Electronic meter having user-interface and central processing functionality on a single printed circuit board
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A digital electrical power and energy meter comprising:
- a housing;
a plurality of interface cards residing within the housing, each interface card comprising a printed circuit board and an electrical mating connector, each electrical mating connector configured to be connected to a surface-mounted connector;
a first one of the plurality of interface cards comprises;
at least one voltage sensor for sensing a voltage signal;
at least one current sensor for sensing a current signal; and
at least one analog to digital converter coupled to said at least one voltage sensor and said at least one current sensor; and
a motherboard residing within the housing, the motherboard comprising;
a first surface and a second surface, the first surface opposing the second surface;
a plurality of surface-mounted connectors disposed on the first surface, each surface-mounted connector receiving the electrical mating connector of a respective one of the interface cards; and
a user interface module disposed on the second surface, the user interface module configured for displaying information to a user and receiving commands from a user.
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Abstract
A digital electrical power and energy meter integrates a primary processing module and a user interface module onto a single printed circuit board to reduce overall meter size, assembly time, and cost.
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Citations
37 Claims
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1. A digital electrical power and energy meter comprising:
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a housing; a plurality of interface cards residing within the housing, each interface card comprising a printed circuit board and an electrical mating connector, each electrical mating connector configured to be connected to a surface-mounted connector; a first one of the plurality of interface cards comprises; at least one voltage sensor for sensing a voltage signal; at least one current sensor for sensing a current signal; and at least one analog to digital converter coupled to said at least one voltage sensor and said at least one current sensor; and a motherboard residing within the housing, the motherboard comprising; a first surface and a second surface, the first surface opposing the second surface; a plurality of surface-mounted connectors disposed on the first surface, each surface-mounted connector receiving the electrical mating connector of a respective one of the interface cards; and a user interface module disposed on the second surface, the user interface module configured for displaying information to a user and receiving commands from a user. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 17, 21, 22, 34)
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10. A digital electrical power and energy meter comprising:
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a housing; a plurality of interface cards residing within the housing, each interface card comprising a printed circuit board and an electrical mating connector, each electrical mating connector configured to be connected to a surface-mounted connector; and a motherboard residing within the housing, the motherboard comprising; a first surface and a second surface, the first surface opposing the second surface; a plurality of surface-mounted connectors disposed on the first surface, each surface-mounted connector receiving the electrical mating connector of a respective one of interface cards; and a user interface module disposed on the second surface, the user interface module configured for displaying information to a user and receiving commands from a user, wherein the plurality of interface cards are disposed in parallel relation to each other and in perpendicular relation to the motherboard, and wherein the mating connector on each of the plurality of interface cards is disposed along an edge of the printed circuit board of the interface card. - View Dependent Claims (18, 23, 24, 28, 29, 35)
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11. A digital electrical power and energy meter comprising:
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a housing; a plurality of interface cards residing within the housing, each interface card comprising a printed circuit board and an electrical mating connector, each electrical mating connector configured to be connected to a surface-mounted connector; a first one of the plurality of interface cards comprises a metering module, the metering module capable of measuring or calculating at least one parameter of an AC electrical service; and a motherboard residing within the housing, the motherboard comprising; a first surface and a second surface, the first surface opposing the second surface; a plurality of surface-mounted connectors disposed on the first surface, each surface-mounted connector receiving the electrical mating connector of a respective one of the of interface cards; a processing module disposed on the first surface, the processing module capable of administering operation of the meter and processing data obtained by the metering module; and a user interface module disposed on the second surface, the user interface module configured for displaying information to a user and receiving commands from a user, wherein the plurality of interface cards are disposed in parallel relation to each other and in perpendicular relation to the motherboard, and wherein the mating connector on each of the plurality of interface cards is disposed along an edge of the printed circuit board of the interface card. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 19, 25, 30, 31, 36)
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15. A digital electrical power and energy meter comprising:
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a housing having a cover including at least one first opening and a rear portion including at least one second opening, the first opening opposing the second opening; and a motherboard residing within the housing, the motherboard comprising; a single printed circuit board having a first surface and a second surface, the first surface opposing the second surface; a user interface module disposed on the first surface, the user interface module configured for displaying information to a user and receiving commands from a user; a processing module disposed on the second surface, the processing module capable of administering operations of the meter, the processing module being communicatively coupled to the user interface module; and a plurality of surface-mounted connectors disposed on the second surface, each of the surface-mounted connectors receiving an electrical mating connector of a respective one of a plurality of interface cards, the plurality of surface-mounted connectors being communicatively coupled to the processing module, wherein the housing is configured to support the motherboard such that the first surface of the motherboard faces the at least one first opening for exposing the user interface module through the at least one first opening and the second surface faces the at least one second opening for receiving the plurality of interface cards through the at least one second opening. - View Dependent Claims (16, 20, 26, 27, 32, 33, 37)
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Specification