Patent ID: 7830037
Filing Date: 2010-11-09
Classification: H02J,Y02B,Y04S

Abstract:
1. A responsive load device adapted to be connected to an electric load which consumes intermittent or variable electric energy to maintain a variable of the load between upper and lower limits of the variable, the upper and lower limits of the variable being derived from and defined around a setpoint of the variable, the apparatus comprising: means for receiving an input indicative of the frequency of the mains power supplied to the load from a grid; and means responsive thereto to determine a level of stress under which the grid is operating and to control power consumption by said load in accordance with the determined stress level and to prevent the setpoint being increased or decreased in order to make power consumption be increased when a generation shortage grid stress level exceeds a first maximum threshold value and/or to prevent the setpoint being increased or decreased in order to make the power consumption be decreased when a demand shortage grid stress level is below a first minimum threshold value, wherein the device is responsive to the demand shortage grid stress level being below a second minimum threshold value, lower than the first, to increase the power consumption of the load to a maximum.