Final Report, Wireless Power Monitoring, UC Senior Project

University of Cincinnati
16 March 2011
Wireless Power
Monitoring
Electrical and Computer Engineering Senior
Design Project
James Hendy, Alex Meier & Tom Straub

Project Name: Wireless Power Monitoring Version Number: 09

University of Cincinnati Issue Date: 3/16/2011

Author: Hendy/Meier/Straub Document Status: Complete

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Table of Contents
1. Purpose ........................................................................................................................................... 6
2. Project Description .......................................................................................................................... 6
2.1. Background ............................................................................................................................. 6
2.2. Problem Statement ................................................................................................................. 6
2.3. Proposed Solution ................................................................................................................... 6
2.4. Goals ....................................................................................................................................... 7
2.5. Deliverables ............................................................................................................................. 7
2.6. Requirements .......................................................................................................................... 7
3. Timeline ........................................................................................................................................... 8
3.1. Tasks ........................................................................................................................................ 8
3.2. Time Matrix ............................................................................................................................. 9
4. Design ............................................................................................................................................ 12
4.1. Power Adapter ...................................................................................................................... 14
4.2. Power Adapter Communication Protocol ............................................................................. 14
4.3. Database Initial Design ....................................................................................................... 14
4.3.1. Power Adapter Database .............................................................................................. 14
4.3.2. Adapter List Database ................................................................................................... 16
4.4. Database Final Design ........................................................................................................ 17
4.5. Server .................................................................................................................................... 17
4.6. Webpage ............................................................................................................................... 18
5. Statement of ABET Concerns ........................................................................................................ 19
5.1. Economic ............................................................................................................................... 19
5.2. Health and Safety .................................................................................................................. 19
5.3. Manufacturing ...................................................................................................................... 19
5.4. Sustainability ......................................................................................................................... 19
6. Technical Specifications ................................................................................................................ 20
6.1. Specifications ........................................................................................................................ 20
6.2. Standards .............................................................................................................................. 21
6.3. Testing ................................................................................................................................... 21
7. Interface Specifications ................................................................................................................. 23
7.1. System Overview................................................................................................................... 23
7.2. Login Page ............................................................................................................................. 23



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7.3. User Home Page .................................................................................................................... 25
7.4. Power Adapter Page ............................................................................................................. 26
7.5. Data Page .............................................................................................................................. 27
7.6. System Information Page ...................................................................................................... 28
7.7. About Page ............................................................................................................................ 28
8. Test Plan and Results .................................................................................................................... 29
8.1. Purpose ................................................................................................................................. 29
8.2. Test Cases .............................................................................................................................. 29
8.2.1. Webpage - Login ........................................................................................................... 29
8.2.2. Webpage - Forget Password ......................................................................................... 29
8.2.3. Webpage - Home .......................................................................................................... 30
8.2.4. Webpage - Device Modification .................................................................................... 30
8.2.5. Webpage - Add device to System ................................................................................. 31
8.2.6. Webpage - Remove Device ........................................................................................... 31
8.2.7. Webpage - Data Display ................................................................................................ 32
8.2.8. Webpage - About .......................................................................................................... 33
8.2.9. Power adapter Short Circuit Test ............................................................................... 33
8.2.10. Power adapter - Power Supply Operation .................................................................... 34
8.2.11. Power adapter - Power Supply Performance................................................................ 34
8.2.12. Power adapter - Measurement Chip Communication Test .......................................... 35
8.2.13. Power adapter - Wireless Communication Test ........................................................... 36
8.2.14. Power adapter - EEPROM Test ...................................................................................... 36
8.2.15. Backend - Socket Test ................................................................................................... 37
8.2.16. Backend - Database Test ............................................................................................... 37
8.3. Test Case Matrix .................................................................................................................... 38
8.4. Results ................................................................................................................................... 39
8.4.1. Results Summary Matrix ............................................................................................... 39
8.4.2. Measurement Accuracy Test ........................................................................................ 40
8.4.3. Insert Test ..................................................................................................................... 42
8.4.4. Power supply Test ......................................................................................................... 43
9. User Manual .................................................................................................................................. 44
9.1. General Information ............................................................................................................. 44
9.2. Getting Started ...................................................................................................................... 45



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9.3. Logging into the web page .................................................................................................... 46
9.4. Adding new devices .............................................................................................................. 46
9.5. Configuring devices ............................................................................................................... 48
9.6. Removing devices ................................................................................................................. 48
9.7. Viewing your data ................................................................................................................. 49
9.8. Saving your data .................................................................................................................... 50
9.9. Message System .................................................................................................................... 50
9.10. About ................................................................................................................................. 52
10. Goals vs. Accomplishments ....................................................................................................... 53
11. Design Deliverables ................................................................................................................... 54
11.1. A High Accuracy Device Design ......................................................................................... 54
11.2. Functioning Measurement Device .................................................................................... 55
11.3. Efficient Data Storage Means............................................................................................ 56
11.4. User-Friendly Interface ..................................................................................................... 56
12. Billable Hours ............................................................................................................................ 57
13. Expenses.................................................................................................................................... 61
14. Final Presentation ..................................................................................................................... 62
15. Professional Biographies ........................................................................................................... 67
15.1. Tom Straub ........................................................................................................................ 67
15.2. James Hendy ..................................................................................................................... 67
15.3. Alex Meier ......................................................................................................................... 68
15.4. Advisors ............................................................................................................................. 68
16. Self-Assessments ....................................................................................................................... 69
16.1. Tom Straub ........................................................................................................................ 69
16.2. James Hendy ..................................................................................................................... 70
16.3. Alex Meier ......................................................................................................................... 72
17. Current Events Essay ................................................................................................................. 74
17.1. Tom Straub ........................................................................................................................ 74
17.2. James Hendy ..................................................................................................................... 75
17.3. Alex Meier ......................................................................................................................... 75
18. Appendix A - Research .............................................................................................................. 77
4 Wire SPI Wifi Module .................................................................................................................. 77
PCI Wireless Cards Server Communication .................................................................................... 77



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DHCP Device initialization .............................................................................................................. 77
.NET Framework C#, ASP.NET, managed code ............................................................................... 78
Databases Storing Device Data ...................................................................................................... 78
.NET Chart Tools Data Display for Web Page ................................................................................. 78
19. Appendix B Glossary of terms ................................................................................................ 80
20. Appendix C Schematics .......................................................................................................... 81
21. Appendix D Parts List ............................................................................................................. 87
22. Appendix E Layout / GERBER Layers ...................................................................................... 89




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Final Report
1. Purpose
The purpose of this document is to give a detailed understanding of the project, problems encountered,
solutions to said problems, and contributions of the participating members. An overall process flow is
given for guided understanding of the general logic used.
2. Project Descri pti on
2. 1. Background

Energy consumption is an important social topic and reducing an individuals carbon footprint is
important to sustainable living. People are far more aware of their impact on the environment due to
rising energy costs and the inevitable depletion of resources. Energy consumption is growing rapidly
while the resources needed to produce that energy are being depleted. To slow this depletion it is
essential to reduce the rate at which energy consumption is growing.
2. 2. Probl em Statement

While consumers can monitor total household usage, they have no means of identifying problem devices
and specific usage habits. The ability to view how much energy a specific device or set of devices uses
would allow a consumers to see exactly home much that device is costing. Intelligent monitoring of
energy consumption can identify wasteful usage habits and parasitic devices. Also, almost every
electronic device that remains plugged in for the duration of its life draws standby power. This power
allows the device to be ready to turn on quickly, but is unnecessary when it is in standby for several
hours. The ability to programmatically switch a device on/off can help reduce this standby power
usage.
2. 3. Proposed Sol uti on

Design a power adapter that plugs between an outlet and a device that transmits voltage/current
measurements to a wireless (802.11 b) server that in turn stores the information into a database. This
database will be accessible via a webpage that will allow the user to view the data as to identify how
much power each device is consuming and over what time span. An added feature is to enable the
power adapter to switch devices on/off during user designated times. Once a device is known to be
drawing a lot of standby power, the user can choose to turn the device off during that time.




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2. 4. Goal s

The goal of this project is to create a hardware/webpage combination that allows for easy monitoring of
device power consumption over time to assist in reducing overall power consumption. The specific
goals of the project are:

Design and implement accurate measurements of power consumption (kWh).
Design and implement a power adapter that communicates with the server via 802.11 b.
Design and implement a server application that handles the initialization of devices, data
retrieval at defined intervals, and writes data to the database.
Setup a database to store device information and power measurements.
Design and implement a webpage for data viewing and system status.

2. 5. Del i verabl es

Running server that is capable of discovering and communicating with several devices
Each power adapter can capture accurate voltage/current measurements and transmit that data
back to the server on configurable intervals (from once a second to once an hour)
The database can be accessed via a web application and cleanly display the information
Enable power adapter naming to associate a power adapter with a specific device
Ability to export data for further analysis to be used with other software applications
2. 6. Requi rements

Design and implement a power adapter that is low powered and measures apparent power.
Develop a backend process to run on a server to catalogue data and host a web page.
Establish wireless communication between the power adapter and the server.
Create a webpage capable of displaying the recorded data and its associative costs.
Enable data retrieval via the webpage.
Allow updating of configuration settings for each connected power adapter.




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3. Ti mel i ne
3. 1. Tasks
Power adapter
1. Research and identify suitable data buses for communicating between a lightweight microcontroller
and a self-supporting 802.11b chipset,
2. Identify functionally compliant and interconnect able components to fulfill both design
requirements and the requirements of the TI Analogue contest,
3. Research a set of high accuracy current and voltage probes,
4. Provided there is sufficient interest, add a small character display readout to show instantaneous
power consumption on the device,
5. As an option, design an optically-isolated switching circuit capable of breaking the circuit,
6. Apply fundamental circuit design and layout techniques to create a suitably small yet high
performance printed circuit board,
7. Support Microcontroller programming to fulfill the basic requirements of the device, including data
acquisition and transmission,
8. Utilize troubleshooting and circuit analysis techniques to identify any issue with the hardware
device,
9. Establish dual SPI bus communication (wifi on SPI1, ADE on SPI2),
Server
10. Research Linux and Windows operating systems and determine which platform to target,
11. Determine the hardware needed to create a wireless LAN for device connection,
12. Code a back-end process to handle device initialization and IP address assignment,
13. Design and implement a wireless protocol for data transfer between devices to server,
14. Design and implement a database to store and distinguish between multiple devices over long
periods of time,
15. Develop software that will monitor system activity, connect new devices, write data to the database
and allow for debugging of overall functionality,
Webpage
16. Research different database options to see what would be the best option,
17. Design overall layout of the web interface to provide the best user experience,
18. Code a process to access and interface with the data database from the web server,
19. Develop a login process on the web site to allow for secure access to the data,
20. Setup port forwarding on home network to allow for the website to be visible from the internet,
21. Research and develop chart tools to enable a graphical representations of the data,
22. Research and develop a method to provide real-time updates of data to the web page,
Demonstration and Reporting
23. Test the system for defects and setup test in a home with moderate activity for real world results,
24. System refinement base on testing results.
25. Organize documentation into common formatting for the final report,
26. Create a demonstration setup that will showcase the capabilities of the system and future additions,
27. Give formal presentation.



