Ability to Record Grouping of Devices

Effectively grouping controllable devices is a core function for managing and optimizing them. This new feature introduces an automated way to do that, using a new entity group object based on one or more criteria. You can assign devices to such groups either automatically, based on pre-defined rules or manually, by a user. 

To organize these groups, each one is assigned to a group category. This category helps classify groups that share the same criteria and retrieval method. A single device can belong to multiple groups, as long as each group is from a different category.

The criteria source within the group category allows you to define the rules that determine which devices are eligible for a specific group. These rules include:

• Program Affiliation: Sort devices by the specific energy management program they are enrolled in. This helps centralize control and apply tailored strategies for different initiatives.
• Technical Specifications: Group devices based on their hardware and functional details, such as model or firmware version. This ensures commands and settings are only sent to compatible devices, which prevents errors and improves performance.
• Customer Rate Class: The system uses customer billing data to group devices by the customer's utility rate class (e.g., residential, small commercial). This is essential for strategies based on pricing or time-of-use, as the device's behavior can be directly linked to the customer's cost.

Entities like Service Points and Devices can now be assigned to entity groups. Each group assignment has an effective date and can be expired when the group no longer applies. The system will also perform an eligibility check to ensure the group assignment is valid.

A new user interface makes it easy to manage entity groups. It's designed with two distinct zones: one to help you find and select eligible devices, and a second to show you which devices are already in the group you're working on. To further enhance control, we've also added a new zone to the device interface where you can see all the groups a device is a part of and manage its group assignments directly.

This empowers users to create dynamic entity groups for controllable devices. Instead of static lists, these groups are built automatically using configurable criteria. By leveraging these criteria, the application transforms device grouping into an automated, policy-driven system. This leads to greater efficiency, enhanced program participation, and ultimately, optimized energy usage.

Steps to Enable

You don't need to do anything to enable this feature.

Tips And Considerations

To configure this feature, refer to Understanding Entity Groups and Defining Entity Groups in the Oracle Utilities Digital Asset Cloud Service/Digital Asset Management Administrative User Guide for more information.