Sony develops power outlet with authentication possibility

Sony is busy with the development of a technology for outlets with which it is possible to establish the identity of the consumer to determine. On the basis of, for example, can be charged for the use.

The technology should, according to The Verge, including a better management of energy consumption in buildings as possible and to let users pay for their energy consumption. Sony wants this sockets equip it with a chip that wirelessly communicate with a similar chip in one on the electrical outlet device to the identity of the user to figure out.

This can for example be determined whether one socket is allowed to use and or this for this use have to pay. The chip in the socket communicates with the access control via the power cables in the building. The chip on the gebruikerskant for example, in the plug of the device, are integrated as a nfc chip in the device itself or in a smart card with nfc functionality.

The technology that Sony do want to use is Sony’s FeliCa, which is based on nfc. FeliCa in Japan for some time, used for mobile payment systems. Sony thinks that the power sockets with a payment option under more will be used in public places like airports, café’s and restaurants.