Honda Smart Home US Offers Vision for Zero Carbon Living and Mobility

Super-efficient living laboratory seeks to address two major sources of U.S. CO2 emissions: cars and homes Project achieves more than 11 tons of CO2 reduction per year compared to a conventional home and vehicle Honda home energy management system (HEMS) maximizes the homes energy efficiency while communicating with the electric utility to improve grid stability Home surpasses Californias 2020 target for zero net energy residential construction Member of University of California, Davis community will live in home, drive Honda Fit EV (electric vehicle) DAVIS, Calif., March 25, 2014 / PR Newswire / Honda today marked the opening of Honda Smart Home US, showcasing technologies that enable zero net energy living and transportation. The home, located on the West Village campus of the University of California, Davis, is capable of producing more energy on-site from renewable sources than it consumes annually, including enough energy to power a Honda Fit EV for daily commuting. A Honda-developed home energy management system and an energy efficient design will allow the homes occupant to use less than half of the energy of a similarly sized new home in the Davis area for heating, cooling and lighting. The home is also three times more water-efficient than a typical U.S. home. See videos about Honda Smart Home US. Read more Read more

Honda Smart Home US, construction of which began in April 2013, will serve as a residence for a member of the UC Davis community, whose selection will soon be announced. The fully-furnished home comes equipped with a Honda Fit EV battery electric vehicle for the resident's daily transportation.

In addition to showcasing Honda's vision for sustainable, zero-carbon living and personal mobility, the home will function as a living laboratory where the company, along with researchers from UC Davis and Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), will evaluate new technologies and business opportunities at the intersection of housing, transportation, energy and the environment.

Honda's environmental efforts extend beyond personal mobility to address two of the primary sources of CO2 emissions: cars and homes. Together, energy used to power homes and light duty vehicles contributes to approximately 44% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in the United Statesi. Technology that enables distributed renewable energy generation to supply power to homes and cars seamlessly is one of the key potential pathways to address climate change.

UC Davis's West Village, where the Honda Smart Homes is located, is the largest planned zero net energy housing development in the U.S. Opened in 2011, West Village is home to the university's internationally recognized research centers focused on energy efficiency, sustainability and transportation.

Honda Home Energy Management System Honda Smart Home US implements Honda's home energy management system (HEMS), a proprietary hardware and software system that monitors, controls and optimizes electrical generation and consumption throughout the home's microgrid. A 10kWh battery energy storage system in the garage, using the same lithium-ion cells that are used in the Honda Fit EV, allows stored solar energy to be used at night, when household demand typically peaks and electric vehicles are usually charged. Honda's HEMS leverages the battery to balance, shift and buffer loads to minimize the home's impact to the electric grid. The system will also enable Honda to evaluate the second life, or re-use, of EV batteries in grid applications, home-to-grid (H2G) connectivity and other concepts.

Honda's HEMS is also capable of improving grid reliability by automatically responding to demand response signals and providing other grid services. If the electricity grid is overloaded, for example, Honda Smart Home is capable of shedding its load and even supplying power back to the grid. This type of smart grid connectivity will enable the mass deployment of electric vehicles and renewable energy without sacrificing grid reliability.

Sustainable Features Honda Smart Home US brings together innovative technology and the latest green building concepts:

Solar Photovoltaics (PV) A 9.5kW solar photovoltaic (PV) system mounted on the roof will generate more energy than the home and Fit EV consume on an annual basis, due in large part to the efficient design of the home. All of the energy for space heating, space cooling, ventilation, lighting, hot water, appliances and consumer loads, in addition to the transportation energy for the Honda Fit EV, is supplied by the solar panels on the home.

DC-to-DC Electric Vehicle Charging The Honda Fit EV included with the home has been modified to accept DC power directly from the home's solar panels or stationary battery, eliminating up to half of the energy that is typically lost to heat during DC-to-AC and AC-to-DC power conversion. When the solar panels are generating electricity at full capacity, the vehicle can fully recharge in approximately two hours directly from sunlight.

Continue reading here:
Honda Smart Home US Offers Vision for Zero Carbon Living and Mobility