ANSERS - Active User Participation for Smart Energy Services

An urgent task for future energy systems is the design and operation of systems that integrate a large proportion of renewable energies and at the same time improve the overall efficiency of the system. In this context, buildings are of central importance: buildings are responsible for 32% of total global final energy consumption and 19% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions; In the European Union, buildings are responsible for 40% of total energy consumption. The optimization and design of energy systems for residential and office buildings as well as buildings in a network (city districts, energy communities, etc.) is therefore of great importance within the sustainable energy transition. An essential goal of such intelligent energy systems is not only decentralized, locally produced and sustainable energy to match the requirements of the higher-level network (electricity, heat, cooling) as best as possible, but also to actively involve users in the energy system. In contrast to an outdated energy system, in which users were viewed as passive, ignorant consumers, the energy transition requires active participation and participation by everyone. Energy systems have to be developed and optimized with and for the user. The provision and use of data by users plays a crucial role in this process. The omnipresence of data is said to have great potential for operating buildings and energy systems more economically and ecologically. Technical developments enable ever faster and more comprehensive data acquisition, data transmission and data processing. These systemic changes provide an ideal breeding ground for innovations that use this data for new energy services. The data from and about users play a central role. Although a substantial part of the data can be automatically recorded and processed (e.g. with sensors, smart meters or web scraping), the direct involvement of users and the direct query of personal preferences, behavioral intentions and system assessments (for example with regard to the perceived comfort) Great potential for the development and optimization of innovative energy services to support the energy transition. In the ANSERS project, we combine psychological insights into user activation and user participation with cutting-edge software technologies. This interaction is of central importance for future intelligent energy systems, which promote the reduction of energy consumption and enable energy services such as demand response, peer-2-peer trading or the optimal control of interconnected energy systems. To do this, however, it is necessary, on the one hand, to fundamentally understand and optimally address the psychological determinants of user participation in Energy Services and, on the other hand, to make the best possible use of the data and the system both with regard to the requirements of the higher-level network and with regard to the Optimize user requirements.