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3. 2. Ti me Matri x

Project Name Owner Days Start End
Wireless
Power Monitoring
154 11-Oct 14-Mar

Design Phase All 10 11-Oct 21-Oct
Define objectives All 12 11-Oct 23-Oct
Define requirements All 10 11-Oct 21-Oct
Determine resources owned and
those to be acquired. All 2 11-Oct 13-Oct

Research Phase 20 25-Oct 14-Nov
Research 4 wire SPI bus Alex, James 3 25-Oct 28-Oct
Research current/voltage probes
and appropriate vendors Alex 2 26-Oct 28-Oct
Research micro coding examples Alex, James 2 27-Oct 29-Oct
Research OS for server Tom 4 28-Oct 1-Nov
Research DHCP for device
initialization Tom, Alex 5 29-Oct 3-Nov
Research ASP.NET databasing
options All 10 30-Oct 9-Nov
Research different database
options All 8 31-Oct 8-Nov
Research .NET chart tools for use
with ASP.NET James 8 1-Nov 9-Nov
Research PCI wireless cards Alex 5 2-Nov 7-Nov

Devlopment Phase 91 15-Nov 14-Feb
Find suitable A/D components
and opamps Alex 2 15-Nov 17-Nov
Design switching relay circuitry Alex 2 17-Nov 19-Nov
Design schematics and layouts
for the circuit boards Alex 5 19-Nov 24-Nov



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Implement Initial circuit boards
solutions Alex 14 24-Nov 8-Dec
Perform analysis and evaluate
redesign of circuits and layouts. Alex,Tom 4 8-Dec 12-Dec
Design second revision of
schematics and layouts for the
circuit boards Alex 4 12-Dec 16-Dec
Implement general
communication Alex 3 16-Dec 19-Dec
Implement data collection and
control protocols Alex, Tom 7 16-Dec 23-Dec
Create and test database API
bridge from server to database Tom, James 14 19-Dec 2-Jan
Create database API bridge
from server to database Tom, James 7 26-Dec 2-Jan
Design IP protocol for data and
control All 5 30-Dec 4-Jan
Design database Tom, James 10 1-Jan 11-Jan
Develop back-end process Tom, James 7 6-Jan 13-Jan
Design and Develop webpage
layout All 14 10-Jan 24-Jan
Develop login / security
components for the website Tom 7 17-Jan 24-Jan
Develop configuarable and user
interactive charts for the web
page James 12 20-Jan 1-Feb
Implement real-time reporting to
webpage All 7 26-Jan 2-Feb

Testing & Refinement Phase 20 21-Feb 13-Mar
Perform Final analysis and
evaluate redesign of circuits and
layouts. Alex 7 21-Feb 28-Feb
Design Final revision of
schematics and layouts for the
circuit boards if needed. Alex 5 24-Feb 1-Mar



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Test the system for defects and
setup test in a home with
moderate activity for real world
results All 5 27-Feb 4-Mar
Organize documentation into
common formatting for the final
report All 13 1-Mar 14-Mar
Create a demonstration setup All 3 8-Mar 11-Mar
Give formal presentation All 1 15-Mar 15-Mar




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4. Desi gn
System overview

Figure 1 - Design Diagram Level 0




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The server acts as the moderator and handles device initialization, configuration, and receiving of data.
Each power adapter performs individually and transmits voltage and current measurements from loads
plugged into them at configurable intervals to the server. The server processes data coming in and
stores the data in a database. Using a webpage, the database can be queried to display and analyze the
power consumption at individual power adapters. Some command and control functions will be
accessible via the webpage for device configuration. All communication must go through the server and
not directly to the power adapters.




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4. 1. Power Adapter

The power adapter Design utilizes low power devices to provide consistent, accurate, periodic data
collection without significantly impacting the draw of the attached circuit. The first design task of the
power adapter is establishing the communication between the wireless chipset and the
microcontroller. The second task lies in designing the high accuracy instrumentation inputs and
ADCs to measure the current and voltage waveforms, establishing a communication interface
between the ADC and microcontroller, and matching the inputs to a set of high impedance, high
accuracy voltage and current probes. Lastly, designing the switching circuitry for the high end model
will be performed. This task involves optically isolating the microcontroller from the switching
circuitry to prevent harm to other systems in the event of power surges.
The software to run on the microcontroller will then be developed. The device behaviour is defined
as follows:
1. Two-Way Communication The device will be capable of obtaining an IP address from the
server, and establishing a bidirectional wireless data link via the wireless daughter chipset.
2. Push-Data Logging The device sends data, sleeps, then wakes up and sends again. The
server never has to form a request to acquire logged data from the devices.
3. Output Power Switching The Device is capable of receiving commands for output power
state switching.

4. 2. Power Adapter Communi cati on Protocol
The design of the communication protocol follows some very specific performance requirements.
The goal of the communication is low overhead, low data rates, and low payload. The device will
come out of a low power state, establish connection to the server, authenticate the device, transmit
the waiting data voltage, current, phase angle, interval and ask the server for any waiting
commands. The possible sever commands are interval_write with an int16 range, Boolean value
on_command, and status_request.

4. 3. Database Ini ti al Desi gn
For this project we will have a database table to store the active devices, and a power table to store the
incoming data points.
4.3.1. Power Adapter Database
The design of the power adapter database is especially crucial for this project since a large part of the
project will rely on accessing this database for stored information. We needed to develop a database that
was efficient, but allowed us to store the most information for analyses. Each power adapter will have
its own database used for storing data. This database will contain a table which stores the start time, end
time, time interval, voltage, current, and the calculated kilowatt hour.
Database Field Explanation:
Start Time Field - The start time field is the first time at which the current and voltage was first
reported. The start time is used so that we can see the time interval over which the power was the
same.



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End Time Field - The end time field is the last time the current and voltage was the same. This is also
used in conjure with the start time to see the time interval over which the power was the same.
Interval Field - The time interval field is used for storing the reporting interval for the power adapter.
This is used so that we can check for reporting errors from the power adapter. If the Interval is
supposed to be 1 minute but it was 7 minutes since the last time the power adapter reported we can
assume the power adapter lost communication to the server.
Voltage Field - The voltage field is for storing the power adapters voltage. The voltage field keeps track
of the voltage the power adapter was pulling. It is also used in conjure with the current field to calculate
the power for the adapter over the time interval between the start time and end time.
Current Field - The current field is used for storing the power adapters current. The current field keeps
track of the current the power adapter was drawing. It is also used in conjure with the current field to
calculate the power for the adapter over the time interval between the start time and end time.
Power Field - The power field contains the calculated kilowatt hour is for storing the kilowatt hour
based on the voltage and current over the time interval between the start time and end time. The
purpose of the Power Field is to reduce the time it would take to calculate the total power consumed by
the device plugged into the power adapter. If the power need to be calculated over a long period of
time it requires less processing by the database to simply add all the total kilowatt hours for each entry
in the database over that time period.

Processing of a message from a power adapter:
If a new message from a power adapter is received the current and voltage message is compared to the
current and voltage of the last entry in the database. If no previous entry is present in the database then
this entry is added to the database. If the current and voltage from the new message is +/- 5% of the
voltage and current from the last entry in the database, the interval is checked compared with the end
time of the previous entry to check for a communication error from the power adapter. If an error is
detected the new message is stored as a new entry in the database. If an error is not detected the end
time is adjusted and the power field is updated to display the kilowatt hour over the time period
between the start and end time.




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Example of a power adapter Database:
Start Time End TIme Interval Voltage (V) Current (I) Power(kW/h)
12:00 12:04 0:01 120 1.2 0.00960
12:05 12:09 0:01 120 1.25 0.01000
12:10 12:24 0:01 110 1 0.02567
12:25 12:27 0:01 111 0.95 0.00351
12:28 12:32 0:01 112 0.90 0.00674
12:33 12:41 0:01 113 0.86 0.01292
12:42 12:59 0:01 114 0.81 0.02631
13:00 13:35 0:01 115 0.77 0.05191

Total Power: .14665

Figure 4 Example Data
4.3.2. Adapter Li st Database
The adapter list database is a database used to keep track of valid power adapters. This is done by having
a user input the power adapters MAC address through the website. By enter the MAC address a user is
establishing that messages received from a power adapter containing the MAC address entered is to be
stored. The Adapter List database stores these MAC addresses so that when the backend receives a
message from a power adapter is can compare the MAC address from the message to the list of MAC
addresses stored in the database. If the MAC address is found the backend process knows the message is
from a valid power adapter and stores the message in the power adapters database.

0.00000
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0.02000
0.02500
0.03000
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4. 4. Database Fi nal Desi gn
To reduce complexity, the database was modified to only store the voltage/current/power at the time
the measurement. This requires more processing on the webpage, but was less consuming to
implement.

Figure 5 - ER Diagram for the database

Figure 6 - Translate of ER to tables
4. 5. Server
The server will run Windows Server 2008 with the .NET Framework. This will enable rapid
application development to get the project off the ground in the time allotted. Theoretically, everything
the server does could be run on a micro and written in microcode. This however would take far too
long and is not the focus of the project. Linux was explored, however the familiarity with .NET and the
large code base it offers gave us reason enough to host a Windows based machine.
The server will serve two purposes. The first is to run a backend process to handle power adapter
discovery and store incoming data into the database. The second is to host the webpage.



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The backend process will utilize the servers wireless network interface card to listen to incoming
connections and packets. Once data is received it will store it into the database as described above.
4. 6. Webpage

The webpage will be written in ASP.NET which is uses the C# language and due to its familiarity,
should be a comfortable development tool for the team members. The basic functionality of the
webpage is to display the data stored in the database. The user will be able to choose which device to
display data for, what date range to view, and overlay other devices to compare power consumption.
Another, more fundamental, function of the webpage is a secure login. Initially this webpage will be
accessible only from within the LAN in the home, but in the future the webpage may be accessed
remotely and an authentication process should be created. The webpage will also display an estimated
cost associated with a device based on a user defined price per kWh.




