The emergence of social energy tracking systems
“Open Shaspa makes energy consumption even more Web 2.0 with its “Social Energy Meter”, which publishes power usage online so it can be tracked and analyzed on Facebook, Google, Twitter, and more.
Tweet-a-Watt pioneered the attempts to build free software based and socially connected home energy monitoring devices.
In Fast Company, Ariel Schwartz comments on a ambitious new player, OpenShaspa:
“Want to manage your energy consumption by playing a video game? The OpenShaspa Home Energy Kit aims to do just that, by letting you oversee energy management in a virtual world. Shaspa’s kit, which is constructed from open-source components, contains a system of wireless sensors that control home energy output. The sensors can send data to cell phones and Internet applications like Google’s upcoming PowerMeter. Additional sensors for utility resources like gas and water can also be tacked on.
Wireless sensor networks are becoming increasingly common, but OpenShaspa’s virtual world adds a new element to smart grid energy monitoring. OpenShaspa can be linked to an open-source spin-off of Second Life called OpenSimulator. The game creates a 3D model of your house, thereby making power consumption a visually navigable space. If you go on vacation, an avatar friend can keep tabs on energy use.
OpenShaspa makes energy consumption even more Web 2.0 with its “Social Energy Meter”, which publishes power usage online so it can be tracked and analyzed on Facebook, Google, Twitter, and more. Social energy tracking devices like Tweet-a-Watt already exist, but none permeate all aspects of online life–social networks, virtual worlds, and Internet applications–so thoroughly.”