Echelon Releases New Smart Grid Software And Hardware Solutions

 

Echelon Corp. has released the Echelon Control System (ECoS), a smart grid software platform that runs in tandem with the company's new Edge Control Node (ECN) 7000 hardware solutions. Echelon says ECoS and the ECN 7000 products are designed to function "at the edge of the grid," within utilities' distribution networks. The platform is aimed at giving utilities better visibility into voltage fluctuations, power quality and line signal strength through the monitoring and controlling of devices in the field. ECoS also enables system developers to build custom applications that automatically identify and correct grid issues. "ECoS will move the grid beyond the centralized reading of meters to a truly open, intelligent and distributed system that can monitor and react to an increasingly dynamic and demanding environment," says Ron Sege, president and CEO of Echelon. "Utilities can now enhance customer experience through improved reliability, accelerated response times and increased efficiencies." The company notes that Duke Energy is its first customer to deploy ECoS and ECN 7000. Orders for ECN 7000 hardware, which are covered under a long-term supply agreement that Duke Energy and Echelon signed last August, are expected to be completed by the middle of 2013. SOURCE: Echelon