This is an ARPA-E funded collaboration between CMU, NRECA, Sparkmeter and EATON to develop an open-source next generation electric water heater and plug load controller. Each device will learn the load profile of the local grid through frequency sensing and learn user consumption patterns over time which can be used to shift peak loads. We are developing an open hardware platform that uses the CTA-2045 standard to communicate with smart grid-enabled devices. The term “GridBallast” refers to the idea that appliances in a home can act like a storage system.
