It appears that Bruce Sterling has posted for the final time on his Viridian Design Movement site. The end of an era indeed. I remember stumbling across the VDM site in early 2000 and feeling like I had found one of those rivers of common sentiment that hide so easily on the interweb. Thanks for the ideas, Bruce. Looking forward to neo-viridianism.
You are currently browsing the monthly archive for December 2008.
In this update:
• Arch Rock moves to put Zigbee on the internet
• GE unveils smart appliances and RFID sensing platform
• Israeli DM newcomer, CES
• New patents from BPL Global, Sequentric, and independent inventor
1) Arch Rock submits UDP/IP spec to IETF from http://thinkmorethunk.typepad.com 10.24.08
“Arch Rock Corporation submitted a draft specification to the IETF, describing an approach to implement “… a UDP/IP adaptation of the IEEE 802.15.4-based ZigBee Application Protocol that enables IP hosts to communicate using the application profiles and data models described by that protocol, over a wide range of links. This modified version of the ZigBee Application Protocol is named CAP (Compact Application Protocol), and it is intended to provide a complete stack of application profiles, data exchange, binding operations, security protocols, and discovery to IP-networked hosts and embedded devices. The protocol’s domain of applicability includes IEEE 802.15.4-based 6LoWPAN devices, but also those on conventional wired and wireless links and emerging powerline communication networks.”
“CAP is intended to extend the scope of the ZigBee Application Profiles beyond IEEE 802.15.4 and ZigBee networks to encompass all IP based protocols. The CAP defines a methodology for devices to run CAP services on an UDP port, and exchange ZigBee application profile messages with any other IP device or server.” “Presently this type of interoperability with other networks is accomplished by the use of gateway devices and application compatibility bridging (i.e. BacNet to ZigBee) which can be avoided with the CAP translation to an IP network.”
2) GE Smart Appliances and new RFID platform
Product: 4/10 Connections: 10/10 Marketing: 6/10 Talent: 8/10
Current Blog opinions: “At the moment the partnership appears to be little more than a lobbying effort to get the federal government to invest in electrical grids to support more renewable energy generation.” “Dan Reicher, director of climate change and energy initiatives at Google.org, an operating unit of Google, said the effort was in its planning stages and did not have a set budget.”
Production Status:
www.treehugger.com 10.30.08
“GE Announces Program to Partner with Utilities to Reshape Energy Usage, Help Consumers Save Money” (Press release October 27, 2008) - GE Consumer & Industrial announced today that it is introducing a program that will provide the next step in home energy cost savings for consumers while helping utility companies better manage the demand for energy during peak energy usage times…” “In the first Quarter of 2009, GE will introduce a suite of ‘’smart” appliances or Energy Management Enabled Appliances. These GE appliances will be enabled to receive a signal from their local utility. The appliances will receive the control message and react based on the appliance’s internal programming. It requires no customer interaction.”
www.freaklabs.org Thursday, 23 October 2008
“GE Global Research, the technology development arm of the General Electric Company, today announced a battery-free, multi-detection radio-frequency identification (RFID) sensing platform that could enable a wide range of low cost wireless sensing products in healthcare, security, food packaging, water treatment and pollution prevention. GE’s unique RFID sensors are built on traditional RFID tags. This “first-of-its-kind” sensing platform, in which a single sensor can provide a highly selective response to multiple chemicals under variable conditions, operates without a battery. GE’s sensor technology overcomes limitations in today’s sensors such as inadequate response selectivity and the need for an on-board power source. Without a battery, new sensors can be designed to be smaller than a penny and manufactured at very low cost.”
3) Israeli startup C.E.S. (Computerized Electricity Systems) gets California Utility meeting
Product: 3/10 Connections: 7/10 Marketing: 4/10 Talent: 5/10 (?)
California Israel Chamber of Commerce has set up a series of meetings, Nov 10-13, between 12 Israeli cleantech firms, PG&E and other utilities, and various VC firms. Among the 12 firms was C.E.S. (Computerized Electricity Systems) which claims to produce consumer facing DM systems.
The company website has no actual product pictures, but several wizarded pictures of a “Smart Distribution Panel” (apparently a managed circuit breaker board) and a “Display Unit” (at left). The SDP is described as follows: “At the core of the CSDP: An array of unique, patented and reliable power line arc-less switches, enabling dynamic routing of power without adversely affecting consumers or appliances. These C.E.S.-developed hybrid (mechanical/solid-state) smart switches can connect and disconnect automatically upon current overload, short current surge detection or software command. Manual on/off switch operation is also provided. These smart switches are low-cost, high current and are remotely controlled.”
