Design of an In-Home Energy Consumption Ambient Display for Real-Time Feedback

A major challenge in energy consumption management is providing appropriate feedback to residential users. Many users do not perceive energy misuse as a significant problem, lacking awareness of the importance of using electricity efficiently and avoiding waste. This circumstance leads to cost overruns as uninformed users’ behavior causes demand peaks that require expensive grid planning and operation. For this reason, commercial In-Home Displays (IHDs) have been developed to show residential energy consumption and raise user awareness. However, it is essential to carefully analyze different feedback types and tailor IHDs to the user’s specific context. This work presents the design of a user-friendly IHD for real-time energy consumption monitoring. The proposed design aims to reshape the consumption habits of engaged users and reduce energy waste. The prototype uses an ESP-WROOM32, an RGB LED, and an OLED display to indicate and locate overconsumption. Two indication options are analyzed: using neighbors’ consumption averages and using users’ individual averages. Additionally, the OLED display shows the most energy-demanding circuit in the house, enabling users to take corrective actions. Consumption data analysis shows that committed users willing to reduce power demand by up to 25% can achieve approximately 18% energy savings by responding to the IHD feedback.