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5. Statement of ABET Concerns
5. 1. Economi c
The economic limitations of this project are primarily due to project funding, which is solely
provided from group members. Initial costs in design will include components, development tools, and
software that can be purchased with a student discount. Freeware, when applicable, must be utilized to
keep expenses down and allow for freedom in the design without hindering creativity. Apache,
freeware software, will be used in the project for serving up web pages containing data recorded from
the power adapters. SQLite3, another freeware tool, will be used for storing and managing the
information in a database. The server runs an operating system, Windows Server 2008, which was
obtained freely from dreamspark.com a website which offers professional tools to students at no charge.
5. 2. Heal th and Safety
The quintessential function of the power adapter project revolves around taking data from
sensors that are connected to 120 volt lines that can be very dangerous. The developer is at risk for
electrocution when testing and implementing the power adapter devices. Since the power adapter is in
direct contact with a power outlet, the risk of fire is a concern. Also, if the power adapter circuitry is
not properly isolated from the source, reverse current can damage the development tools or the load
being powered. Any time a device is connected to a power outlet, certain electrical codes should be
followed. Electrical codes vary depending on the classification of the device and need to be adhered to
due to safety concerns.
5. 3. Manufacturi ng
The power adapter will require several rounds of development before leading up to a
manufacturable product. With this in mind, the design of the power adapter is a simple device with low
cost components that can be easily assembled for mass-production. The overall size of the power
adapter is about the size of a single power outlet and creates challenges in the design as well as in the
manufacturing. If the power adapter is too large it may not be practical for home use. Communication
occurs wirelessly over 802.11 a/b/g, which is a well-defined standard with cost effective components
that are easily available. This method of communication is also reliable over short to mid ranges (about
200 feet) and can be easily expanded using commercially available range extenders.
5. 4. Sustai nabi l i ty
The goal of this project is to automate the monitoring of energy consumption and require only
an initial setup. Once the power adapter has been configured, the user logs into the web interface for
visual display of the data, and no other configuration is needed unless new devices are added. The idea
of an easy-to-use system is a large part of the design with the intent that monitoring energy
consumption can lead to its reduction. The data taken is stored in a database which grows at constant
rate as time progresses. Since the precision of the data taken loses meaning over time, the database
averages older values only leaving keeping the average and removing the older data. This leads to
smaller databases which reduce query time and consequently helps sustain the system for long periods of
time.



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6. Techni cal Speci fi cati ons
6. 1. Speci fi cati ons

Power adapter Phase 1 (Proof of Concept)
Materials
o MicroChip Explorer 16 Development board, PIC24FJ128GA010 Microcontroller.
o MicroChip MRF24WB0MB/RM Evaluation WiFi Module PICTail Version.
Tools
o MPLAB v3.60
o ICD 3
o KiCad Schematic and Layout Suite
Standards
o 802.11 b
o 4 pin SPI Interface.

Power adapter Phase 2 (Implementation)
Materials
o Two Layer Copper FR-4
o TTec CAD-Assisted Lathe.
Tools
o KiCad Schematic and Layout Suite
Standards
o Standard FR-4 Trace Route and Breakdown rules.

Server
Materials
o Micro ATX Motherboard with 1.20 GHz CPU, 512 MB DDR2 RAM, Integrated
Video, 32-bit x86 Architecture
o Wifi PCI Card - EnGenius EPI-3601S 802.11g Ultra Long Range Wireless PCI Adapter
w/ High 600mW RF Power & SuperG 108Mbps & Removable Antenna
o VGA Monitor
Tools
o Windows Server 2008
o .NET 3.5 SP1 Framework
o Visual Studio 2010 C#
Standards
o TCP/IP Communications
o SQL Server Database Methods

Webpage
Materials
o n/a
Tools
o Visual Studio 2010 ASP.NET
o SQLite database



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Standards
o HTML 4.01 / CSS 2

6. 2. Standards

802.11 b
A simple BPSK transmission standard that is nearly universally recognized by consumer networking
products. 802.11b has a maximum raw data rate of 11 Mbit/s and uses the same CSMA/CA media
access method defined in the original standard. While the throughput is not a large concern, the ability
to transmit reliably over two to three hundred feet is important to accommodate potential industrial
applications.

4 Pin SPI
SPI Bus, or four wire synchronous serial bus, is a high data rate serial connection ideal for inter-chip
data communication.

TCP/IP
TCP/IP is the implementation of the Internet Protocol Suite, a set of protocols for data transmission. It
is the standard Protocol for wired and wireless networking, specifically 802.11.

Database
SQL Server will be used to database the information collected from the devices. SQL Server has the
feature of being light weight, efficient, and scalable.

HTML 4.01 / CSS 2
HTML 4.01 and CSS 2 are the current standard used for displaying and styling web pages. The web
page must adhere to the standards in order for our content to be displayed properly.

6. 3. Testi ng

Power adapter Phase 1
Ability to communicate with the server.
Ability to take voltage and current data.
Ability to be powered from AC source.
Ability to sleep and wake up only for measurements and data transmission.

Power adapter Phase 2
Ability to communicate with the server.
Ability to take voltage and current data.
Ability to be powered from AC source.
Ability to sleep and wake up only for measurements and data transmission.
Ability to kill power to items plugged into our device.

Server



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Ability to register devices and create new database entries when discovered.
Ability to receive incoming data from devices and store it in a database.
Ability to monitor website requests to change device settings.
Ability to configure devices.
Ability to communicate with devices.

Webpage
Ability to securely login.
Ability to view information from the database.
Ability to graph information from the database.
Ability to add/remove devices.
Ability to view/update configuration data for devices.




23
7. Interface Speci fi cati ons
7. 1. System Overvi ew

Figure 7 System Overview
Each wall device (power adapter) reports the local power consumption to the server/access
point located in another area of the house. The data logged by the server is organized in a
database and is displayed to the user via a web page. The user accesses this data and
configures devices by logging on to the webpage from any suitable computer terminal and is
the primary user interface to the system.
7. 2. Logi n Page
The login page is displayed before the user logs in. When a user incorrectly enters their
information they are redirected back to this login page. Also, if a user attempts to alter the
navigation URL to a page that requires a user to be logged in, they will be redirected back to
the login page.
Due to the fact that an operational SMTP must be present on the machine hosting the
webpage, password retrieval to an email address was not implemented. There were issues
getting the SMTP server to configure properly on the development machine that could not
be resolved. Since the functionality is not a key aspect of the project, the decision was made
to omit this functionality.




24

Figure 8 Webpage flow diagram

Figure 9 - User login page




25
7. 3. User Home Page
The user home page is displayed after the user logs in. The user home page will provide
basic information such as the number of power adapters, yesterdays power consumption,
year to date power consumption and a pie graph displaying the power consumption of each
device in the system versus total consumption of measured power.

Figure 10 Home Page



26
7. 4. Power Adapter Page
The devices page will allow the user to give each power adapter a more recognizable name
(e.g. PC, Lamp, Television, etc..). Each power adapter is given its own tab in the tab control
as seen in the image below with two devices; First Device and Second Device. The user
is given the option to adjust the power sampling interval of the power adapter so that it can
provide more or less frequent updates and lists a timestamp of the last time data for the
power adapter was received. The user also has the ability to add or remove a power adapter
from the current system.

Figure 11 Devices Page




27
7. 5. Data Page
The data page will show the user graphical information about the power consumption of the
power adapters currently in the system. The user can add or remove devices that are
charted in two ways. The first gives the individual power values at the recorded intervals,
the second plots a kWh accumulation over the time span specified, which will directly
correlate to the estimated cost. The timespan can be specified down to the hour and is all
the resolution that is needed for this application.
As well as displaying the information, the user can also export that data in two formats. A
data can be dumped into a *.csv (comma separated value) file for further analysis using
other software such as Microsoft Excel. Also, a JPEG image of the chart being viewed can
also be saved to disk.

Figure 12 - Data Page




28
7. 6. System Informati on Page
The monitoring system is equipped with a messaging system that is capable of alerting the
user of an error that requires their attention and logging important information. The system
information page has four expanding sections, one for each of the three components and
another for any other message source. This setup gives flexibility to expand the messaging
system to other applications that may interface with our database and would still give our
webpage the ability to view those messages. Each message can be cleared (if the attention
needed flag is set) and deleted from the database completely. Clearing a message allows the
message to remain in the system, but will not show up as an error that needs immediate
attention.

Figure 13 System Information Page
7. 7. About Page
The about page provides basic information related to the system which includes the website
version number, the database version number, and a link to the Wireless Power Monitoring
Project website. This information is helpful for bug reporting.

Figure 14 - About Page




29
8. Test Pl an and Resul ts
8. 1. Purpose
The purpose of this document is to create a test plan outlining the requirements and expected
outcomes. Our project is separated into three main components which are Web Interface, power
adapter, and backend Process. The Web Interface consists of functional tests ensuring a proper and
elegant user experience. The power adapter consists of unit and integration tests ensure it is functioning
properly. The backend Process also uses unit and integration test ensuring proper handling and
communication of the power adapter information. These tests will help create a solid product with
limited points of error.
8. 2. Test Cases
8.2.1. Webpage - Logi n
Test Case Identifier WP_Login_01

Purpose
Verify a user can successfully login to the website.

Description
Navigate to the website.
On the main page click Login and enter the correct user information.

Inputs
User navigated input.

Expected Results
The user should have access to the website.

Normal case indication

Blackbox test indication

Functional test indication

Unit test indication

8.2.2. Webpage - Forget Password
Test Case Identifier WP_Password_01

Purpose
Verify that the user can have their password emailed to the address used during registration.
Description
Navigate to the website.
On the main page click Login and click on the forgot password link.




30
Inputs

Expected Results
The password should be emailed to the address used during registration.





8.2.3. Webpage - Home
Test Case Identifier WP_Home_01

Purpose
Does the main page load the pie chart correctly and accurate device numbers and consumption.
Description
After logging into the site the display has a pie chart and lists the number of devices in the system.

Inputs

Expected Results
The pie chart should accurately show the YTD power consumption of the connected devices. Each slice
is the amount the device measured and the total chart is the amount measured by connected devices.

Normal/ case indication




8.2.4. Webpage - Devi ce Modi fi cati on
Test Case Identifier WP_Device_01

Purpose
Updates to a device are reflected in the database and sent back to the device as an acknowledgement of
received data.
Description



31
Navigate to the Devices page and select a device in the system to modify.
Make a change to the name of the device and click the Update button.

Inputs

Expected Results
The device should now reflect the new name given.





