One of the major problems with energy meters is that they aren't often checked. Ones online are only checked when the user can be bothered and when energy ratings are not being checked then no change can be noticed or made.
My idea for my energy monitoring interface is to combine the interface with a clock. This way people will constantly be checking their energy rating without really noticing or needed to go out of their way to do so. My product will be designed for a middle class western home owner but essentially anyone will be able to benefit from it. Because I want my design to be a easy to read at a glance I will use bright easy to recognize colors such as green and red for good and bad respectively. Also using easy to notice symbols such as arrows to show information will help people gauge as much information as possible whilst minimizing the need for numbers and settings.
The overall design is to have a circular meter which will move around in a clockwise manner from the bottom. Users will be able to set either a 'average' setting or try to lower their average energy use by a set amount (10% for example). As the day progresses the meter will increase around as it heads towards 100% of their goal. Each hour the meter will mark a line and divide the meter into segments. Users will be able to click on (using touchscreen technology) each segment to receive some information about the hour they are selecting. At first they will be able to see if, for that hour, they have used too much or less than the average energy. This will be shown by an arrow varying in size and color. They will also be able to see what area (out of water, heating, appliances and lighting) they are using the most energy, with easy to recognize symbols.
My design will not only be easy to use but it will be more accessible than a website or a power meter. People will naturally check their energy use when they check the time and therefore will notice if they are wasting energy immediately.
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