Method and System for Providing Web-Enabled Cellular Access to Meter Reading Data

• US 20110081893A1
• Filed: 10/02/2009
• Published: 04/07/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Badger Meter Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Badger Meter Incorporated
• Inventors: Blackwell, Morrice D., Locker, Yarum, Schultz, Randall L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,644,804 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/414.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 4/002 Remote reading of utility meters
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5651 Reducing the amount or size of exchanged application data
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 90/20 Smart grids as enabling technology in buildings sector smart grids supporting the management or operation of end-user stationary applications in general, or like technologies with no associated climate change mitigation effect Y04S20/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/30 Smart metering, e.g. specially adapted for remote reading

Abstract

A method and a system for collection of meter readings from meter reading and transmitting devices (12, 14) and for viewing on a web-enabled wireless communication device (28) comprises addressing at least one receiver (15) through the Internet (21) and obtaining a data file of meter data for a plurality of meter reading devices (12, 14) that have previously communicated with the receiver (15). The receiver (15) can then re-transmit the meter data through a wide area network such as the Internet (21) to a web site (10) operated by an organization marketing AMR systems. The meter data is then accessed and displayed at a customer demonstration site using a handheld wireless smart phone (28) which receives a web page (22) that is reduced in size for transmission through the cellular network to the smart phone (28).

Claims

1. A method for collection of meter data through a wide area network from at least one receiver communicating in a local network with at least one meter reading device in a geographic area, the method comprising:

receiving data through the wide area network at a web site from the receiver that includes meter data from at least one meter reading device that has previously communicated with the receiver;

storing the meter data at the web site; and

accessing the meter data at the web site using a wireless communication device at a customer demonstration site and displaying the meter data on a display portion of the wireless communication device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the meter data is accessed by an application program on the wireless communication device that displays the meter data as a reduced size web page.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the wireless communication is a handheld web-enabled phone device.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the handheld web-enabled phone device communicates through a GSM cellular network.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the meter data is received at the web site as an HTML web page and is stored at the web site.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the wide area network is the Internet.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the meter reading devices include devices for reading condition status data related to a meter or to supply links connected to the meter, and wherein the meter data includes condition status data.

8. A system for displaying meter reading data collected from at least one reading device in a geographic area, the system comprising:

a web site for receiving and storing a data file through a wide area network from the at least one receiver that includes meter reading data from a plurality of meter reading devices that have previously communicated with the receiver; and

an application program for a web-enabled cellular phone for displaying meter data communicated from a web site accessible through a cellular network.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the application program displays the meter data as a reduced size web page on a display portion of the web-enabled cellular phone.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein web-enabled cellular phone communicates through a GSM cellular network.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the meter data is received at the web site as an HTML web page and is stored at the web site.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the wide area network is the Internet.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the meter reading devices include devices for reading condition status data related to a meter or to supply links connected to the meter, and wherein the meter data includes condition status data.