Competence Center IT4Energy

To make alternative forms of energy sustainable, the IT4Energy Competence Centre is developing concepts and technologies for the efficient use, storage and distribution of available resources.

Energy Management:

The availability of renewable energy fluctuates heavily. Because it can hardly be controlled, energy consumption has to be adjusted to the production of energy according to the motto “load follows generation”. Furthermore, surplus energy can be stored in order to counterbalance shortages that may occur later on. A better energy management thus reduces the provision and usage of mostly fossil operating reserves and ultimately contributes to the stability of the power system.

IT4Energy researchers are tackling the problem of load management by using constraint-based scheduling and decision methods in tandem with suitable programming paradigms. This enables all essential constraints and degrees of freedom to be taken into account in control and optimization. For this purpose, IT4Energy has developed implemented and practically deployed highly efficient operations research methods. Flexible predictive algorithms are additionally used to optimally adapt consumption profiles to availability profiles – even at short notice – or to plan the necessary buffering of energy surpluses. To further improve prediction, information such as weather, production and consumption data is supplemented by measured actual parameters from digital consumption meters (smart meters) and sensors.

Smart Metering:

The long-term goal is to integrate all energy players – from the electricity provider to the end-user device – into a smart grid. Smart meters capture the required measurement data, which provide information on consumption and production. The collected data are made available for further processing through various communication interfaces. Here, strict requirements with regard to safety and privacy must be observed. To ensure direct feedback of measurement data to the grid, IT4Energy is pursuing research on machine-to-machine communication. The idea is for measurement data to be automatically fed back into the system to allow autonomous and efficient control of grid-connected devices.

Leipzig Book Fair: IT4Energy joins the booth of the Federal Government about Energy Transformation

Wie kann mit einem E-Book-Reader der heimische Energieverbrauch gesenkt werden? Auf dem Stand der Bundesregierung 2-H103 präsentiert IT4Energy vom 14. bis zum 17. März das enyport-Konzept im Rahmen der diesjährigen Buchmesse in Leipzig.

CeBIT 2013: enyport app promotes energy efficiency at home

IT4Energy presents at CeBIT from 5.-9. March at the joint Fraunhofer booth in Hall Hall 9, Stand E08 the enyport app. With the enyport app the user receives an overview of all current energy consumption in the household in real time and can even control the devices.

MWC 2013: IT4Energy presents the intelligent wastebasket

At this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, which takes place from 25-28 February 2013, the Competence Center IT4Energy will present an intelligent wastebasket, which recognizes its fill level with the help of infrared sensors and can transmit this information via radio interface.

IT4Energy visited E-world energy & water 2013

The IT4Energy team has visited Europe’s leading fair for energy and water economics in Essen/Germany from February 5th to 7th. The fair again gained new dimensions with about 22.000 visitors and 610 exhibitors.

EU project CONSERN successfully finished

The project CONSERN (COoperative aNd Self growing Energy awaRe Networks) that has been founded by the EU in the seventh framework program (FP7) has been successfully finished by end of 2012.

BMBF project optimAAL successfully finished

optimAAL, a project founded by the German federal ministry of education and research (BMBF) has been successfully finished in autumn 2012.

Fraunhofer FOKUS strengthens R&D for smart energy

The recent change in the energy sector demands for innovative technologies. Especially for the future smart grids, demand and supply must be measured, predicted and distributed reasonably.