Most distributed energy resources are outside their direct control, making it difficult to regulate production or incorporate surpluses and shortages into the wider electricity network. In addition, the proliferation of laptops, smart phones, electric vehicles (EV’s), and other power-hungry appliances and assets have created unprecedented demand for reliable electricity.Īgainst this backdrop, utility operators increasingly struggle to manage the country’s rapidly greening electricity grid. Over the past decade, however, homeowners and businesses have started adding their own energy generation and storage solutions through investments in technologies like rooftop solar or on-site batteries. Moreover, utilities only had to manage and distribute the electricity they themselves created. This centralized system worked well for more than a century since the number of powered devices per home or business was relatively small. The electricity created is then sent in one direction to local communities using relay stations and transmission lines to distribute this power – and on-site electricity meters to measure consumption and calculate each customer’s utility bill.A utility provider generates electricity in a centralized location using any number of fossil fuel inputs like oil, natural gas, and coal – or sustainable power technologies like solar, nuclear, or hydro.Understanding what makes a grid “smart” requires a brief discussion of how the traditional electricity grid was originally designed. You may also enjoy this brief 30-minute podcast that introduces the challenges of smart grids and highlights some of the benefits of AI to improve energy and utility operations. This comprehensive guide explains how smart electrical grids work, why they are important, and how they are helping to revolutionize the electricity landscape – especially as distributed energy sources (DERs) like solar, wind, and battery storage continue to place stress on America’s aging power infrastructure. Smart grid technology does the same thing – but for energy. The Internet of Things (IoT) is the most popular example of this trend, with smart phones, thermostats, fridges, and even cars working in concert to share real-time data and make decisions autonomously. Smart grids are part of a growing “smart” phenomenon involving distributed devices that are wirelessly connected and intelligently controlled to automate decisions normally left to people.

Smart grids benefits