Google announced the upcoming release of a new tool which will help people get a close look at their energy consumption, providing all the details needed to reduce the monthly costs.
The new software is called Google PowerMeter and it should present graphs of the electricity and gas use through Google's iGoogle home page. Users will have to add a PowerMeter widget to their page in order to get access to the chart, which will offer a clear image of energy used over the day.
The project still needs to cover several phases in order to be completed, as the PowerMeter depends on the use of a component called smart meter, a device designed to digitally track energy consumption in great detail. At this point, there are 40 million smart meters installed worldwide, but the estimates show that more than 100 million are expected to be put in use over the next few years. The estimates show that the energy saved would be between 5 percent and 15 percent, depending on the users’ activities.
"It may not sound like much, but if half of America's households cut their energy demand by 10 percent, it would be the equivalent of taking eight million cars off the road," Google’s officials explained.
The company will have to sign partnerships with utility companies and manufacturers in order to launch the service over the next few months.
The mission is to cut the global warming emissions caused by producing electricity. The initiative was received with great enthusiasm and it will need the people’s support in order to indeed make a difference.
Ed Lu, a member of Google's engineering team, mentioned in a blog post that the company is currently investing in a digital "smart grid," which includes open protocols and standards. The plan is to give consumers usage information and put them in control over who can access their information. Google is also planning the formation of a services organization specialized in analyzing people's electricity usage in order to provide the best solutions for reducing the consumption. "In a world where everyone had a detailed understanding of their home energy use, we could find all sorts of ways to save energy and lower electricity bills," he wrote.
It’s been a very busy period for Google, which made a series of announcements over the past few weeks. The company launched an updated Gmail version, which allows users to access their accounts offline, reading, writing and archiving e-mail messages whenever they might find themselves without an Internet connection, for example, while flying in an airplane. Another release was the upgrade made for Google Maps, which allows users to track their friends and family with the help of their mobile devices. The new feature is called Google Latitude and can be used to contact the tracked friends via SMS, Gmail and Google Talk.
The company is expanding its directions, looking to address as many areas as possible. So far, its efforts have been extremely appreciated.
