Presentation by Aikaterini Bourzeri, Jeremy Pitt, Pablo Almajano, Inmaculada Rodriguez and Maite Lopez-Sanchez at the 2nd Awareness Workshop on Challenges for Achieving Self-awareness in Autonomic Systems @ SASO 2012, Lyon, France

1. Meet the Meter: Visualising SmartGrids using
Self-Organising Institutions and Serious Games
Aikaterini Bourazeri1 , Jeremy Pitt1 , Pablo Almajano2 , Inmaculada
ıguez2 and Maite Lopez-Sanchez2
Rodr´
1 Department of Electrical & Electronic Engineering
Imperial College London, SW7 2BT UK
2 Departament de Matem`tica Aplicada i An`lisi
a a
Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
10th September 2012
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 1 / 17

2. Agenda
Agenda
Smart Grids
User-Infrastructure Interfaces
User Participation
Proposal: Serious Game Institutions
A Working Example
Summary and Conclusions
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 2 / 17

3. Smart Grids
Smart Grids use Information Technology and Communications to underpin
the network’s infrastructure and performance.
Meeting Targets:
Global warming & carbon dioxide emissions
Consumer demand for low & competitive electricity prices
Guaranteed security & protection against malicious attacks
Electrification of transport & heating
Smoothing out peak demand
Although SmartGrids focus on the demand-side and are predicated on
consumer participation, the User-Infrastructure Interface is still largely
neglected.
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 3 / 17

4. Smart Grids
We propose a User-Infrastructure Interface in which:
Information visualisation for comparative feedback
New affordances for the Smart Meters
are integrated within a virtual environment for a Serious Game.
Users will ”Meet the Meter”, providing ’assistive awareness’ and gain
experience and knowledge for long-term engagement with the new
infrastructure.
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 4 / 17

5. User-Infrastructure Interfaces
A User-Interface aims to extend the communication bridge between the
consumers and the Smart Grid.
We have focused on two studies:
Almajano - Assistance Infrastructure for open MAS for both human
and software agents. It is composed of two layers for agent
interaction, historical information and general assistance.
Fung Lam - Infrastructure development and maintenance for irrigation
management system in Nepal. New technology infrastructure could
improve system’s performance, but it depends on the institutions and
their effectiveness.
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 5 / 17

6. User Participation
Engaging Users through Serious Games
‘Serious games are digital games, simulations and virtual environments
which purpose is not only to entertain, but also to assist learning and help
users develop skills such as decision-making, long-term engagement and
collaboration.‘
Features:
Thought-provoking
Informative
Stimulating
Promote active involvement & participation
Two ways for encouraging consumer participation inside the grid:
Serious virtual worlds for direct consumer participation
Game for training purposes
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 6 / 17

7. User Participation
Users and Comparative Feedback
A mean for engaging users with the Advanced Metering Infrastructure
(AMI):
Based on actual energy consumption
Provided on frequent basis
Comparison of past energy consumptions
Helps consumers identify their consumption patterns
Studies:
Darby - comparative feedback more effective than direct (up to 10 %
decrease in energy consumption)
Fischer - a way of triggering users’ behaviours and habits (up to 12 %
decrease in energy use)
Moere - encourages social involvement and competition, increases
awareness towards energy consumption
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 7 / 17

8. User Participation
Smart Meters
They are like the known meters that are installed on our households for
reading the electricity consumption, but with advanced features.
User interface for communication & interaction
Control the energy consumption
Process and transmit consumer’s information to energy providers
Remote reading via a mobile application
Real-time pricing display
Connected to electrical appliances
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 8 / 17

9. Proposal: Serious Game Institutions
Development of a User-Infrastructure Interface for Smart Grids:
Information visualisation for comparative feedback
New affordances for the Smart Meters
Encapsulation of self-organisation aspects
Supports the principles for enduring institutions
‘Assistive awareness‘ for necessary experience & user engagement
Better understanding of resource allocation, prices, investment
decisions & grid’s sustainability
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 9 / 17

10. Proposal: Serious Game Institutions
Table: Ostrom’s Principles encapsulated by a Serious Game
Serious Game
Ostrom’s Principles User Participation
Clearly defined bound- Game access
aries
Congruence between Locations supporting
appropriation/provision comparative feedback
rules and local environ- for different ‘roles’
ment
Collective choice ar- Deliberative Assembly
rangements location
Monitoring Smart Meters
Graduated Incentives Sanctions and rewards
Conflict resolution Court Room location
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 10 / 17

11. Proposal: Serious Game Institutions
Principle 1: The online world represents the institution and a
membership for playing a character is needed.
Principle 2: Visualisation of different sorts of data for different
purposes, enabling users to configure the rules of their institution.
Principle 3: Specialised decision-making forum for collective choice
(deliberative assembly).
Principle 4: The data will be streamed by some kind of monitoring
agency (Smart Meters).
Principle 5: The virtual environment rewards the successful game play
and sanctions inappropriate behaviour.
Principle 6: When disputes occur, they can be resolved in another
specialised location (‘Court Room‘).
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 11 / 17

12. Proposal: Serious Game Institutions
Different ‘Consumer‘ Roles in the Smart Grids:
Prosumer: makes choices about prices, which energy provider to get
his/her electricity from, selling surplus energy back to the grid.
Citizen: may be concerned with collective utility and the impact of
his/her consumption profile on global warming, has an interest in
setting and meeting policy targets.
Practitioner: might be concerned with coordinated activity for storage
and planning local (micro-Grid) developments.
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 12 / 17

13. A Working Example
Focus on the use of advanced technologies to build the communication
bridge between ‘consumers‘ and the Smart Grid.
Virtual Institutions (VI): 3D normative environments for direct human
participation in an Electronic Institution (human & software agents).
Electronic Institution (EI): an organisation centred multi-agent
system, which models the market (defining roles and interaction
protocols).
Virtual World (VW): 3D advanced interface for direct human
inclusion in the system.
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 13 / 17

14. A working example
Virtual Institution (combination of 3D Virtual Worlds (VW) and Electronic
Institutions (EI)) can model a Serious Game for Smart Grids.
Provide all the necessary means for human inclusion in the system
A human can control his/her avatar (embodied character)
Enhanced visualisation information of the system and its facilities
Participants’ interaction in a seamless and intuitive way (voice, chat,
gestures)
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 14 / 17

15. A Working Example
Six different activities can be enabled in the Serious Game:
Smart Grid Presentation
Private Information
Public Information
Simulation
Assembly
Conflict Resolution Figure: Virtual World populated
by 3D virtual characters
performing collective
arrangements (human-human and
human-agent interactions)
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 15 / 17

16. Summary and Conclusions
Research Contribution: a User-Infrastructure Interface for Smart Grids,
in which information visualisation for comparative feedback, Smart Meters
and user participation are integrated into a virtual environment.
Using a Smart Meter to provide ‘assistive awareness‘ in a Serious Game:
Enables long-term user engagement
Offers participants a deeper insight into decision-making, resource
allocation and sustainability in their different roles
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 16 / 17

17. Summary and Conclusions
Restrictions concerning the user participation inside the grid:
The majority of users are not aware of grid management
A high percentage of user participation is needed for an efficient grid
operation
Decision-making should be immediate and accurate
Users have to invest money on amenities with long-term benefits
Users should know their exact role inside the grid
Collection of personal data should be done carefully
Bourazeri, Pitt, Almajano, Rodr´
ıguez, Lopez-Sanchez Meet the Meter 17 / 17