The modern grid will depend on good communication between utilities, customers, and devices. For instance, utilities need to tell a customer that renewable energy is available, so fire up that EV charging station. Or, customers, network conditions require you to turn your thermostats down to avoid bringing on a fossil-fuel peaker-plant, or black outs.
For good communication, one computer system needs to be able to talk to another. But many software projects build their own communication protocols, which can make communication harder.
openLeADR, based on the OpenADR specification, is a comprehensive protocol to exchange all kinds of information surrounding smart energy by enabling Automated Demand Response (ADR). openLeADR, an LF Energy project, is a ready-made implementation for the OpenADR protocol.
“Once we built that little module that speaks OpenADR, we thought this is very useful for other project partners … and everyone in the world … to get a starting point by using a common implementation of openLeADR,” says Stan Janssen, technical expert at ElaadNL Foundation.
Elaad was founded by the Dutch distribution utilities to kickstart vehicle to grid infrastructure for electric vehicles in the Netherlands. Elaad’s focus is on “smart charging,” which means adjusting charging speeds and times of optimal renewable energy use.
The Elaad Foundation has established a network of more than 3,000 public charging stations for EVs across the Netherlands. ElaadNL’s current focus is on research and innovation regarding smart charging and the use of sustainable energy for EVs.
To further this goal, Elaad donated openLeADR to LF Energy. For more information, watch this interview and join the community on GitHub below.
