APPrO recently released an open invitation to inventors and developers in the energy sector to have their ideas considered for a new award to be highlighted during the APPrO 2018 banquet dinner, November 12 in Toronto.
Global Design Challenge: Develop the best open – scalable – compliant – interoperable – local Transactive energy platform
Described as “A challenge to inventors, designers and engineers everywhere” the objective is to highlight promising inventions and ideas that will contribute to the development of a “virtually universal open platform for local energy hubs.” APPrO Executive Director Jake Brooks notes that a wide range of power system experts have concluded that the development of such a standard will facilitate energy investment and the deployment of new technology. “The IEEE has identified open source technology as one of the most promising ways to alleviate barriers to deployment of new technology,” he says. (See related article “IEEE working to resolve the practical specifics of Transactive Energy” from IPPSO FACTO, April 2018.)
The key purpose of the Global Design Challenge is to facilitate the resolution of a small number of simple, inexpensive and easily applied design standards that will allow for easy integration of the full range of DERs with micro-grids, distributors and system operators, while meeting all applicable standards for safety, security and open competitive markets. Proposals will be judged on their ability to integrate with consumer friendly apps, digital payment systems, and innovative business models.
Explaining further, Mr. Brooks says, “The Global Design Challenge is an open source collaborative project designed to encourage creative thinking, prompt conversation, and shine a spotlight on the most promising ideas coming from individual contributors and companies at the leading edge of power innovation, including local energy hubs, micro-grids and transactive energy.”
APPrO literature on the Challenge says, “Building on extensive work already underway in many parts of the world, the Global Design Challenge is intended to highlight the most promising and inventive options for resolving common standards of communication between Distributed Energy Resources, power distributors and grid operators. Proposed systems must be widely applicable, suitable for use by LDCs and micro-grids, and comply with all applicable legal and technical requirements.
Everyone with an interest in the future shape of the power system is invited to share and potentially showcase their designs for the most dependable, efficient and inclusive open access, open source distributed energy integration platform.”
Winners will be announced on November 12, 2018 at the Canadian Power Conference Banquet dinner in six or more categories including:
• The most innovative overall design concept
• The most economical implementation framework
• The system that most easily accommodates the integration of new DERs
• The best Blockchain integration
• The best storage integration
• Ability to accommodate a full range of jurisdiction-specific regulatory requirements
• Consumer-friendliness.
Postscript: APPrO recently decided to extend the timeline for the Global Design Challenge into 2019. The new deadline for submissions is July 1, 2019 and awards will be presented at the APPrO banquet on November 21, 2019.