Identifying Water Consumption Patterns in Education Buildings Before, During and After COVID-19 Lockdown Periods

Abstract

Adopting modern emerging technologies of smart metering based on IoT that extend existing water distribution systems is of paramount importance for improving the operational efficiency of the water supply system in the cities and rural communities. Real-world data collected by smart water meters allows the analysis of consumption of water. In this work, data collected over a period of 28 months is analyzed on weekly, daily and hourly basis to identify usage patterns in relation to the restrictions imposed by the local authorities as a response to the COVID-19 emergency taking place during 2020 and 2021. The evaluation of water consumption before, during and after the lockdown periods highlights the impact of human actions. A novel data-driven method is presented to profile buildings that can help identify similarities and highlight differences across water usage patterns.