8.2.5. Webpage - Add devi ce to System

Purpose
Verify the correct insertion of a device into the system.

Description
Go to the Devices page and click the Add Device button to launch the add device page.
Insert the information and click Add.
Verify that the device has been entered into the system by navigating back to the Devices page and
checking to see if the newly added device is now listed.

Inputs

Expected Results
The newly added device should be present in the devices page and the device table.




8.2.6. Webpage - Remove Devi ce

Purpose



32
The device can be removed from the system, but the data remains the same.
Description
Go to the Devices page and select a device to remove.
Click the Remove button.

Inputs

Expected Results
The device should no longer appear in the system.





8.2.7. Webpage - Data Di spl ay
Test Case Identifier WP_Data_01

Purpose
Verify that the graph populates the data stored in the database.

Description
Go to the Data page.
Chose a date range and then check one device from the check list.
Modify the date range to reflect new graphs.

Inputs

Expected Results
The chart should display the data that is in the database for the given date range.








33
8.2.8. Webpage - About
Test Case Identifier WP_About_01

Purpose
Verify that the website and database versions are correct.
Description
Go to the About page and view the displayed version numbers.

Inputs

Expected Results
The version numbers on the About page should be the same as the webpage and database versions
currently running.





8.2.9. Power adapter Short Ci rcui t Test
Test Case Identifier PA_ShortCircuit_Test_01

Purpose
To ensure manufacturing quality of both PCB and assembly.

Description
With the board unplugged from an AC source, perform the following verifications. Set the
multifunction meter to measure impedance in the 100 ohm range. Set sound alarm to short circuit
mode.
Measure each AC input to ground.
Measure each transformer output to ground.
Measure rectifier + output to ground.
Measure regulator outputs to ground.
Measure SPIx SS, SDO, SDI, and SCK at the appropriate U4 pins to ground.
Measure SPIx SS, SDO, SDI, and SCK at the appropriate U4 pins to each other.

Inputs
A digital multifunction meter is required for this test.

Expected Results
The multimeter should never beep indicating a short circuit.



34


Whitebox test indication


8.2.10. Power adapter - Power Suppl y Operati on
Test Case Identifier PA_Supply_Test_01

Purpose
Verify the input to output voltage chain of the power supply.

Description
Connect the Variac input to 120 VAC. Ensure the Variac is set to zero, and then plug the Power
Monitor circuit into the output of the Variac. Slowly increase the variac to 20 VAC.
Measure and record the output potential of the transformer across pins 7 and 9.
Next, measure and record the potential across the output of the bridge rectifier
Increase the Variac to full 120VAC output. Repeat the previous two steps.
Measure the output voltage of each regulator.

Inputs
A Variac and a 120 volt AC source are required as inputs for this test.

Expected Results
The output of the transformer across pins should be 7 and 9 should be 1/10
th
the input voltage (AC).
The output of the bridge rectifier should be approximately the rectifier input minus 1.5 volts. After
ramped to full input voltage, the output of both voltage regulators should be within 5% error of each
rating, 5 and 3.3 volts.


Whitebox test indication


8.2.11. Power adapter - Power Suppl y Performance
Test Case Identifier PA_SupplyPerf_Test_01

Purpose
Verify the input to output voltage of the 5 volt regulator is within 1% accuracy ( A-grade ).

Description



35
Connect the Variac input to 120 VAC. Ensure the Variac is set to zero, and then plug the Power
Monitor circuit into the output of the Variac. Increase the variac to 120 VAC.
Measure and record the output voltage of the 5.0 volt regulator.
Reduce the Variac to 90 VAC. Measure and record the output voltage of the 5.0 volt regulator.
Increase the Variac to 145 VAC. Measure and record the output voltage of the 5.0 volt
regulator.

Inputs
A Variac and a 120 volt AC source are required as inputs for this test.

Expected Results
The output for each case should be within 1% of the rated 5.0 volts.



Performance test indication


8.2.12. Power adapter - Measurement Chi p Communi cati on Test
Test Case Identifier PA_SPI_Test_01

Purpose
Verify communication to the measurement reading chip.

Description
Code on the Micro will be put into debug mode using the DEBUG flag. In this mode the board will
send a request to the measuring chip over the SPI bus to see if a measurement can be done.

Inputs
No Inputs

Expected Results
LED_0 will light up if communication was successful.




Integration test indication



36

8.2.13. Power adapter - Wi rel ess Communi cati on Test
Test Case Identifier PA_WIFI_Test_01

Purpose
Verify WIFI chip and communication to server.

Description
A test server will need to be setup that allows for the power adapter to communicate with it. The
power adapter will need to be run to see if it can properly communicate with the server.

Inputs
No Inputs

Expected Results
Power data should be populated for the device on the servers. The results of the communication can be
viewed using the web page. If any data is present the test was successful.





8.2.14. Power adapter - EEPROM Test
Test Case Identifier PA_EEPROM_Test_01

Purpose
Verify the ability to Read and Write to the EEPROM.

Description
Code on the Micro will be put into debug mode using the DEBUG flag. In this mode the power adapter
will perform a read and write on the EEPROM.

Inputs
No Inputs

Expected Results
If a successful Read of the EEPROM is performed, LED1 will light up. If a successful Write of the
EEPROM is performed, LED2 will light up.

Abnormal case indication




37



8.2.15. Backend - Socket Test
Test Case Identifier BE_Socket_Test_01

Purpose
Verify the backend is able to receive connections from a power adapter.

Description
This is a self-test performed by the backend every time it boots. Once the backend is started it will
attempt to listen for communication on power 999. If an error occurs the server will be unable to
receive communication from power adapters.

Inputs
No Inputs

Expected Results
If there are no socket errors a message will be populated in the message log saying Server Started, if
an error occurs a message will be populated in the log saying Another Process is Using Socket 999




8.2.16. Backend - Database Test
Test Case Identifier BE_Database_Test_01

Purpose
Verify the backend is able to access the database.

Description
This self-test is performed by the backend every time it boots. Once the backend is started it will
attempt to open the database.

Inputs
No Inputs

Expected Results
If the database could not be found a message is displayed on the screen stating that the location of the
database could not be found. If successful no error is displayed.



38




8. 3. Test Case Matri x
Test ID
Normal /
Abnormal /
Boundary
Blackbox /
Whitebox
Functional /
Performance
Unit /
Integration
WP_Login_01 N B F U
WP_Password_01 N B F U
WP_Home_01 N B F U
WP_Device_01 N B F U
WP_Data_01 N B F U
WP_About_01 N B F U
PA_ShortCircuit_Test_01 N W F U
PA_Supply_Test_01 N W F U
PA_SupplyPerf_Test_01 N B P U
PA_SPI_Test_01 N B F I
PA_WIFI_Test_01 N B F I
PA_EEPROM_Test_01 N B F I
BE_Socket_Test_01 N B F U
BE_Database_Test_01 N B F I

Figure 15 Test Case Matrix




39
8. 4. Resul ts
8.4.1. Resul ts Summary Matri x
Test ID
Pass/Fail Comments
WP_Login_01 Pass Expected Outcome
WP_Password_01 Fail
Password retrieval requires an SMTP to be setup on
the server. After much frustration, Window 7
Professional would not allow proper configuration
of the SMTP to allow for passwords to be sent via
email. Had the webpage been deployed to a web
server, this issue would have been avoided but was
not necessary for the scope of the project.
WP_Home_01 Pass Expected Outcome
WP_Device_01 Pass Expected Outcome
WP_Data_01 Pass Expected Outcome
WP_About_01 Pass Expected Outcome
PA_ShortCircuit_Test_01 Pass Expected Outcome
PA_Supply_Test_01 Pass Expected Outcome
PA_SupplyPerf_Test_01 Pass Expected Outcome
PA_SPI_Test_01 Pass Expected Outcome
PA_WIFI_Test_01 Pass Expected Outcome
PA_EEPROM_Test_01 Pass Expected Outcome
BE_Socket_Test_01 Pass Expected Outcome
BE_Database_Test_01 Pass Expected Outcome

Figure 16 Results Summary Matrix




40
8.4.2. Measurement Accuracy Test
The purpose of this test was to determine the accuracy of the power adapter. In this test we
connected the power adapter to a load and recorded voltage and current using digital multi meters
based on the update rate of the power adapter. We then compared our measured values to the
values stored in the database. Using this information we were able to determine the accuracy of the
power adapter to be just less than 2%, which met our requirement.
power adapter Results

Measured Results

Voltage(V) Current(A) Power(kW) Voltage(V) Current(A) Power(kW)
120.68767 0.4551707 0.05493349 120.02 0.4480 0.05376896
120.07985 0.4557000 0.05472038 120.03 0.4484 0.05382145
119.78951 0.4552783 0.05453757 119.98 0.4470 0.05363106
120.20730 0.4547132 0.05465984 120.01 0.4475 0.05370448
122.15059 0.4542018 0.05548102 119.99 0.4462 0.05353954
120.31819 0.4536098 0.05457751 120.04 0.4461 0.05354984
121.81178 0.4537174 0.05526813 120.00 0.4472 0.05366400
119.14008 0.4544889 0.05414785 119.96 0.4478 0.05371809
121.44732 0.4540045 0.05513763 120.00 0.4461 0.05353200
121.91928 0.4534842 0.05528847 120.04 0.4466 0.05360986
121.58675 0.4510442 0.05484100 119.98 0.4458 0.05348708
120.28477 0.4540135 0.05461090 120.03 0.4460 0.05353338
121.92896 0.4544261 0.05540771 120.02 0.4476 0.05372095
87.58780 0.5682098 0.04976825 86.80 0.5591 0.04852988
89.01463 0.5726144 0.05097106 86.82 0.5609 0.04869734
85.76717 0.5739600 0.04922692 86.80 0.5650 0.04904200
87.70325 0.5702641 0.05001402 86.87 0.5635 0.04895125
87.59339 0.5730181 0.05019260 86.84 0.5627 0.04886487
89.35667 0.5715200 0.05106913 86.84 0.5623 0.04883013
105.22824 0.5058190 0.05322644 103.04 0.4979 0.05130362
101.30614 0.5029842 0.05095539 103.06 0.4963 0.05114868
101.74116 0.5034507 0.05122166 102.98 0.4984 0.05132523
102.90751 0.5082411 0.05230182 103.00 0.4955 0.05103650
105.31585 0.5034148 0.05301756 102.98 0.4993 0.05141791
103.62468 0.5017912 0.05199795 103.02 0.4958 0.05107732

Figure 17 Power Measurements




41

Figure 18 Graphed Results of Power Measurements

0.044
0.046
0.048
0.05
0.052
0.054
0.056
0.058
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10111213141516171819202122232425
kW
Data Points (10 Second Spacing)
Measured
Power Adapter



42

8.4.3. Insert Test
The purpose of this test was to show that the power adapter consistently sends power data
based on the configuration timer. This test consisted of two power adapters with an update
interval of 5 seconds. The power adapters were left to run for 43865 seconds which is 12
hours, 48 minutes, and 5 seconds. At an update rate of 5 seconds we expected to get 8773
entries in the database, but actually had 8704 entries. This was an acceptable result because
we were within 1% of our expected entries. The slight difference in the count can be explained
by latency in the micro code performing its various hardware configurations and is negligible.
Test Configuration
Update Interval 5 Seconds
Test Run Time 43865 Seconds

Test Results
Expected Entries 8773 Entries
Actual Entries 8704 Entries

Figure 19 Insert Test Configuration

Figure 20 Insert Test Results




43
8.4.4. Power suppl y Test

PA_Supply_Test_01
Measurements
Time 5.0v Supply 3.3v Supply
0s 4.999 3.293
15s 4.999 3.295
30s 5.000 3.294
45s 4.999 3.295
60s 4.999 3.295

Figure 21 Power Supply Measurement Data




44
9. User Manual
9. 1. General Informati on
System Overview
The system is comprised of a power adapter and a webpage that is installed on an appropriate machine
with wireless access. Once a device is added to the system via the webpage, the device will continue to
report power consumption at the configured interval and store it for viewing later.

