Intelligent two-way telemetry

• US 7,230,544 B2
• Filed: 11/28/2005
• Issued: 06/12/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Landis+Gyr Innovations Incorporated (Landis+Gyr Group AG)
• Original Assignee: Cellnet Innovations, Inc. (Landis+Gyr Group AG)
• Inventors: Van Heteren, John Gerald
• Primary Examiner(s): WONG, ALBERT KANG
• Application Number:
  US11/287,748
• Publication Number:
  US 20060111796A1
• Time in Patent Office: 561 Days
• Field of Search: 340/870.02, 340/870.03, 340/870.06, 340/635, 705/412, 324/103.R, 700/295
• US Class Current: 340/870.03
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 2204/45 Utility meters networked together within a single building
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 4/004 Remote reading of utility meters to a fixed location
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• 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

Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, implementing and using techniques for intelligent two-way telemetry. A telemetry system in accordance with the invention includes one or more telemetry units that can receive and send data. The system further includes one or more controllers that includes intelligence for processing data from the one or more telemetry units and for autonomously communicating with the one or more telemetry units. The controllers are separately located from a data processing center of the telemetry system such that the controllers alleviate data congestion going to and coming from the data processing center.

Claims

1. A telemetry system, comprising:

a data processing center;

telemetry units located at end points of the system and capable of receiving and sending data;

end point devices located at end points of the system and capable of adjusting utility consumption at the end point; and

controllers located separate from the data processing center and end points and capable of communication with the data processing center and telemetry units, wherein at least some of the controllers include intelligence for;

(a) receiving telemetry data from the telemetry units, wherein the telemetry data includes a measure of utility consumption at the end point;

(b) receiving from the data processing center additional information and storing the additional information;

(c) making a decision using the telemetry data and the additional stored information; and

(d) sending one or more communications to one or more of the end point devices to control consumption in accordance with the decision.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the decision includes a selection of end points; and

the one or more communications are sent to control the selected end paint devices in accordance with the decision.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein:

one or more of the end point devices includes a smart thermostat.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein:

the one or more communications each include a curtailment command.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the additional stored information is pricing information tat is periodically updated at the controller when pricing information is received from the data processing center.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein:

the pricing information received from the data processing center includes utility pricing tables;

the decision determines whether to adjust a setting of one of the end point devices; and

one or more of the communications includes a command that adjusts the setting of the end point device.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the controllers further include intelligence for processing the telemetry data received from the telemetry devices and sending the processed data to the data processing center.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the one or more controllers includes intelligence for generating separate messages from a single message from the data processing center, each separate message being sent to one of the end points.

9. A computer program product, tangibly stored on computer readable medium at a controller, the controller remote from and capable of communication with a data processing center and end points in a metering system, the product including instructions to cause the controller to:

store utility pricing data and user preference data, wherein the utility pricing and user preference data are updated upon receipt of updated utility pricing and user preference data;

make a decision using (a) telemetry received from one or more of the end points, the telemetry including a measure of utility consumption, (b) one or more of the user preferences stored at the controller, and (c) one or more of the utility pricing data stored at the controller; and

send a communication to a device to control consumption at one of the end points in accordance with the decision, wherein the device controls or monitors consumption of the utility at the end point.

10. The product of claim 9, further comprising instructions to:

determine utility pricing data associated with one of the end points using utility pricing tables from one or more utility companies received at the controller.

11. The product of claim 9, wherein the instructions to control the device at the end point includes instructions to:

control a smart thermostat.

12. The product of claim 9, further comprising instructions to cause the controller to:

select one or more of the end points of the metering system in response to receiving a curtailment command; and

send the curtailment command to the selected end points of the metering system.

13. The product of claim 12, wherein the instructions to cause the controller to select end points include instructions to cause the controller to:

select one or more of the end points based on information specifying a type of utility service associated with the end point.

14. The product of claim 12, further comprising instructions to cause the controller to:

maintain statistics of a number of end points that accepted the curtailment command and a number of end points that override the curtailment command.

15. The product of claim 12, further comprising instructions to cause the controller to:

determine whether responses to the curtailment command are satisfactory; and

when the responses are unsatisfactory, send another curtailment command specifying a higher level of curtailment to the selected end points that accepted the curtailment command.

16. The product of claim 9, further comprising instructions to cause the controller to:

process a message received from the data processing center intended for two or more end points;

generate separate messages, each of the separate messages being addressed to a respective end point in accordance with the received message; and

send the separate messages to the respective end points.

17. A method for providing a metering system comprising:

providing a controller remote from and capable of communication with a data processing center and end points in the metering system;

storing utility pricing data and user preference data, wherein the utility pricing and user preference data are updated upon receipt of updated utility pricing and user preference data;

making a decision using (a) telemetry received from one or more end points, the telemetry including a measure of utility consumption, (b) one or more of the user preferences stored at the controller, and (c) one or more of the utility pricing data stored at the controller; and

sending a communication to a device to control consumption at one of the end points in accordance with the decision, wherein the device controls or monitors consumption of the utility.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising determining utility pricing data associated with one of the end points.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the device is a smart thermostat.

20. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

selecting end points at one of the controllers of the metering system in response to the controller receiving a curtailment command from the data processing center; and

sending the curtailment command to the selected end points of the metering system.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising selecting an end point based on information specifying a type of utility service associated with the end point.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising maintaining statistics of a number of end points that accepted the curtailment command and a number of end points that override the curtailment command.

23. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

determining whether the responses to the curtailment command are satisfactory; and

when the responses are unsatisfactory, sending another curtailment command specifying a higher level of curtailment to the selected end points that accepted the curtailment command.