Automated remote water meter readout system
First Claim
1. In a meter measuring consumption of an item and having a case with a rotating magnet therein producing a magnetic field moving at a rate proportional to the consumption of the item, the improvement for remotely reading data from outside of the meter without physically invading or modifying the meter comprising:
- (a) sensor means disposed outside of the case for sensing a portion of the magnetic field passing through the case and for providing an electrical signal proportional to the rate of movement of the magnetic field;
(b) consumption calculation means connected to receive said electrical signal for producing a binary count of the consumption of the item;
(c) transmitter means for wirelessly transmitting said binary count; and
,(d) receiver means for receiving said wirelessly transmitted binary count and for transmitting said received binary count to a central site which uses the data.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An automated multi-purpose utility water meter readout system. The disclosed system obtains water usage information from an existing water meter without any modifications or attachments to the meter. The device needs only to be located in proximity to the water meter and obtains water flow information by sensing the magnetic flux lines generated by the internal rotating coupling magnets of the water meter. The varying magnetic flux is converted to a periodic electrical signal whose frequency is proportional to the flow rate. The instantaneous flow is continually totalized and stored in a solid-state counter, from which the totalized flow information is periodically transmitted to a remote receiver by a standard, well-proven radio frequency telemetry link. The remote receiver stores data from multiple meters (up to 10,000) and periodically sends the data to the data processing office by means of telephone lines, CATV cable, or RF link. As an option, the system offers a feature that can provide direct benefits to the water user, i.e. an interface unit located in the user'"'"'s residence receives water use data from the meter and displays this data to aid in water conservation and provide warnings of water leaks. The disclosed system is optionally powered by a novel solid-state thermoelectric generator which converts ambient thermal energy to electrical energy and provides an operational life that far exceeds the economic life of the device.
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Citations
33 Claims
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1. In a meter measuring consumption of an item and having a case with a rotating magnet therein producing a magnetic field moving at a rate proportional to the consumption of the item, the improvement for remotely reading data from outside of the meter without physically invading or modifying the meter comprising:
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(a) sensor means disposed outside of the case for sensing a portion of the magnetic field passing through the case and for providing an electrical signal proportional to the rate of movement of the magnetic field; (b) consumption calculation means connected to receive said electrical signal for producing a binary count of the consumption of the item; (c) transmitter means for wirelessly transmitting said binary count; and
,(d) receiver means for receiving said wirelessly transmitted binary count and for transmitting said received binary count to a central site which uses the data. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A sensor/transmitter unit for non-invasively mounting in association with a water meter measuring consumption of water and including a case containing a coupling magnet producing a magnetic field rotating at a rate proportional to the water consumption rate and for transmitting consumption data for remote reading of the meter comprising:
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(a) magnetic flux sensor means disposed outside of the case for sensing a portion of the magnetic field passing through the case and for providing a signal proportional to the rate of rotation of the magnetic field; (b) consumption calculation means connected to receive said signal for producing a binary count of the water consumption; and
,(c) transmitter means for wirelessly transmitting said binary count. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A self-powered sensor/transmitter unit for attachment to a water meter for transmitting water consumption data to allow remote reading of the meter comprising:
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(a) sensor means for sensing a component of the water meter moving in proportion to the rate of water consumption and for providing a signal proportional to the rate of rotation of said component; (b) consumption calculation means connected to receive said signal for producing a binary count of the water consumption; (c) transmitter means for transmitting said binary count; and
,(d) thermoelectric generation means for providing power to said consumption calculation means and said transmitter means from changes in temperature at the location of the water meter. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A thermo-electric generator for providing power to low-power devices at remote locations from changes in temperature at the location of a device incorporating the generator comprising:
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(a) a plurality of thermo-electric elements disposed between a pair of contact plates in series electrically and in parallel thermally; (b) a first heat sink member thermally connected to one of said pair of contact plates; and
,(c) a second heat sink member thermally connected to the other of said pair of contact plates, said second heat sink member being of a different mass than said first heat sink member. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27)
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28. A system of remotely and non-invasively monitoring and reading consumption data from a plurality of water meters each including a case having a coupling magnet therein producing a magnetic field rotating at a rate proportional to the water consumption rate comprising:
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(a) a plurality of sensor/transmitter units for mounting outside of the case in association with respective ones of the water meters, each said sensor/transmitter unit comprising; (a1) magnetic flux sensor means for sensing a portion of the magnetic field passing through the case and for providing a signal proportional to the rate of rotation of the magnetic field, (a2) consumption calculation means connected to receive said signal for producing a binary count of the water consumption, and (a3) transmitter means for wirelessly transmitting said binary count; and
,(b) receiver means for receiving said wirelessly transmitted binary count from said sensor/transmitter units and for transmitting said received binary count to a central site employing the data. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. A system for remotely monitoring and reading consumption data from a plurality of utility meters each including a component moving in proportion to the consumption of an associated utility item comprising:
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(a) a plurality of sensor/transmitter units for mounting in association with respective ones of the meters, each said sensor/transmitter unit comprising, (a1) sensor means for sensing movement of the component and for providing a signal proportional thereto, (a2) consumption calculation means connected to receive said signal for producing a binary count of the consumption of the associated utility item, and (a3) transmitter means for wirelessly transmitting said binary count; and
,(b) receiver means for receiving said wirelessly transmitted binary count from said sensor/transmitter units and for transmitting said received binary count to a central site, said receiver means including means for multiplexing the transmitting of said received binary counts to said central site.
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Specification