Centre for Technology Infusion

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Australian Zero Emission House (AusZEH)

The Centre for Technology Infusion at La Trobe University is a partner in the Australian Zero Emission House (AusZEH) project ; a collaborative project between partners CSIRO, Henley, Lend Lease and Sustainability Victoria. The objective of the project is to create an integrated technology assessment and a demonstration platform for reducing carbon emissions with the ultimate goal of developing next generation living solutions which have a zero carbon emissions footprint.

Peak and average energy usage in domestic and industrial environments is growing exponentially. About half of the total carbon emissions attributed to buildings are from energy usage in residential buildings - this is about 13% of total carbon emissions across all sectors in Australia. It is estimated that by 2010, emissions from buildings are estimated to increase by 48% above the 1990 level. In addition to significant increase in energy consumption the absence of detailed energy consumption metrics is making systematic reduction of energy usage very difficult.

CTI has implemented a highly optimised technology solution for complete monitoring, management and control of the energy used by the home. CTI’s energy management and device control platform employs a scalable data management architecture and offers range of XML based API for providing interoperability with wide range of web enabled devices such as PCs, PDAs, Mobile Phones etc. The front end graphical user interface is a standalone touch screen application and includes a specialised human machine interface (HMI) design customised for use in zero emission homes. The system allows customised location/device specific analysis of real-time/statistical consumption data with the added ability to drill down into detailed analysis of power consumption, CO2 emissions and cost. The user interface, built using context-aware and persuasive technologies, will present home owners with easy-to-assimilate visual cues, identifying problem areas and time periods, and encourage a behavioural change to conserve energy.

Smart Energy Management System Demonstration Video

Transcript: The Zero Emission House

Download brochure

• Australian Zero Emission House (pdf 175kb)

News Story

• Australia's First Zero Emission House
• Doors open on Australia's first zero-emission home