AUTO-DISCOVERY OF SMART METER UPDATE INTERVAL

• US 20140156093A1
• Filed: 12/04/2012
• Published: 06/05/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/04/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc. DBA GE Appliances (Haier Group Company)
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Brian, Joseph Mark, Bultman, Robert Marten, Drake, Jeff
• Application Number:
  US13/693,088
• Publication Number:
  US 20140156093A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/291
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 4/002 Remote reading of utility meters
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/60 for transmitting utility meters data, i.e. transmission of data from the reader of the utility meter
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• 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 control device is connected to a smart meter. The control device includes a communication engine configured to retrieve an energy consumption value from a measuring unit coupled to the smart meter based on a polling interval. The control device includes a discovery engine operatively coupled to the communication engine and configured to discover an update interval of the smart meter by increasing the polling interval iteratively from an initial value until a difference is detected between successively retrieved energy consumption values. Furthermore, the device includes a user interface engine, operatively coupled to the discovery engine and the communication engine, configured to estimate a utility consumption at a present time based on the difference value and the polling interval.

Claims

1. An control device operatively connected to a smart meter, comprising:

a communication engine configured to periodically retrieve an energy consumption value measurement from a measuring unit coupled to the smart meter based on a polling interval;

a discovery engine, operatively coupled to the communication engine, configured to discover an update interval of the smart meter by increasing the polling interval iteratively from an initial value until a subsequently retrieved energy consumption value exceeds a value of a first retrieved energy consumption value; and

a user interface engine, operatively coupled to the discovery engine and the communication engine, configured to estimate a utility consumption at a present time based on the values of successively retrieved energy consumption values and the polling interval.

2. The control device of claim 1, wherein the discovery engine is further configured to increase the polling interval linearly with a base increment.

3. The control device of claim 1, wherein the user interface engine is further configured to estimate the utility consumption based on the successively retrieved energy consumption values of the measuring unit.

4. The control device of claim 1, wherein the smart meter comprises an electricity meter.

5. The control device of claim 6, wherein the measuring unit is a cumulative watt-hour register.

6. The control device of claim 1, wherein the smart meter comprises a gas or water meter.

8. A method of discovering an update interval of a smart meter, comprising:

determining an initial polling interval;

retrieving an energy consumption measurement value from a measuring unit coupled to the smart meter based on the initial polling interval;

determining the update interval by increasing the initial polling interval iteratively until a subsequently retrieved energy consumption measurement value exceeds a first retrieved energy consumption measurement value; and

estimating a utility consumption at a present time based on the difference between successively retrieved measurement values and the polling interval.

7. The control device of claim 8, wherein the measuring unit comprises a cumulative volume register.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising updating an in home display with the utility consumption at the present time.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein increasing the initial polling interval iteratively further comprises increasing the initial polling interval linearly with a base increment.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the smart meter comprises an electricity meter.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the measuring unit comprises a cumulative watt-hour register.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the smart meter comprises one or more of a gas or water meter.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the measuring unit is a cumulative volume register.