Supply and load management for the smart distribution grid using wireless networks

The advances in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) allow intense interactions among the computational and the physical elements of the smart grid, and provide opportunities for novel energy management techniques. In this paper, we propose the Wireless Supply and Load Management (WSLM) scheme that is a scalable, resilient and efficient energy management technique for the smart grid. WSLM operates at the distribution system to provide scalability. It communicates with the smart meters of the consumers via multi-hop wireless links. When a registered appliance is switched on, WSLM determines the supply, e.g. solar, wind; or when a Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) is plugged in, based on the loading of the grid equipments, WSLM shifts the PHEV load to off-peak hours and preserves the resilience of the distribution system. We show that WSLM provides efficiency by matching the demand with the local resources, and balancing daily load profile.