A MicroGrid System Infrastructure Implementing IoT/Big-Data Technologies for Efficient Energy Management in Buildings

Recent studies showed that energy consumption in buildings could be efficiently reduced by including recent IoT (Internet of Things) and Big-Data technologies into microgrid systems. In fact, three major aspects could be further considered for reducing energy consumption while maintaining a suitable occupants’ comfort, (i) integrating renewable energy sources and storage devices, (ii) integrating programmable and less-energy-consuming equipment, and (iii) deploying innovative information and communication technologies. These aspects might contribute substantially to the improvement of winning and saving energy toward smart and energy-efficient buildings. In this chapter, a microgrid system infrastructure is developed together with a platform for data gathering, monitoring, and processing. We put more emphasis on microgrid systems as crucial infrastructures for leveraging energy-efficient and smart buildings by developing and deploying a holistic IoT/Big-Data platform in which sensing and actuation tasks are performed according to the actual contextual changes. Scenarios are presented in order to show the usefulness of this holistic platform for monitoring, data processing, and control in energy-efficient buildings.