Included Parts
The system has a CD containing the needed software to install and setup the webpage as well as at least
one power adapter used to report a devices power consumption.

Figure 22 - Included items

Caution: Electrical Hazard

The power adapter utilizes the power from your outlet to power itself
and monitor the consumption of anything plugged into it. Be sure to not
overload the circuit to ensure proper function and eliminate risk of fire.
If at any time the power adapter appears to be hot or smoking,
immediately turn off the circuit at your electric service panel breaker
box. NEVER attempt to remove a malfunctioning device while
energized.




45
9. 2. Getti ng Started
Setting up your system for the first time
1. Install the software
2. Connect to wireless router
3. Add a power adapter to the system

Installing the software
Put the software cd in your computer and follow to onscreen prompts to install the webpage and
backend process onto your machine. During the install you will be prompted for the primary user
account information that will enable you to log into your system.

Connect your wireless router
Ensure that your computer is connected to a router that has wireless capabilities and is connected to
your machine. For better system performance it is recommended that the computer be hardwired to
the router via an Ethernet cable.

Add your first device
Now you are ready to add your first device. Before plugging in the power adapter you must add the
new device to the system. See section Adding new devices for details on how to add a device to the
system.

Tour the web page
Success! You are now ready to monitor your individual or group device power consumption.
Here is a detail explanation of the web page.

Figure 23 - Webpage Overview




46
9. 3. Loggi ng i nto the web page
To log into the system, click the icon on your desktop that was created during installation. This will
launch the webpage in your default browser.
The following page will load; click the Log In link at the top of the page.

Figure 24 - Login page

Enter the username and password you supplied during installation and click Login.

You will be redirected to the home page Notice that there are no devices in the system yet.

Figure 25 - Home page - First Time
9. 4. Addi ng new devi ces
Once logged into the webpage, navigate to the Device page and click the add device link at the
bottom of the page.




47

Figure 26 - Add first Device

On the add device page, enter the deviceID (the unique identifier for the device located on the back of
each device) and give the device a memorable name such as living room television or PC. The name can
be modified later.

Figure 27 - Insert First Device

Click Add and the device will be added to the system.

Figure 28 - First Device Added




48
9. 5. Confi guri ng devi ces
Once logged into the webpage, navigate to the Device page.
Each device that is currently in the system will be listed and can be configured to have different names,
different groups and its sampling interval.

Figure 29 - Device Configuration

Click on the tab associated with the device you wish to configure.
Change the settings to the desired configuration and click the Update button.

9. 6. Removi ng devi ces
Once logged into the webpage, navigate to the Device page.
Each device that is currently in the system will be listed.

Figure 30 - Device Removal

Click on the tab associated with the device you wish to remove and click the Remove button.
NOTE: The data associated with the device will be retained.



49

9. 7. Vi ewi ng your data
Once logged into the webpage, navigate to the Data page.

Figure 31 - Data Viewing

On this page you can select the devices you wish to view, the date range, and appropriate cost per kWh.

Click on one of the device and the past months usage will show.

Figure 32 - Graphing Data

The top graph shows the apparent power as recorded by the device, and the bottom graph shows the
accumulation of kWh for the given timespan.



50
In the chart legend the device is listed to identify the devices color on the chart and displays the
estimated cost and kWh usage for the given time span.

9. 8. Savi ng your data
Once logged into the webpage, navigate to the Data page with data displayed that you may wish to
view in other programs.
There are two formats the data can be exported as: *.csv (comma separated value) and *.jpg (image
format).

Figure 33 - Export Data options
To save a *.csv:
Click the radio buttons to determine if the data should be the devices and time span selected or all data
and time. Then click the Export to *.csv and the file will automatically be downloaded.

To save a *.jpg:
Click the Save Chart *.jpg button and the currently shown chart will be automatically downloaded.
9. 9. Message System
The system has a built in messaging system that will keep you up to date with the systems status, and
most importantly, alert you if there is an issue.

Every time that a user navigates to a new page, the device status is checked.
For example, lets say you just logged in to your webpage and in your browser you saw something like
the following:

Figure 34 - Home page - No Urgent Message




51
While you are viewing this information, an error occurs. As you navigate to the devices page you would
see the following:

Figure 35 - Urgent Message

In the bottom-right corner there is a message displaying any urgent errors and you can either navigate to
the System Information page via the navigation menu at the top of the page, or click the link in the
message.

Figure 36 - View Urgent Message and Clear




52
On the system information page you can view the message and take any required action. When the
problem is solved, you can clear the message by clicking the Clear button to avoid the message from
displaying again, but storing the issue in the system. You can also delete the message by clicking the
delete image; this will remove it from the system completely.

Once cleared, you can navigate back to the page you we initially viewing and the message is no longer
shown.

Figure 37 - Urgent Message is cleared
9. 10. About
This page gives basic information about the version of the website and the database.
There is also a link the project website that details the progress of the project.

Figure 38 - About page




53
10. Goal s vs. Accompl i shments
Goals
Power adapter that uses very little power
Power adapter readings that are very accurate
Ability to turn on and off power do a device plugged into a power adapter
Communication between the power adapter and server
A backend process for receiving information from the power adapters
A database component for interacting with a database
A database for storing power information of each power adapter
Develop a web interface for displaying results.
A server to run the backend process, database, and web interface
A Secure login process to the web interface
Graphs of data on web interface
Allow for configuration changes to power adapters on web interface
Accomplishments
We developed an advanced home outlet power monitoring system. We were able to accomplish
our goals of developing a low power and accurate power adapter by using a Microchip Pic24
microcontroller to operate the power adapter and an ADE7753 to take power measurements. These
chips allowed the power adapter to consume less than 3mWs making it low powered and was able to
get power data with an accuracy of less than 2%. Communication from the power adapter was also
accomplished by using a wireless IEEE 802.11B, card attached to the Pic24 via the SPI bus. We were
able to make most of our design goals for the power adapter except for giving it the ability to turn on
and off devices connected to the power adapter. We made a design decision to not include switching
devices connected on or off for the first two revisions of the power adapter because it was not a main
feature of this project. However, this is supported in all the software and could easily be added in the
feature.
We develop a server consisting of 3 parts for collecting, storing and viewing the data. We
accomplished our goals on the server by taking advantage of the Microsoft .NET framework. The
backend and database access component were both written in C#. We then continued using the .NET
framework and developed the web interface using ASP.NET. This was very helpful as ASP.NET has a
set of char tools that allowed for the graphic of web data. By using ASP.NET we were easily able to
interface with the database allowing for easy access of power data and configuration changes.



54
11. Desi gn Del i verabl es
11.1. A High Accuracy Device Design
The first step in providing good data is to have a good design for the data acquisition device. A
condensed graphic of the design schematics are provided below in Figure 39 Schematic Diagrams. Full
sized version can be found in the Appendix. The analog input section utilizes phase matching filters to
ensure minimal error is present in the complex power calculations. The power supplies are low
dropout linear regulators with a very high stability and accuracy. Power supply filtering and decoupling
are provided where appropriate.

Figure 39 Schematic Diagrams




55

Following the design in importance, is making an appropriate circuit board implementation, or layout,
and using appropriate components. A 3D rendering of the circuit board layout is provided below in
Figure 40 3D Layout. A full description of componentry and parts list can be found in the Appendix.

Figure 40 3D Layout
11.2. Functioni ng Measurement Device
The primary evidence of having met our design goal is demonstrating a working physical device. The
figure below (Figure 41 Test Setup) is a photograph of the accuracy and proof-of-concept test setup.

Figure 41 Test Setup



56
This test setup connected the measuring device in line with a realistic load (a monitor and a CFL). The
accuracy of the measurements was determined by a current meter and voltmeter. Data was taken from
both the device and the calibrated equipment to verify Data from these tests are located in section 8.4.2
Measurement Accuracy Test.

11. 3. Effi ci ent Data Storage Means
The database that contains and retrieves the data for the system is an important part of the overall
design. Without an efficient database, storing and viewing multiple years worth of data on the web
page would be impossible. Since efficiently accessing the data in the database is crucial, a database access
API was created. This API provides all functions required for retrieving and working with data in the
database. This API is very special because it gives third parties access to the data in our database
collected by our hardware. This access allows for other software to be developed outside of this project.
11. 4. User-Fri endl y Interface
This area is one of the most important for the end user. While the web interface is heavily documented
in the User Manual and the Interface Specification, it is appropriate to mention it here. An easy to use,
reliable user interface is needed for a truly complete system. Examples of the interface are shown in
Figure 42 Web Interface.

