PowerPedia: changing energy usage with the help of a community-based smartphone application

When it comes to conserving electricity, it is crucial for users to know how much energy is consumed by individual appliances. However, the technical feedback provided by existing energy consumption feedback systems in the form of dry numbers and intangible units is not appropriate for most users. To address this shortcoming, we developed PowerPedia, a system that provides behavior-influencing feedback over and above pure consumption values. By integrating a community platform—a Wikipedia for electrical appliances—PowerPedia enables users to identify and compare the consumption of their domestic appliances with that of others. It thus helps users to better understand their electricity consumption and take effective action to save electricity.