Keynote Lectures

Abstract
In most North-Western European countries, approximately 40% of the total energy consumption of buildings is related to heat demand for space heating and domestic hot water. Today the Netherlands mostly relies on combustion of natural gas to supply the heat demand. The Dutch ministry of economic affairs recently announced a shift of paradigm: initiatives towards integration of renewable energy in the heating sector will be encouraged in order to phase-out the use of natural gas completely by 2060.

A modeling framework is needed to analyze options for 100% renewable urban districts which self-consume local generated renewable energy as much as possible and import (or export) energy from (or to) external grids as little as possible.

Methods are needed to model thermal energy demand, renewable energy production and energy storage. Energy scheduling algorithms need to be developed to control energy generation and storage in order to prioritize demand and maximize self-consumption of local renewable energy. In this presentation the modeling framework is applied to a case study in which three renewable energy system concepts are evaluated against the case reference. Optimal capacities are determined for minimal operational costs and carbon dioxide production. The most attractive transition routes towards 100% renewable energy supplied districts are identified and discussed in relation to a collective or individual heating approach.

Abstract
The most cost-effective solution to acquire massive amounts of actionable urban data and expand wireless coverage for everyone in the city may be to rapidly connect as many vehicles moving around the city as possible. In fact, vehicles are everywhere, have large batteries, come with dozens of sensors and benefit from a dedicated frequency band (DSRC 5.9 GHz). Once we turn vehicles into mobile Wi-Fi hotspots, they can connect to many other things – inside and outside of the vehicle – serving as the perfect data couriers for the Internet of Things. Last but not last, they can easily connect with each other over high-speed wireless links, building mesh networks that can span an entire city.
 
After our company Veniam connected hundreds vehicles with multi-purpose, multi-network onboard units in September 2014, this real-world mesh has served more than 5 million Internet sessions and has since proven to be a real asset as Porto strives to overcome the digital divide, increase safety, reduce pollution, and control traffic. Singapore and New York City are now following suit.
 
Since roughly 26% of the world’s 1.2 billion vehicles belong to enterprise fleets that generally travel many miles every day, starting with commercial vehicles like buses, taxis and shared vehicles appears to be the best strategy to scale the number of connected vehicles. Add to that the current trend towards mobility as an on-demand service – which will probably be provided in the near future by fleets of shared autonomous vehicles. Soon this strategy may actually be the only one we need to create vibrant connected cities with exciting new mobility services worldwide.

Abstract
The Internet of things (IoT) is no longer a future phenomenon. The IoT is upon us and the number of connected devices is growing. These devices are changing lives—and the nature of data. By 2025, that data will equal 11 trillion dollars in economic value. Business-to-business (B2B) users will benefit the most. 70 percent of the value of the IoT will go to increasing efficiency in factories and connected supply chains. Attend this session to learn how to manage the data to optimize operation efficiencies, increase customer satisfaction, and disrupt your market.