Figure 42 Web Interface



57
12. Bi l l abl e Hours
Each team member documented the time spent on the project with detailed information located on the
team website (https://sites.google.com/site/homecontrolprotocol/).
Tom:
8-Oct-10 2 Project Description
12-Oct-10 1.5 hooked up server board
20-Oct-10 4 Webpage
22-Oct-10 1 New project / load server with OS
24-Oct-10 1 Design Diagram
25-Oct-10 1 Design Diagram
2-Nov-10 3 Server work
4-Nov-10 3 Server work and Test TCP program
9-Nov-10 2 DHCP install attempts
9-Nov-10 2 Presentation
11-Nov-10 6 Coding and project description
12-Nov-10 2 Development Board
18-Nov-10 4 Documentation, emails, and organization
22-Nov-10 3 ASP.NET
27-Nov-10 4 Chart Tools
24-Dec-10 2 Design Presentation
31-Dec-10 5 ASP.NET - Database
1-Jan-11 3 Webpage
4-Jan-11 2 Website update/design presentation
7-Jan-11 2 Database tables and component for external
9-Jan-11 3 Device Config page/About Page
10-Jan-11 3 Interface Specification/web page
11-Jan-11 2 Demo application/ Database queries
13-Jan-11 4 Web page and Demo Application
15-Jan-11 1 Home Page
17-Jan-11 2 Device Config page
20-Jan-11 2 Add/Remove Devices
24-Jan-11 2 AJAX Calendar Control
27-Jan-11 2 Home page and Database Component
30-Jan-11 3 Error Table and AJAX Controls
1-Feb-11 2 2/1/2011 11:00 am - 1:00 pm
6-Feb-11 2 backend and Micro Board - James
10-Feb-11 1 Test Plan
12-Feb-11 1 Test plan rev 1
13-Feb-11 2 Webpage - csv and formatting
20-Feb-11 6 Web Page additions
21-Feb-11 2.5 Web Page
22-Feb-11 5 System Information
24-Feb-11 2.5 Webpage - AlwaysVisible control



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26-Feb-11 5 Webpage - Login
27-Feb-11 5 Webpage and Final Report Documentation
1-Mar-11 2 Webpage Login
1-Mar-11 3 IIS Server
8-Mar-11 3 User Manual & New chart
12-Mar-11 4 Final Report

Total: 123.5

James:
16-Oct-10 3 Ubuntu Server
22-Oct-10 4 Installed Mono
23-Oct-10 2 10/23/10 1:00pm - 3:00pm
30-Oct-10 4 Setup of Tools
12-Nov-10 2 Dev Board Work
22-Nov-10 1.5 Documentation - Technical Specs
27-Nov-10 1.5 Final Report
29-Nov-10 2 Final Report
14-Dec-10 4 Dev Board Code
16-Dec-10 5 Dev Board Code
21-Dec-10 2 Dev Board WiFi
23-Dec-10 2 Dev Board Networking
28-Dec-10 2 Dev Board Networking
4-Jan-11 3 C# Learning
6-Jan-11 3 C# Socket Learning
11-Jan-11 4 backend Process
18-Jan-11 6 Dev Board Communication
19-Jan-11 1 First Communication Test
20-Jan-11 4.5 Test Communication
23-Jan-11 2 Dev Board Sample TCP IP
27-Jan-11 3 Communication Working
1-Feb-11 4 Fixed Communication
3-Feb-11 5 Dev Board Code
6-Feb-11 2 Packet Structure
10-Feb-11 3 backend
15-Feb-11 5.5 backend & Dev Board Functional
24-Feb-11 2 Dev Board Communication
27-Feb-11 5 SPI Code
28-Feb-11 4 SPI Code
1-Mar-11 6 SPI Code



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2-Mar-11 6 SPI Code
3-Mar-11 5 SPI Code Working

Total: 122

Alex:

23-Oct-10 2.5 PCI AP
2-Nov-10 1 Device Design
22-Nov-10 7 Design Environment Setup, Etc
30-Nov-10 6 PIC Development
2-Dec-10 6 Documentation - Final report organization.
11-Jan-11 3.5 Interface Specification / CAD Maintenance
18-Jan-11 6 Power Chip ADE7753 / ADE7569
22-Jan-11 1.5 Redesign Tasks
23-Jan-11 5.5 Redesign tasks / Symbols
24-Jan-11 4.75 Schematic updates and redesign tasks
27-Jan-11 4.5 Components ordering and continued design work
5-Feb-11 10 Successful creation and assignment of layout modules.
6-Feb-11 4 Circuit Layout
7-Feb-11 4 Prototype board completion
18-Feb-11 5 2/18/11 4:00 pm - 9:00pm
22-Feb-11 4 2/22/11 11:00 am - 3:00pm
12-Mar-11 6 Final Report etc

Total: 81.25

Group:
29-Sep-10 2 9/29/10 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
6-Oct-10 1.25 10/6/10 4:45 pm - 5:30 pm
13-Oct-10 1.5 10/13/10 4:30 pm - 6:00 pm
22-Oct-10 2 New Project Ideas
24-Oct-10 2 10/24/10 3:00 pm - 6:00 pm
31-Oct-10 3 10/31/10 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm
1-Nov-10 2 Meeting with Michael Haas
5-Nov-10 2 11/5/10 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
8-Nov-10 2 ABET Paper
15-Nov-10 2 11/15/10 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
17-Nov-10 1.5 11/17/10 5:30 - 7:00 pm
22-Nov-10 1.5 11/22/10 1:00 pm - 1:40 pm & 4:00 pm - 4:50 pm
24-Nov-10 3 Final Report
1-Dec-10 2 12/1/10 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
30-Dec-10 2 12/30/2010 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
3-Jan-11 1.5 Design Review Presentation



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7-Jan-11 2 1/7/10 10:00 am - 11:50 am
19-Jan-11 1 1/19/2011 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm
26-Jan-11 1 1/26/2011 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm
4-Feb-11 0.5 2/4/2011 11:00 am - 11:30 pm
19-Feb-11 3 Integration
23-Feb-11 2 2/23/2011 4:00 pm - 5:45 pm
25-Feb-11 2.5 2/25/2011 4:00 pm - 6:30 pm
26-Feb-11 4.5 2/26/2011 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm
5-Mar-11 5 3/5/2011 4:00 pm - 9:00 pm
6-Mar-11 3 3/6/2011 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
7-Mar-11 3 3/7/2011 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
11-Mar-11 1 3/11/2011 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Total: 59.75

Total:

Individual
Hours
Group
Hours Total
Tom 123.5 59.75 183.25
James 122 59.75 181.75
Alex 81.25 59.75 141

Documented Total: 506




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13. Expenses
The cost of the parts purchased is listed below. The micro ATX was donated and student discounts
were given on the remaining items.
Value Cost
MicroChip Dev board and Wireless chipset $400 $300
AdvancedCircuits 33E PCBS Rev B.05 $66 $83.58
CWS Current probes $24 $40.20
Digikey Parts #1 $55.84 $55.84
Digikey Parts #2 $103.11 $103.11
Chip Wifi Module $57.01 $57.01
PCI Wireless Card $28.31 $28.31
Micro ATX Motherboard and Power Supply $200 Free
DDR2 RAM $20.00 $10.00

Total: $954.27

Hourly (506 hours * $75.00) $37,950
Parts $954.27

Complete Project Cost Total: $38,904




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14. Fi nal Presentati on




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15. Professi onal Bi ographi es
15. 1. Tom Straub
Co-op or other experience and responsibilities
Software Engineer, L-3 Communications Cincinnati Electronics, Mason, Ohio (5 quarters)
Worked in the software group developing applications that interact with Infrared Cameras and
Imaging systems
Wrote low-level serial drivers for use with existing C++ applications
Lead the department in the Visual Studio 2008, C# conversion
Wrote several re-usable modules in C# based on their C++ equivalents
Designed three separate applications for the Gigabit Ethernet communication project
Created a versioning and application lifecycle scheme to reduce common bugs/issues in the
current process
Wrote a micro-code interface to handle new Turbulence Correction FPGA code
Designed and implemented software that read health parameters from a camera for easy analysis
and display via charts and excel documents

Skills/expertise areas
Programming: C, C++, C#, .NET, VB, VBA
Development Environments: Visual Studio 2008 &2010, Nios 7.2
Operating Systems: Windows, Linux
Office Applications: Word, Excel, Outlook, Visio
Analysis: MatLab, Mathematica

Areas of Interest
Gigabit Ethernet
Multi-NIC subsystems
Streaming Large Format via Ethernet (point-to-point)
Mobile app creation

15. 2. James Hendy
Co-op or other experience and responsibilities
Development of embedded C control software
Design of Graphical User Interface
HTML Web page development
Design of Network Security protocol
Sqlite database management
Linux driver development

Skills/expertise areas
Programming: C, C++, Java, HTML/CSS, JavaScript, PHP, and Visual Basic
Database Programming: Sqlite, MySQL, Access
Network Security: RSA, Public/Private Key



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Operating Systems: Linux, Windows
Obtaining a minor in Computer Science

Areas of Interest
Network programming and communication
Radio frequency identification systems
Control systems
Mobile application development

15. 3. Al ex Mei er
My passion for electronics and engineering started long before my post-secondary education. I have
been designing, modifying and tinkering with electronic devices since I was old enough to walk. This
passion led me to pursue formal education in electrical engineering. I have since dedicated myself to
learning all aspects of electronic design for systems, circuit board, and integrated device levels.
Curriculum:
My college curriculum has contributed to my knowledge of fundamental electrical theory, mathematical
modeling of systems, electronics design, understanding of solid state physics, and general systems design
and test practices. While the majority of the theory learned in the classroom is invaluable, the primary
provider of practical engineering design has taken place during work terms.
Co-op Experience:
During my eighteen months of Co-Op experience I had the opportunity to take part in many design
projects. All were performed with close supervision and guidance to both prevent mistakes and
promote learning. My projects ranged from high density power supply backplane board design and
layouts, to small test fixtures, to clock generation and manipulation boards utilizing Xilinx
programmable CPLDs. The primary tool suite utilized in creating these design is the Mentor Graphics
Suite, containing DxDesigner, PADS, PSPICE, and other assorted simulation tools. I also have
experience writing VHDL for large, timing-sensitive, high efficiency data processing systems. Through
these experiences I feel I have the qualifications to adequately design both the hardware systems and
layouts, and spearhead the embedded software design for the embedded microcontroller device.
15. 4. Advi sors
Dr. Karen Davis - karen.davis@uc.edu
College of Engineering and Applied Science

Michael Haas - mike.haas@uc.edu
College of Engineering and Applied Science, School of Electronics and Computing Systems




