Open type electricity meter

• US 6,611,134 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2001
• Issued: 08/26/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Xeline Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Xeline Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Chung, Beom-Jin
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuneo, Kamand
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Trung Q.
• Application Number:
  US09/906,072
• Publication Number:
  US 20020014884A1
• Time in Patent Office: 770 Days
• Field of Search: 324/74, 324/435, 324/458, 324/137, 324/99.D, 324/103.P, 324/122, 359/145, 359/110, 359/155, 359/148, 340/870.02, 340/3.7, 340/5.9, 702/62, 235/492, 235/381, 713/200
• US Class Current: 324/74
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 4/004 Remote reading of utility meters to a fixed location
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 22/00 Arrangements for measuring time integral of electric power or current, e.g. electricity meters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5408 using protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5454 Adapter and plugs
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5483 using coupling circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5491 using filtering and bypassing
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/54 Systems for transmission via power distribution lines
• 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

Disclosed an open type electricity meter having an open type communication module. The module comprises a power line communication unit for separating a high frequency power line communication signal from a power line signal; a packet connecting unit for transmitting the communication signal received into the power line communication unit according to frame type to a corresponding processing unit as data, and packets data from a higher processing unit according to frame type to provide the same to the power line communication unit; a low speed data processing unit being connected to the packet connecting unit and installing a TCP/IP protocol engine to perform a remote measurement communication; a high speed data processing unit for performing a communication with the power line communication unit to transmit high speed data to an indoor communication terminal and to transmit the high speed data to an outdoor communication terminal through the packet connecting unit; and a telephony processing unit connected to an external audio processing unit for coding an audio signal from the audio processing unit to be provided to the packet connecting unit and decoding the coded audio signal from the packet connecting unit to be provided to the external audio processing unit. A low voltage distribution network can be applied as communication and subscriber networks to enhance the efficiency of the data communication.

Claims

1. An open type electricity meter installed indoors for measuring a consumed power quantity, comprising a communication protocol, and an open type communication module for performing a high speed data communication, a low speed data communication, and a telephony communication through a power line communication according to a communication frame type being transmitted and received, wherein said open type communication module further comprises:

a power line communication unit for separating a high frequency power line communication signal from a power line signal;

a packet connecting unit for transmitting the communication signal received into said power line communication unit according to frame type to a corresponding processing unit as data, and packetizes data from a higher processing unit according to frame type to provide the same to said power line communication unit;

a low speed data processing unit being connected to said packet connecting unit and installing a TCP/IP protocol engine to perform a remote measurement communication;

a high speed data processing unit for performing a communication with said power line communication unit to transmit high speed data to an indoor communication terminal and to transmit the high speed data to an outdoor communication terminal through said packet connecting unit; and

a telephony processing unit connected to an external audio processing unit for coding an audio signal from the audio processing unit to be provided to said packet connecting unit and decoding the coded audio signal from said packet connecting unit to be provided to the external audio processing unit.

2. The open type electricity meter installed indoors for measuring a consumed power quantity according to claim 1, wherein said power line communication unit has:

an indoor power line modem for separating data from a power signal provided from the indoor communication terminal and performing a communication with said high speed data processing unit through the separated data; and

an outdoor power line modem for transmitting the data from said packet connecting unit to the outdoor communication terminal and providing data from the outdoor communication terminal to said packet connecting unit.

3. The open type electricity meter installed indoors for measuring a consumed power quantity according to claim 1, if a packet from said telephony processing unit is received into said power line communication unit and an audio packet is transmitted from said power line communication unit to said telephony processing unit, wherein said packet connecting unit suspends other types of packet services of low and high speed and processes telephony data with priority.

4. The open type electricity meter installed indoors for measuring a consumed power quantity according to claim 1, wherein said low speed data processing unit has:

a remote measuring unit for remotely measuring the consumed power quantity; and

an ethernet MAC connected to said packet connecting unit for transmitting the low speed data by the communication frame provided from the TCP/IP protocol engine and receiving the low speed data from said packet connecting unit.

5. The open type electricity meter installed indoors for measuring a consumed power quantity according to claim 1, wherein said telephony processing unit has:

a telephone connecting unit for being communication connected to an external telephone;

an audio coding unit for receiving analog audio signal of the telephone provided via said telephone connecting unit and generating digital audio data; and

a telephony protocol engine for packeting the digital audio data from said audio coding unit.

6. The open type electricity meter installed indoors for measuring a consumed power quantity according to claim 1, wherein said high speed data processing unit has:

a switch connected to said packet connecting unit for performing a flow control of data according to communication;

a memory for temporarily storing the incoming packet data by the flow control of said ethernet switch; and

an ethernet PHY for transmitting the continuous incoming packet data provided by the flow control of said ethernet switch to the external communication terminal.

7. The open type electricity meter installed indoors for measuring a consumed power quantity according to claim 1, wherein said additional terminals are at least one of a computer having an ethernet LAN card installed therein and a high speed data modem of an ethernet connection type which has the TCP/IP protocol engine therein and can perform a high speed data transmission and receiving according to a high speed processing.