The project is based on the principle that an operational measurement system can produce a powerful feedback effect: "You can affect what you measure".

The effectiveness of feedback as a tool for increasing awareness of energy use has been demonstrated in numerous studies and trials. The excellent survey article by Sarah Darby, leads us to expect savings on the order of 5-15% for a direct feedback system such as we are proposing.

Source : The effectiveness of Feedback on Energy Consumption

Sarah Darby (April 2006)

Environmental Institute - University of Oxford

We propose an implementation wich connects a physical sensor to measure whole house energy consumption and is then relayed to a central location for subsequent viewing and analysis. This allows the consumer to:

1. •Learn to associate daily habits to actual energy consumption
   

2. •Make practical choices on specific changes in behavior, which are reinforced by the satisfaction of immediate observed efficiencey gains
   

3. •Reduce consumption in a measured and sustainable manner
   

4. •Understand longer term trends of energy use, over days and months.
   

  By structuring the data gathering appropriately it is possible to achieve several advantages:

1. •Have immediate and ubiquitous access to this information anywhere it is desired or convenient. From countertop to desktop, on the web, on the phone, on the settop box, or on a digital photo frame.
   

2. •Continuous, up-to-date status of achieved efficiency gains.
   

3. •Allows external analysis for reporting or triggering alarms.
   

4. •Selective sharing of information for comparison (such as on social networks)
   

5. •Archival of data