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16. Sel f-Assessments
16. 1. Tom Straub
Initial Self-Assessment
Project Description
This project is meant to explore home automation systems and identify mutual functionality among
household devices and develop a common protocol that allows for easy implementation for device and
software manufactures. The primary goal is to implement the protocol into a home automation system
using a few household devices as proof of concept, then write a webpage that allows the user to
monitor/interact with the house.
Curriculum
This project has many facets, covers several disciplines, and the UC curriculum has covered a lot of
those areas in varying degrees. Computer Networks I & II and Data Structure gave a solid foundation to
start my programming experience where I have learned about the basics of programming. In Software
Engineering there was a large project that allowed me to work with others in a group to create a
dynamically updating website. I learned how to work with others in a group as well as how to develop a
webpage which is far different than writing software applications. In Network System Programming I
learned about TCP/IP protocol and Ethernet communications which will prove critical in this project
since communication is over Ethernet. I have also had experience programming an FPGA from a course
I took called Intro to VHDL. While this project will not require an FPGA, the experience coding closer
to the machine level will prove vital when writing microcode for the devices.
Co-op Experience
The main project that I worked on while on co-op dealt with streaming video from an Infrared camera
over Ethernet. I was responsible for writing coding libraries for Ethernet communication while adhering
to various protocols. This experience will play a vital role in my ability to develop a protocol for home
automation and communicate over Ethernet. I also used Visual Studio 2008 with the .NET framework
to create external software applications and this experience will aid in the server develop of our
protocol implementation. A large part of being affective in an engineering workplace is the ability to
clarify design ideas and concepts in writing, to an audience that may not have a technical background.
While on co-op I worked on projects that went from design to delivery and had to document the
project fully. This experience will help organize the design ideas and enable for a clear and concise
report.
Final Self-Assessment
My contribution to this project was overall organization and leadership to stay on schedule and meet our
deadlines. I scheduled and ran the group meetings, documented our status, formatted any assignments
that were required, and communicated with our advisor as needed. Leading a team project requires a
lot of work and I learned how difficult it can be to motivate a team. I expect perfection and my
attention to details can cause frustrations among those who work with me. I have learned to not expect



70
so much out of teammates and set more reasonable goals. I obsess over the finer points and this can
cause somewhat simple tasks to become overly complicated. During this project our team had several
disagreements, but in the end I believe we accomplished a moderate amount given the time and the fact
that we also were taking several other classes. The overall time spent on this project totaled about 500
man-hours.
I learned about web-based application programming and the problems encountered with stateless
HTTP. Using ASP.NET to program the webpage in C# gave me an advantage since I was already
familiar with the language. Program flow is difficult to maintain on a webpage because each time a page
completes a post back, it is removed from memory. What this means is that between user clicks, the
server does not maintain a living copy of the program execution, and rather the code is re-run. This
creates challenges since the order of user clicks is often important and the server usually needs to react
differently. Also, I used the ASP.NET control toolkit (form component extenders) and I learned a lot
about how to utilize the toolkit to create an interactive Web experience. These controls, such as a
calendar extender for picking the date range to display data, allow for a clean and easy to use process of
gathering and displaying information.
Something I learned on coop and in my programming experience that I applied to this project was the
idea of modularity. We had a backend process and a web page, two logically separate programs, that
both needed access to query a database. The database component, a coded library, was created
independently of the applications that use it. During execution the library lives in memory of the PC
and both programs use the same coded library at the same time. This is a basic strategy used in .NET
programming and reduces the need to write code to do the same thing in two slightly different ways.
Modularity also allows for a smooth transition should the database component need updating. This
would require a change in one place, as opposed to two (or more if other programs use it). The
database component still has to access/insert/delete tables and entries in a database, all of which I had
never done before this project. I learned how to create a database and create new tables within the
database. I also learned about stored procedures and how to call them from my database component. In
the end I found it was easier to just formulate the SQL text commands and execute them from the
database component, rather than creating the stored procedure and then calling it from the database
component. The reason was that if the stored procedure needed to change during development, I had to
change it in the database and the database component. By writing the commands directly in the database
component, if they needed to change I had to adjust it in one place and not two.
16. 2. James Hendy
As humanity advances people want more control and automation from their surroundings. For my
senior project I will be working on a Home Automation Protocol. The protocol will be specially
designed to give common devices and appliances found in a house remote access along with advanced
control and automation.
The school curriculum will play a huge role in this project. Since all of the devices will use a networked
protocol the classes I took dealing with networking such as Computer Networks and Network



71
programming will help. Computer Networks focused on the principals and foundation of the internet
and network communication. This will give me plenty of ideas on how to properly establish a group of
network devices and account for situations that may occur from having a network of devices. Network
Programming gave more practice in how to write organized and functional code using network sockets.
This is hugely important since majority of the code will be designed using network sockets to handle
commands and requests to the devices.
Although school will play a very important part, Co-Op will probably provide me with more help. I
worked at Harris Corporation and my job was developing control software. I had to design protocols
for transferring data and issuing commands to different boards and devices. This is very important
seeing as how a big part of this Home Automation will be designing a protocol to allow for a device to
be controlled. The other part of my job at Harris was developing Remote User Interfaces. This project
is going to require some means for controlling the devices and some sort of user interface will be
required. From my work at Harris I have because very skilled in the development in real time user
interfaces for web sites. Most likely the Home Automation will have a web site address that can be
visited to give you remote control of various devices.

My contributions to the project were development of embedded code, communication between the
power adapter and server, as well as the backend process for handling data on the server. The
embedded code I developed is what operates the power adapter. It is responsible for connecting
wirelessly to the server, getting power information via the SPI bus, sending power information
wirelessly to the server, and only sending power information based on configuration data. I developed
the communication between the power adapter and the server, which not only involved establishing
communication wirelessly but also creating custom packet messages composed of power data. The
backend process I created on the server was receiving power information from the power adapter as
well as sending configuration data to the power adapter. The backend process is also responsible for
interfacing with the database via Toms database component to store power information from the
power adapters.
I learned a lot about embedded programming and socket communication from this project. I ran into a
lot of trouble while establishing communication to the server. I was developing my embedded code
more similarly to how I would do it on a machine with an operating system to handle multiple
processes. Unfortunately with this project we did not have an operating system on the Pic
microcontroller. So when I would try to send data wirelessly nothing would happen because I did not
allow for other code to run that interacts with the hardware. I had to change my thinking and redesign
my code to operate more like a state machine. By breaking up the communication into states I could
wait in a state allowing for code that works with the hardware to do what it needs to do before I
continue on to the next state.
Implementing SPI communication also turned out to be a great learning experience. SPI is a
communication protocol that allows for data transfer on a bus between chips. I developed the software



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to interface with the ADE7753 from the Pic microcontroller using the SPI bus. I had a lot of trouble
getting the automatic SPI bus code to work. I ended up implementing a manual method which involved
me learning the deep down specifics of how the SPI bus works so that I could manually toggle the clock
and data out pins.
I also learned how to work with C# and the .NET framework. Tom wanted to develop the web site
using ASP.NET because it has a set of really advanced chart tool. In order to better interface with the
database and what Tom was doing on the website it became clear that I should develop the backend in
C#. This was my first experience with C# and I was amazed at how easy it was to perform some of the
more tedious or challenging tasks such as bit conversion and socket programming.
16. 3. Al ex Mei er
When considering the progression of convenience products over the last century, including the
revolution of home appliances, gadgets and tools, it makes sense to try to connect each of these systems
into an interoperating network. With this in mind out group has decided to design a universal control
protocol and network design to allow commercial users to design individually proprietary products to
work on a standardized, free and open network protocol.
The standard electrical engineering curriculum has done an adequate job to prepare me to participate in
this team effort. A background in microcontroller and embedded programming learned in the
Microsystems course allow me to contribute fully to the embedded device side of the project. Each
node on the control network is required to have a low power microcontroller or microprocessor to
both perform the device functions and provide the proper communication channel to the host of the
network. Further, my familiarity with the Linux kernel and various Linux operation systems operating
systems learned in both the basic computer science courses and my own personal endeavours will aid
the host controller development. While my network programming experience is limited, the extensive
mathematics and statistics courses taken as part of the standard curriculum will prove invaluable to
creating efficient algorithms and solving any performance issues.
I did very little programming during my coop experiences, save an abundance of FPGA work using
VHDL; however there are other skills that apply to this project. There is likelihood that few standard
microcontroller development boards will have all the functionality or connectivity that we need. My
experience designing high speed data and clocking schematics and board layouts will aid us greatly in
designing demonstrable nodes that attach to the network. While this part of the project is nonessential,
it is useful for debugging, verification, and demonstration of the protocol. Similarly, my experience
evaluating different components and products will help me identify the most cost effective solutions for
these designs.
My contributions to the project centered in the hardware areas. I was responsible for designing the
system for measurements, the microcontroller implementation, and wireless communications. The first
step in this design process started at how to sample the waveforms. Initially I looked into sampling a



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scaled version of the full signal. I researched sampling theory/issues specific to power line frequencies
to extend my previous knowledge from the DSP course. From these competencies I began writing
algorithms and equations to express what we wanted to do in the microcontroller. This was all in vain,
however, as along the way I discovered a range of inexpensive integrated devices from the company
Analog Devices that performs everything I had hoped to. The ADE series of chips are marketed
specifically for residential and industrial power metering. The design complexity and my technical
contribution to the project were both reduced. The previous work was, while enlightening, largely a
waste in the end. It was, however, still helpful in properly calibrating the ADE input configurations,
interrupt setups, and external circuitry design.
My larger contribution to the final product came from designing the analog circuitry that compensates
for phase inaccuracy at the input to the ADE, designing the power supply, and designing a proper
layout. The large issue in designing a measuring circuit for AC signals is maintaining phase accuracy;
thus my years of electronics courses came in handy. Using the current transformer method of measuring
line current introduces the issue of phase inaccuracy: this is obvious as coils have inductance! To
compensate for this I applied simple filter theory to induce an inverted phase shift to that of the
inductance so the total phase response at the input to the ADE was shifted zero degrees from the real
signal. The same process was used to maintain phase accuracy of the voltage input. Power supply design
was, contrastingly, rather simple: Perform a power budget analysis; choose a transformer and rectifier
according to voltage and current needs; choose appropriate filtering and regulators.
Most of my learning occurred during the layout phase of the design. I had never designed something
with high speed serial inter-chip communication. I borrowed a high speed digital circuitry book from a
friend in industry. It was instrumental in furthering my learning. I learned about the transmission line
effects at high frequency link speeds, trace length matched routing, superior design rules assignment,
and many other aspects of effective digital circuitry layout. Decoupling theory for digital microchip
supplies was also useful for ensuring we avoided supply sag, noise, and could achieve the best link
speeds.




