Abstract:
One avenue through which today’s energy problems can be addressed is through
the reduction of energy usage in households. The existing utility system only
provides feedback at the end of the month in the form of a bill and consumed
kilowatt hours (kWh). A homeowner has no way to track their power usage on a
more immediate basis. The Arduino based wireless power meter is a non-invasive
current meter for household power with a Matlab interface. Current is measured
using split core current transformers. This data is then transmitted over a 802.11b
connection through the home’s wireless router to the base station and Matlab
interface. The project aims to provide a clear picture of a home’s current
usage, and through this data provide an estimate to power consumption. The project
also aims to identify which devices turn on and off by analysis of this current
data. The goal of provided such data to a user is that they will optimize and
reduce their power usage.
Full report (pdf)
code (zip)