Energy generation interactions bypassing the grid

Abstract

Methods, devices, and systems for controlling energy generation interactions that bypass the grid may be provided. Flow control devices may be directly connected with one another independent of electrical connections to the utility grid. In some examples, the direct connections between the devices may enable sharing of power, controlling power flow over the direct connections, and/or recording relative power flows between the devices.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A device for managing power flow, comprising:
 an electrical cable configured to connect a first electrical system to a second electrical system independent of connections to a power grid;   a memory configured to store computer-executable instructions; and   a processor configured to access the memory and execute the computer-executable instructions to at least:
 in accordance with a determination that a first excess amount of power is identified via a comparison between power generated by a power generation device of the first electrical system to a first amount of power drawn by the first electrical system:
 identify that the second electrical system has a deficit amount of power; 
 configure the electrical cable to allow power flow to the second electrical system; and 
 control a first flow of the first excess amount of power over the electrical cable from the first electrical system to the second electrical system based at least in part on the deficit amount of the power; and 
 
 in accordance with a determination that an insufficient amount of power is identified via the comparison between the power generated by the power generation device of the first electrical system to the first amount of the power drawn by the first electrical system:
 identify that the second electrical system has a second excess amount of power; 
 request a second flow of the second excess amount of power over the electrical cable from the second electrical system to the first electrical system; and 
 receive the second flow of the power over the electrical cable from the second electrical system based at least in part on the insufficient amount of power. 
 
   
     
     
         2 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the second flow of power from the second electrical system is received based at least in part on a request sent from the first electrical system to the second electrical system. 
     
     
         3 . The device of  claim 1 , further comprising a rectifier, coupled with the electrical cable, configured to change the type of power from alternating current form to direct current form. 
     
     
         4 . The device of  claim 3 , wherein the second flow of the power is received from the second electrical system in the alternating current form. 
     
     
         5 . The device of  claim 1 , further comprising a metering device coupled with at least one of the electrical cable, the memory, or the processor. 
     
     
         6 . The device of  claim 5 , wherein relative power flow between the first electrical system and the second electrical system is monitored based at least in part on a metric of the metering device. 
     
     
         7 . A computer-implemented method for managing power flow between a first electrical system and a second electrical system, comprising:
 configuring an electrical cable to connect a first electrical system to a second electrical system independent of connections to a power grid;   in accordance with a determination that a first excess amount of power is identified via a comparison between power generated by a power generation device of the first electrical system and a first amount of power drawn by the first electrical system:
 identifying that the second electrical system has a deficit amount of power; 
 configuring the electrical cable to allow power flow to the second electrical system; and 
 controlling a first flow of the first excess amount of power over the electrical cable from the first electrical system to the second electrical system based at least in part on the deficit amount of the power; and 
   in accordance with a determination that an insufficient amount of power is identified via the comparison between the power generated by the power generation device of the first electrical system and the first amount of the power drawn by the first electrical system:
 identifying that the second electrical system has a second excess amount of power; 
 requesting a second flow of the second excess amount of power over the electrical cable from the second electrical system to the first electrical system; and 
 receiving the second flow of the power over the electrical cable from the second electrical system based at least in part on the insufficient amount of power. 
   
     
     
         8 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 7 , wherein the power generation device comprises a photovoltaic cell of the first electrical system, and wherein controlling the first flow of power comprises providing the power over the electrical cable. 
     
     
         9 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 7 , further comprising identifying a power draw from the second electrical system, wherein the power draw is identified based at least in part on a request received from the second electrical system. 
     
     
         10 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 7 , wherein the first flow or the second flow of the power over the electrical cable is controlled by changing an impedance of the electrical cable. 
     
     
         11 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 7 , further comprising calculating a relative power metric for the first electrical system and the second electrical system based at least in part on a relative power flow. 
     
     
         12 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 7 , wherein the power comprises electricity in a direct current form, and wherein the flow of the power over the electrical cable is controlled by changing a direct current voltage of the electricity. 
     
     
         13 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 7 , further comprising storing a metric associated with relative power flow based at least in part on an amount of power provided over the electrical cable from the first electrical system to the second electrical system. 
     
     
         14 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 13 , further comprising determining an amount to charge an entity associated with the second electrical system based at least in part on the metric associated with the relative power flow. 
     
     
         15 . A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, configure the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:
 configuring an electrical cable to connect a first electrical system to a second electrical system independent of connections to a power grid;   in accordance with a determination that a first excess amount of power is identified via a comparison between power generated by a power generation device of the first electrical system and a first amount of power drawn by the first electrical system:
 identifying that the second electrical system has a deficit amount of power; 
 configuring the electrical cable to allow power flow to the second electrical system; and 
 controlling a first flow of the first excess amount of power over the electrical cable from the first electrical system to the second electrical system based at least in part on the deficit amount of the power; and 
   in accordance with a determination that an insufficient amount of power is identified via the comparison between the power generated by the power generation device of the first electrical system and the first amount of the power drawn by the first electrical system:
 identifying that the second electrical system has a second excess amount of power; 
 requesting a second flow of the second excess amount of power over the electrical cable from the second electrical system to the first electrical system; and 
 receiving the second flow of the power over the electrical cable from the second electrical system based at least in part on the insufficient amount of power. 
   
     
     
         16 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 15 , wherein the first electrical system and the second electrical system are external to a utility grid. 
     
     
         17 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 15 , wherein the operations further comprise receiving flow data from the power generation device that identifies a relative power flow between the first electrical system and the second electric system. 
     
     
         18 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 17 , wherein the operations further comprise determining an amount to credit an entity associated with the first electrical system based at least in part on the flow data. 
     
     
         19 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 15 , wherein the second flow of power from the second electrical system is received based at least in part on a request sent from the first electrical system to the second electrical system. 
     
     
         20 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 15 , wherein the power generation device comprises a photovoltaic cell of the first electrical system, and wherein controlling the first flow of power comprises providing the power over the electrical cable.