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17. Current Events Essay
17. 1. Tom Straub
ABET Concerns: Economic, health and safety, manufacturing, sustainability
Outline the main idea of the article and relate it to the ABET concern or concerns you've
identified.
The article Green machine takes root in Jordan discusses plans to build a high-tech greenhouse and
desalination system in Jordan as a pilot for large scale development. The geo-engineered plant uses solar
technology on a massive scale to generate electricity, desalinate water, and re-green surrounding areas.
In the Middle East, clean water and energy are expensive. The aim of this project is to produce
affordable energy that is also eco-friendly which directly connects to economic and sustainability ABET
concerns. Solar energy is an emission free process of producing sustainable energy and with rising
energy costs, this method is also cost effective. The plan is to market the systems around the Middle
East and potentially around the world.
Describe how the topic is related to your senior design project.
The Green Machine project is trying to replace current power generation with a more sustainable and
cost effective solution, while our project is aimed at reducing the amount of energy a single household
uses. The idea of replacing current power supply methods with sustainable and cost effective ones and
reducing the individual power demand, complement each other. Since the power demand is constantly
increasing and traditional methods of power generation use depleting resources, it is imperative that
both of these ideas are fulfilled to aid is a more sustainable existence. The Green Machine takes
abundant, and easily replenished, resources and converts them into energy, food, and drinking water.
Sunlight can be found for a nearly infinite amount of time (relative to the existence of man on this
planet) and saltwater accounts for approximately 75% of the earths surface. Both of the resources used
in the Green Machine are considered to be far more sustainable than coal, oil, or natural gas, the
resources needed for the majority of current power production.
Describe an aspect of the article that impacts your life, particularly your professional
life, in some way.
The main product that the company I work for makes are IR (infrared cameras) imaging systems that
create images based on heat enabling sight even at night. The Green Machine project is a prime example
of where these imaging systems could be used to help protect them from enemy attack. These plants
would potentially supply thousands of people with energy, food, and drinking water, and because of this
they are potential targets. The imaging systems can be integrated with defensive systems that can react
to an attack, but also could aid in alerting military to help defend. Also, the idea of creating a more
sustainable world starts with individual mindset. If everyone could reduce their energy needs by a small
amount, even 1%, this affect could have global implications and curbing the rising energy needs is the
first step in creating a sustainable future.




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17. 2. James Hendy
ABET Concerns: Economic, health and safety
identified.
Smart Energy is the process of managing power grids efficiently and effectively using software and
hardware to monitor power consumption. By doing this Power companies can adjust the amount of
power they produced based on real time demand. It will also be used to maximize the use of renewable
energy, which in turn will reduce the use of fossil fuels. Currently about 70% of the power produced in
the United States comes from fossil fuels. Reducing fossil fuels will lower the amount of greenhouse
gases emitted which will help improve the environment.
Smart Energy in its current definition applied to larger scale consumption such as to a whole
power grid or to home or business. According to the article the use of Smart Energy technology has
allowed for companies to save money. We want to take Smart Energy a step further and allow for the
monitoring of individual devices in a house or business. If Smart Energy can allow for the saving of
money we believe that by giving a person or company more information on Energy usage statistics we
can help reduce the consumption of energy further. By doing this we will help in lowering the use fossil
fuels which will improve the environment by reduced emission of greenhouse gases.
life, in some way.
The article discusses Smart Energy and how it will improve the environment and help save
money. This directly affects me professionally because the company I work for develops incredibly high
power transmitters that consume incredible amounts of power. One of the tasks I have been recently
assigned is to develop software for our products to help our customers reduce their energy consumption
while using our product. This article affects me personally because one of my major expenses every
month is my electric bill. Smart Energy will help me reduce my electric bill and help me save money.
17. 3. Al ex Mei er
ABET Concerns
Economic, health and safety, manufacturing, sustainability
identified.
The article A multi-criteria model for evaluating design for manufacturability describes a cost-
driven model for design for manufacture (DFM) analysis. The process described weighs many standard
and nonstandard cost evaluation models to create a final estimated production cost for any given
product. This is of great concern to our project as it strikes at the core principle of ensuring cost-
effective manufacturability - designing with manufacturability in mind. When manufacturing is an
afterthought to the design process, money is either wasted making a difficult to create product or in



76
man hours re-designing the product to make the manufacturing costs cheaper. The article addresses
these and other issues using both statistical models and overseer insight to drive the decision-making
process.
The Power Monitor project is concerned with manufacturability for numerous reasons. The
foremost concern is cost to manufacture. Using inexpensive, easy to assemble and durable designs
allows our product to be sold in high volumes for low prices. This is especially important because the
power monitor would ideally be used on many outlets throughout each home, in every home possible.
This could not happen if each unit were prohibitively expensive. Secondly, factories that are inefficient
waste both money and energy. Since the primary goal of the Power Monitor is to help people stop
wasting energy, it would be irresponsible to create a product in a wasteful manner. This speaks to the
integrity of the design, the design team, and the company.
life, in some way.
The most common source of waste I noticed when visiting my companys manufacturing facility
in Quincy, Illinois was excessive effort to assemble. The mechanical assemblies being created and
populated into systems were awkward to assemble, difficult to maneuver other assemblies into, difficult
to run cables through, had sharp edges, etc. They caused great waste where a more suitable design of
the assemblies could have sped production and eased man hour costs. Individual unit cost would reduce
drastically despite being a resource cost limited product and not a labor cost limited product. Similarly,
even electrical circuit designs were limited by supply chain problems. Certain componentry was chosen
incorrectly because engineers did not verify the supply of certain parts nearing obsolescence.
Obsolescence is another aspect of DFM that this article did not even begin to cover.




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18. Appendi x A - Research
4 Wi re SPI Wi fi Modul e

When evaluating different methods of wirelessly connecting a server and the devices there were
multiple means considered. The candidates were IEEE 802.11b, Zigbee,Z-Wave, and Bluetooth. The
first to be eliminated was Bluetooth; its range is far too limited for the scope of this project. Both zigbee
and zwave, while having both significant industry support and suitable design for home network use,
were expensive to develop for and carried significant overhead for design. Using standard IEEE 802.11b
allowed design and component selection to be greatly simplified. Specifically, 802.11b is a simple BPSK
transmission standard that is nearly universally recognized by consumer networking products. 802.11b
has a maximum raw data rate of 11 Mbit/s and uses the same CSMA/CA media access method defined
in the original standard. While the throughput is not a large concern, the ability to transmit reliably
over two the three hundred feet is important. SPI Bus, or a four wire synchronous serial bus, is a high
data rate serial connection ideal for inter-chip data communication. It was chosen primarily because it is
fully supported by both the low power wifi chipset selected and most modern microcontrollers.

PCI Wi rel ess Cards Server Communi cati on

The process for selecting a PCI based wireless card for integrating into the server system was based in
compatibility and support for the MadWifi Linux driver toolset. This decision led us to the Atheros
5000 series of wireless chipsets. This series has Wireless Access Point capability beyond most
commercially available chipsets, with readymade Linux driver support. The specific card chosen was a
cost effective implementation of that chipset with a high power 600mw output amplifier.

DHCP Devi ce i ni ti al i zati on

The number of power adapters used in this project could vary between uses. A dynamic procedure
needs to be used in order to assign IP addresses for the power adapters which will be used for network
communication. We came up with two possible solutions to this problem. The first was to assign static
IP addresses to each power adapter. The problem with this is that it did now provided the dynamic
power needed to add power adapters at will. The next solution was to use DHCP, installed on the
server, to dynamically assign IP addresses. Using DHCP will be our best option as it provides the most
flexibility to the system.




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.NET Framework C#, ASP. NET, managed code

The .NET Framework is huge software codebase that Microsoft uses to store and implement their
libraries and can be used in Windows operating systems. Often referred to as just .NET, is available for
free download from Microsoft and chances are that the majority of Windows applications use .NET to
some degree. .NET is powerful in that it is a huge base class library to accomplish various tasks, such as
user interface, database connection, file manipulation, etc, quickly and easily establishing a rapid
application development. The speed at which working applications can be made makes it a very
attractive option for the development of not only the backend process, but also the website
development. Another huge benefit is that code that is written for the backend process, can be easily
used in the website if needed since the code is in the same language (namely C#).
C# is a managed-code language that allows for automated allocation/ de-allocation of memory and
helps reduce common access violations in applications. In simple term, it manages memory among
other things. Using ASP.NET, we can write the webpage that references C# source code as opposed to
java or css. This code can be ran on any windows machine and allows for a more elegant coding
solution.

Databases Stori ng Devi ce Data

power adapters are going to be reporting information to the server and the data needs to be collected
and stored for viewing and analyzing. A database will need to be established to allow for the storing of
information. The databases we looked into were MySQL, Sqlite, and Access. Sqlite is designed to be
embedded into an application and is very fast, but only allows for one process to read and write from
the database at a time. There could be several remote clients reading from the database along with the
backend process writing information from the devices to the database at the same time, so Sqlite cannot
be used. Both MySQL and Access allow for multiple connections to the database, but research has
shown that Access can slow down in query times with as few as 5 concurrent connections to the
database. Since its possible we could have more than 5 concurrent connections to the database it is
better to use MySQL as the database option for the server because it would provide faster query times
with multiple users.
.NET Chart Tool s Data Di spl ay for Web Page

Recently, Microsoft formally released Chart Tools which is code that mimics the charts in Word and
Excel, but allows for them to be set programmatically. These Chart Tools allow for a clean display of
data and are free to download. LINQ (Language-Integrated Query), general purpose query of data that
is typically stored in a database, allow for efficient access to sorted data and can be used with the Chart
Tools to display user requested data in a format that allows for easy interpretation. These tools will be
critical in displaying the data from the power adapter to aid in identifying devices that are consuming a
lot of power (the purpose of the project).



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Below is an example of the types of charts that can be created.

Figure 43 Chart Examples




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19. Appendi x B Gl ossary of terms
ADE A series of integrated energy metering devices produced by Analog Devices. They are
programmable, application-centric, highly accurate, and robust.
API A set of rules and specifications that a piece of software can follow to access and make use of
services and functions provided by another piece of software.
ASP.NET A web application framework developed by Microsoft to allow programmers to build
dynamic websites and web applications.
C# A programming language developed by Microsoft and part of the .NET framework.
SPI Serial Peripheral Interface or SPI is a bus designed to provide a synchronous serial data link
between microchips.
IEEE 802.11B A wireless standard for transmitter Ethernet communication.
Pic24 A microprocessor developed by the Microchip Corporation.
ASP.NET AJAX control toolkit controls, such as a calendar extender for picking the date range to
display data, allow for a clean and easy to use process of gathering and displaying information.



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20. Appendi x C Schemati cs




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21. Appendi x D Parts Li st




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22. Appendi x E Layout / GERBER Layers




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