerization of manufacturing and with the diffusion of new network technologies in order to improve the communication paradigm. Today, the definition and implementation of Industry 4.0 include a number of trends, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), digital manufacturing and cyber-physical systems. Among these key elements, energy aware systems in factory automation are emerging as a challenging trend of Industry 4.0. Technological advancements in the ability to collect, transfer and analyze data by using smart energy aware systems are at the aim of this trend. Smart solutions in order to limit the power consumption of manufacturing line aim at developing and integrating new technologies and methods into smart factories in order to rapidly adapt and respond to changes in the markets’ demands for high-quality products. In fact, smart energy aware systems in factories lie at the core of both Industry 4.0 and smart manufacturing. A variety of recent advanced technologies and approaches play important roles, by exploiting innovative technologies and solutions and/or optimization methods. They allow higher levels of adaptively and flexibility in energy aware systems