Zerofootprint already helps corporations and governments in evaluating and reducing their carbon emissions through various methods. It also helps households through innovative technologies such as this one. This new TalkingPlug is for corporations or households (or anyone with electrical sockets) and will have an initial price tag of about $50. The price may go down considerably if it can make the product on a larger scale.

How does it work? What are its advantages compared to Google’s PowerMeter and other similar up and coming technologies?

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Editor’s Note: This is a guest contribution by Nancy Gioia, Ford’s Director of Sustainable Mobility Technologies and Hybrid Vehicle Programs.

It’s clear electric vehicles (EVs) will be part of the transportation mix of the future.

President Obama has set ambitious goals for wide-scale adoption of EV technology. Advances in battery technology will help bring more electrified vehicles to market for consumers and the desire to reduce CO2 emissions has increased attention on transportation alternatives like electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.

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Google’s plan to roll-out home energy monitoring systems took a step towards reality Tuesday when the company announced the first round of utility partners for its PowerMeter demand-side energy management software.

The pilot program for Google’s foray into smart grid and energy management infrastructure will be available to select customers at a group of eight utilities that have installed—or are in the process of installing—smart meters. With the move, Google will be making the company’s first significant play in energy-use data, an entirely new dimension of consumer data for the company.

By having real-time information about home energy usage on a desktop (running as a Google Gadget), those using the meter will be able to use their energy more efficiently, save money on their monthly bill, and be able to monitor/reduce household carbon emissions.

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The old electromechanical electric utility meter changed little in principle over the last hundred years. In the next coming decades the smart meter will progress as much over this meter as the PC has over the typewriter. It will utilize a microcontroller as sophisticated as any PC. It will have its own web page that can be part of your home page and your social network. It can evolve to best serve the most efficient use of renewable energy.

The present meters are also called “Thomson” meters after the supposed inventor Elihu Thomson the first CEO of General Electric (after restructuring of Edison General Electric). Thomson’s meter was like a clock with a torsion pendulum. Instead of a spring, the force between two magnets governed the speed of the pendulum.

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Spending in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on environmental projects being debated in Congress right now already includes $100 billion in ‘green stimulus.’ But because of the stated preference for so-called ‘shovel-ready‘ infrastructure projects, long-term infrastructure projects like mass transit and a smart grid may suffer.

The bill already includes spending for incentives for clean energy; the retrofitting of public buildings and public housing; low and moderate-income home weatherization; clean water and environmental restoration projects. But mass transit and smart grids require the kind of planning and long-term investment not encapsulated by that tidy new buzzword, ’shovel-ready.’

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In the U.S., Smart Metering has been tried as a pilot program in several locations, including Chicago and the state of California. By all accounts, it has been a raving success. Duke Energy Indiana plans to install 800,000 Smart Meters starting this year. According to Energy Design, Strategy and News:

“Some 50 million old meters in the United States are likely to be replaced by advanced meters by 2010 at a cost of about $18 billion, according to a recent analysis by Deutsche Bank. Worldwide, only 6% of electricity, 8% of gas, and 4% of water meters are even automated, according to Texas Instruments Inc, which sells a variety of chips for meters. In fact, in the electric industry alone, 500 million meters worldwide could be replaced over the next 10 years, resulting in semiconductor sales of at least $7.5 billion..” Electronics Design, Strategy, News

Homeowners see the effect of their energy usage immediately. When a computer is turned on, the meter goes from 300 watts to 400 watts. An alarm rings when usage hits 500 watts. Said one homeowner: “I’ve become like one of Pavlov’s dogs. Every time it bleeps I think I’m going to take one of those pans off the stove. I’d do anything to make it stop. It helps you change your habits.” –New York Times

For example, a vehicle owner could choose to accept a charge only during off-peak hours between midnight and 6 a.m. when electricity rates are reduced, or when the grid is using only renewable energy such as wind or solar power.

With this technology, electric vehicles can communicate directly with the electrical grid via smart meters provided by utility companies through wireless networking. The owner uses the vehicle’s touch screen navigation interface and an in-dash computer to choose when the vehicle should recharge, for how long, and at what utility rate. This technology builds on currently-available Ford features such as SYNC®, SmartGauge™ with EcoGuide and Ford Work Solutions™.

Called the “Recharge Center” of the vehicle, the driver will interface with an easy-to-use touch screen to select their recharge preferences. The Ford technology will use the knowledge of smart meters now being deployed on homes around the country, along with the vehicles communication capability for a customer to make their choices without a third party provider or subscription fees. With this, drivers could have the following choices:

• Price control – Program the vehicle to only accept a charge when electric raters are lower, such as off-peak hours.
• Charge complete – Program the charge completion end time.
• Timed charge – Schedule daily recharge start times for weekdays and weekends.
• Energy Choice – Choose the energy source for vehicle recharge (some green-minded customers may choose to pay slightly more to recharge their vehicles with renewable energy sources).

The first plug-in vehicle equipped with this technology was delivered to American Electric Power of Columbus, Ohio last month. Ford is now rolling-out this technology in its entire fleet of plug-in hybrid vehicles undergoing testing at electric utility partners across the country.

At Ford, we look forward to a future where customers can choose from an array of vehicle options, to select the vehicle power mix that is right for them. While our primary focus remains on engineering the best vehicles to deliver real value to consumers, we will also continue to work with the utility industry and other key players to find the infrastructure solutions that can help accelerate the commercialization of electric vehicles.

-Nancy Gioia is Ford’s Director of Sustainable Mobility Technologies and Hybrid Vehicle Programs. Ford will introduce a pure battery electric Transit Connect commercial van in 2010, a battery electric Focus compact car in 2011, and a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle and next-generation hybrid electric vehicle in 2012.

More posts on Electric Vehicles:

• Three Key Elements to ECOtality’s Electric Vehicle Project by the CEO of ECOtality.
• Want a Plug-in Hybrid Now? Luscious Garage in San Francisco is Your New Best Friend
• The 21st Century Car Industry: Why Plug-in and Electric Car Retrofits Could Fix it by Felix Kramer