Smart Home-Microgrid Coordinated Control: Research Evolution

Introduction#

The coordination of smart homes and microgrids has evolved from a niche engineering topic to a central pillar of modern energy systems. This article systematically maps the research trajectory, highlighting enabling technologies, landmark milestones, and the shifting emphasis that defines each generation.

Understanding this evolution is not just an academic exercise. For practitioners, it clarifies which control methods are mature, which assumptions no longer hold, and how to select an appropriate architecture for a new deployment.

Stage One: Foundational Concepts and Islanded Operation#

Early research in the 2000s treated smart homes and microgrids as largely separate problems. Microgrid studies focused on islanded operation, using droop control to share active and reactive power among distributed generators. Home automation, meanwhile, prioritized local comfort and basic load scheduling.

A key breakthrough was the realization that demand-side flexibility could support microgrid stability. Testbed projects demonstrated that coordinated load shedding and generation dispatch could maintain frequency and voltage in islanded mode. The defining milestone was the adoption of open communication standards, which made it possible to connect controllers from different vendors. Research focus remained on reliability, with little attention to market signals or occupant behavior.

Stage Two: Grid-Connected Integration and Home Energy Management Systems#

As renewable penetration increased, microgrids connected to the main grid more frequently, and the research focus shifted to economic optimization. Advanced metering infrastructure provided high-resolution consumption data, and home energy management systems (HEMS) emerged as the local decision-making layer for smart appliances, storage, and electric vehicle charging.

Landmark advances included model predictive