Open house planned for smart meter, power electronics labs

Two College of Technology labs will showcase research and products during an open house November 1-2.

Athula Kulatunga, professor of electrical and computer engineering technology, directs the two labs: Power Electronics Development and Applications Lab (PEDAL), sponsored by International Rectifier Company, and Smart Meter Integration Lab (SMIL), sponsored by Landis +Gyr Company and Indiana-Michigan Power Company.

Kulatunga and his students will demonstrate the products they are working on and offer additional technical details for those interested.

An interactive residential energy simulation will take place in Michael Golden Labs (MGL) 1232 at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. both days. The presentation takes about 45 minutes.

Other products to be showcased include:

  • In Knoy Hall lobby: hub-driven electric tricycle with ultracapacitor regeneration; hub-driven, power-assisted electric bicycle; smart appliance controller; and universal smart meter interface for home area networks
  • In PEDAL (MGL 1230): battery life extender, multi-motor driver and controller, dSpace-based EV controller development, electronic differential and vehicle stability
  • IN SMIL (MGL 1232): consumer energy feedback tools, hybrid power grid simulator, custom-made advanced meter infrastructure for security and privacy research.

In addition to the lab sponsors, research collaborators include Oakridge National Labs, Sypris Electronics, Purdue Research Foundation, CERIAS at Purdue, and the University of Darmstadt in Germany.