Date of Award
2017
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science (BS)
Department
Engineering
First Advisor
Tom Austin
Second Advisor
Dr,. Randall K. Fish
Abstract
The Energy Monitoring and Management System facilitates access to electric power in regions with limited energy by increasing energy conservation and education. Our solution consists of a meter which allocates a configurable daily energy limit per facility, and a display that provides practical information to the user reporting how much energy they have used or have left before power is automatically cut off until the next day. The current version of our system has successfully been installed in multiple facilities in Burkina Faso and Zimbabwe. The current version of our meter fulfills the base requirements of allocating a configurable daily energy limit per facility but is not conducive to easy feature upgrades. This year we began the redesign of the system to move to a more modular design. Subdividing functionality into plug in modules makes it possible to add or upgrade features without replacing the entire meter. The first step towards modularity has been developing SPI communications between the circuit boards, and the creation of the meter’s first 'module'. Now that the modular nature of the meter has been realized, we are in a position to add improvements such as a ‘‘pay-as-you-go’ version of the meter as well as remote administration by a small business energy provider.
Recommended Citation
Tajiri, Paul, "Energy Monitoring and Management System: Moving Toward a Modular Design" (2017). Honors Projects and Presentations: Undergraduate. 39.
https://mosaic.messiah.edu/honors/39
