Virtual Home Data
This site provides hourly residential energy data (both electricity and natural gas) for a variety of "virtual homes" which can be used to test the accuracy of AMI analytic tools. The energy data for these virtual homes is created using CBECC-Res, one of the best residential building energy modeling tools available today world-wide.
This tool was based on work described in a draft report to the CEC - AMI Data Analytics Testbed.
Anyone can register for free as a user, and utilize the existing virtual home energy data or create their own.
Registrations are reviewed manually, but are usually approved within 24 hours.
Once approved, you will receive an email with login information.
The California Energy Commission funded this effort
California's AB-758 requires the Energy Commission to establish minimum standards for “smart meter data analytics” in order to increase consumers’ trust in new software offerings available in the marketplace (Strategy 1.3.2 in the Energy Efficiency Action Plan).
This pilot web site is the first of many steps to fully implement this strategy.
Mission:Data provided the leadership
As the premier lobbying group for the Energy Efficiency & Demand Response industry, M:D promotes standards that ensure high quality services for energy consumers, and took the lead to promote the "AMI Testbed" concept to the Energy Commission in 2016.
Big Ladder Software provided CBECC-Res expertise
A Denver-based team of programmers, engineers, and scientists with a unique combination of expertise in software development, computer simulation, and building science. Big Ladder is dedicated to providing software and services for the building energy modeling industry.
Divergent implemented the VHD prototype
Divergent Software Labs has offices in the UK and India, with expertise in Mobile application development, Web application development and Enterprise application development. Their team implemented the pilot system on Amazon AWS under a very short schedule.
Home Energy Analytics designed it
An early innovator in the AMI Data Analytics market (from 2008), HEA recognized the lack of "ground truth data" was a major issue. HEA applied experience with internally developed "manufactured testing data" in 2013 to design the VHD system, then hired Divergent in February 2017 to develop the initial pilot implementation utilizing the CBECC-Res tool running on Amazon AWS. HEA uses VHD to test & improve the accuracy of their HomeIntel service.