Companies around the world are looking to industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) to drive digital transformation of their industries. We are very pleased to be part of Eaton’s announcement of their new energy management circuit breakers (EMCBs), which look to transform the next generation energy grid.
Eaton is collaborating with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and Electric Imp to create the breakthrough, “smart” and secure circuit breakers.
EMCBs deliver insight and control of high power usage devices to utilities in an incredibly easy to install form factor: a standard breaker. Being able to monitor – and where necessary, control – individual high current circuits behind a subscriber’s main meter allows the utilities unprecedented flexibility in managing these loads. This ensures they can deliver a high quality, reliable service whilst incorporating renewables, energy storage, and new loads such as electric vehicle chargers into the grid.
Eaton is using Electric Imp because it meets their three core requirements – security, reliability and scalability. Electric Imp’s platform is protected by impSecureTM managed security services, which provide security from silicon to the cloud, and maintenance throughout the lifetime of the EMCB. The data is quickly integrated with analytics tools from Eaton, EPRI and/or the utility’s chosen enterprise applications and big data systems.
Connecting the EMCBs quickly and easily is crucial for the utilities. The EMCB installation process uses BlinkUpTM and a custom mobile application to collect metadata about the installation – including location, photos both pre and post install, and other details – and tie this securely and seamlessly to the commissioned device in a single step.
 |
 |
|---|
There are 12 energy utilities included in the EMCB field test, representing millions of households across the United States and Canada. Find out more about the product and program on Eaton’s website.
The potential for the EMCBs to change utility-grade energy management forever is very real – Demand Response as we know it today will change and become much more practical and efficient for utilities and their customers. And we’re very pleased to be part of the process and making it possible for Eaton to create “the dawn of a new age for grid optimization.”
Hugo Fiennes
Co-Founder & CEO
Electric Imp