The Display Unit is described as: “The CDU can be installed anywhere on the premises and allows the end-user to view usage status (including from alternative sources), high-consumption appliances and more, without the need to log into a PC or go to the CSDP itself. The CDU communicates with the CSDP using PLC or ZigBee.” C.E.S. also claims to have a software portal for the utility.
Production Status: “initially importing systems from Israel ,with a long-term plan of creating a manufacturing facility in South Africa, says CES CTO Lupu Wittner.” “The product has been tested in Israel by the Israeli Electric Corporation, in South Africa by Eskom, and in the US by the Energy Power Research Institution, and has successfully passed all product tests, says Wittner. He adds, however, that it is still subject to certification by the South African Bureau of Standards.”
C.E.S. Management:
Yaron Sheinmann, CEO (“Founder, CEO, and chairman of one of the first Israeli start-ups, BVR Technologies, from its commencement in 1987 through 2004, Yaron initiated several successful subsidiaries, including Nexus Telocation (Nasdaq: PNTR), NexusData, VIZRT (Frankfurt Main List: VIZ), BVR Systems (Nasdaq: BVRS), and Unisfair.”)
Lupu Wittner, CTO (“Lupu Wittner served as an engineering officer in the Comm/Nav branch of the Israeli Air Force, the development organization of Comm/Nav Outage Forecast System (C/NOFS). Lupu has dedicated his recent professional life to assisting in solving the global crisis of energy/load management through innovation and invention and has become a technological thought leader in Demand Side Management (DSM) and Demand Response (DR) solution development.”)
Others: Tamar Naor (Corporate Development), Jim Reardon (ExecVP of Sales, N. America), Michael Sela (VP, operations), Shmuel Bleichman (VP, R&D)
4) Recent Patent Applications (since Sept 1, 2008):
• BALLAST CONTROL SYSTEM FOR HID LAMP USING ZIGBEE (unaffiliated) (Oct 2008)
Abstract: A control system for an HID lamp, which in one implementation includes a magnetic ballast control system for an HID lamp using Zigbee. A plurality of condensers or choke coils of different capacities is mounted on a magnetic ballast for the lamp, and an electronic switch unit controls illumination according to change of such capacities. RF transmitting/receiving means using a Zigbee-based frequency are employed to turn the HID on and off, and to control illumination through wireless remote communications, thereby achieving considerable energy savings.
Inventor(s): Choi; Joong-Kwen (Seoul, KR, US)
Correspondence: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY / TECHNOLOGY LAW (RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC, US)
• SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DEMAND DISPATCH AND LOAD MANAGEMENT (BPL GLOBAL, INC) (10.2.08)
Abstract: Provided is a system and method for monitoring utilization of a resource across an entire distribution area. The system dynamically and intelligently limits the aggregated utilization of the resource across an entire distribution area or targeted sub areas. Targeted usage thresholds at the device (individual utilization) level, as well as utility-specified business and technical rules and overrides, can be applied. Using these rules, the system continuously looks for and manages individual utilization of the resource that is available for curtailment, thus producing a larger and more efficient utilization level that is available for reduction without service impact to customers within that service area or targeted sub areas.
Inventor(s): Tolnar; Jeff (Columbus, OH, US) , Caroline; Heidi (Meadville, PA, US) , Hymer; Larry (Columbus, OH, US) , Bauer; Michael (San Francisco, CA, US)
Correspondence: BUCHANAN, INGERSOLL & ROONEY PC (ALEXANDRIA, VA, US)
• METHODS, SYSTEMS, CIRCUITS AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCTS FOR ELECTRICAL SERVICE DEMAND MANAGEMENT (D. Flohr of Sequentric) (Sept. 4, 2008)
Abstract: Methods of controlling activation of electrical appliances can include reducing overlapping activation time of different electrical appliances located at a single customer location of an electrical service provider during at least one time interval during a day. Related systems, circuits, and computer program products are disclosed.
Inventor(s): Flohr; Daniel (Wilmington, NC, US) (Sequentric CEO)
Correspondence: MYERS BIGEL SIBLEY & SAJOVEC (RALEIGH, NC, US)
