Smart meter

An Oxford University spin-out company has developed an innovative electricity metering and monitoring device.

An Oxford University spin-out company has developed an innovative electricity metering and monitoring device – the Geni-e meter – and is planning to spin-out from Isis Innovation, the technology transfer arm for Oxford University.

Intelligent Sustainable Energy's (ISE)  founders include Dr Malcolm McCulloch, head of the Electrical Power Group at Oxford’s Department of Engineering Science, and chartered engineer Jim Donaldson.

While so-called ‘smart meters’ are currently available these only measure total electricity consumption in half-hourly periods, making it difficult to see exactly where energy savings could be made.

The Geni-e meter, by contrast, can accurately identify the amount of energy being used by types of appliance – or even individual appliances – such as cookers or immersion heaters.

By delivering this kind of detailed energy-use breakdown to home PCs and handheld devices it can help householders to spot malfunctioning or energy-intensive devices and enable them to both reduce their carbon footprint and save money.