This project, called AnyPLACE (Adaptable Platform for Active Service Exchange), is led by INESC TEC (INESC Technology and Science) and will be developed by a European energy consortium, as part of the H2020 programme.

“Currently we have different meters at home which are managed by energy providers, which offer different water, gas, and electricity tariffs. The solution to be developed is an energy manager that will be able to integrate the information from all these meters, and show it to the users so that they can choose a more economical profile,” explains João Peças Lopes, Director of INESC TEC and leader of the project.

Other than providing a more advantageous solution to the end-user in terms of cost/benefit, by remotely measuring various energy resources, the AnyPLACE platform will make it possible to actively manage and control electric grids, helping mitigate operational problems associated with the variability of renewable sources of energy.

“Let us imagine that at a certain time of the day there is a surplus of wind power which causes energy costs to decrease. The AnyPLACE platform receives information on that price in real time, and according to the usage profile, the platform acts on the home devices in order to benefit from that tariff,” the INESC TEC Director explains.

Another advantage is the fact that the platform is modular and adaptable to any home, regardless of existing technologies.

Besides INESC TEC, there are seven other partners, from four different nationalities (Portuguese, German, Dutch, and Austrian), involved in the project: Vienna University of Technology (Austria), Ostwestfalen-Lippe University of Applied Science (Germany), JRC – Joint Research Centre European Commission (The Netherlands), EFACEC Energia – Máquinas e Equipamentos Elétricos SA (Portugal), Power Plus Comunications AG (Germany), BOSCH Termotecnologia SA (Portugal) and Kreis Lippe der Landrat (Germany).

INESC TEC is represented in this project by the Centre for Power and Energy Systems (CPES) and the Centre for Telecommunications and Multimedia (CTM), which will be responsible for implementing this project. The team involved is composed of João Peças Lopes, David Rua, Filipe Joel Soares, Luís Seca, Miguel Heleno, Manuel Matos, Paulo Portugal, António Pinto and Francisco Vasques.

AnyPLACE started in January 2015 and has a duration of 36 months. The first phase, which is now being implemented, consists of analysing energy behaviours in the four countries involved in the consortium. After this analysis, the modules of the AnyPLACE platform will be implemented and tested in a laboratory. When the project is concluded, the platform will be demonstrated in Germany with 15 to 20 users. This project will be receiving an investment of 2.97 million euros, 2.44 of which will be funded by the European Commission.

Porto, 18 February 2015

Joana Coelho

Communication Service

joana.d.coelho@inesctec.pt

+351 222094214

+351 934224331