EEbeat

There is no doubt that we need a better, smarter grid for our current and future energy needs. But, “Simply producing a ‘smarter grid’ will not be sufficient to solve the problems with today’s electricity transmission and distribution systems,” stated Jeff Shepard, president of Darnell Group. “Key enablers will include the development of advanced energy measurement and control capabilities coupled with machine-to-machine communications incorporated into ‘smart’ electronic devices ranging from appliances to electric vehicles, industrial equipment and even smart buildings. Maybe most-important will be the deployment of highly sophisticated intelligent microgrids including energy storage and generation to take the load entirely off the grid, instead of merely trying to ‘manage’ existing loads and centralized energy generation resources with so-called ‘smart grid’ technologies,” Shepard concluded.
The Smart Grid Electronics Forum (SGEF’12) is gearing up and there is a call for papers issued for this, the third-annual SGEF ’12. http://smartgrid.darnell.com/call4papers.php
The SGEF ‘12 will focus on the practical impact that the emerging smart grid will have on the design issues/decisions/techniques/devices/etc. related to the development and design of electronic equipment. As a speaker at SGEF ’12 you will be contributing to the discussion of how deployment of the smart grid will change the design of all types of electronic equipment. Coverage will extend from the Smart Meter through the building and related microgrids to the end-use equipment. At SGEF ’12, you will hear about the latest component developments, design techniques, communications protocols, architectures, smart-grid standards, and more. A key question to be considered at this year’s SFEG will be: “Are microgrids the key to the successful development of the smart grid?” http://smartgrid.darnell.com/index.php
And don’t forget, you will have an opportunity to tour two unique facilities: The Next Energy Technology Demonstration facilities and Nextek Power Systems — http://smartgrid.darnell.com/tour.php