Roll-lock snap-on current transformer

• US 8,624,747 B2
• Filed: 05/20/2011
• Issued: 01/07/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: EnSite Power, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Intelligent Power, Inc. (Blue Earth Inc.)
• Inventors: Davis, Edward Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): TRIEU, VAN THANH
• Application Number:
  US13/112,388
• Publication Number:
  US 20120218114A1
• Time in Patent Office: 963 Days
• Field of Search: 340/538, 340/538.15, 340/539.1, 340/646, 340/657, 340/660, 340/661, 340/663, 340/310.16, 340/531, 340/310.01, 340/310.06, 340/310.07, 324/126, 324/127, 324/530, 324/539, 324/629, 700/292, 700/295, 361/62, 361/93.2, 361/93.8
• US Class Current: 340/646
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 1/22 Tong testers acting as secondary windings of current transformers
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 19/2513 Arrangements for monitoring electric power systems, e.g. power lines or loads; Logging

Abstract

A PeakPower Energy Management and Control System having one or more roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring devices, each to avoid interrupting power when installing current and/or power monitors. Each roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device may be snapped onto existing power wires inside a power panel or near equipment being monitored without disconnecting any wires or turning off power. Each roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device may be utilized in standalone mode as well as within a PeakPower Energy Management and Control System in accordance with disclosed embodiments. Each roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device may communicate via the power lines (Power Line Controller) or communicate via wireless using an integrated microprocessor based RF transceiver.

Claims

1. A form factor to clamp upon a power line, the form factor comprising:

a current transformer to measure an electrical current of the power line;

a power monitoring device to receive the measurement of the electrical current of the power line; and

a transceiver communicatively interfaced with the power monitoring device, wherein the transceiver is to communicate data representative of the measurement of the electrical current external to the form factor;

wherein the form factor to clamp upon the power line is formed from a double semicircle coil in which each of two halves forming the double semicircle coil are hingedly attached at a top side of the double semicircle coil which permit each of the two halves of the double semicircle coil to separate at a bottom side of the semicircle coil; and

further wherein a face at the bottom end of each of the two halves of the double semicircle coil comprise one or more rollers to permit each face to roll over a surface of the power line to be clamped upon during installation and removal of the form factor.

2. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the transceiver to communicate the data representative of the measurement of the electrical device external to the form factor comprises the transceiver to communicate the data to a data collection gateway, and wherein the data collection gateway to forward the data to a central data collection server responsive to receiving the data from the transceiver of the form factor.

3. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the transceiver is powered via energy derived from an electromagnetic field of the power line.

4. The form factor of claim 3, wherein the form factor further comprises a capacitor to receive the energy derived from the electromagnetic field of the power line, and wherein the transceiver powered via the energy comprises the transceiver to draw power from the capacitor to operate.

5. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the transceiver is a wireless transceiver capable of transmitting the data and receiving instruction.

6. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the transceiver is a power line controller capable transceiver to transmit data via the power line and to further receive instructions which are communicated to the transceiver via the power line.

7. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the form factor is a tail-free form factor having no wire, tail, or interface lead external to an exterior surface of the form factor.

8. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the clamped upon power line comprises an electrical power line having a live electrical current traversing thereupon.

9. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the form factor is installable within a power panel having a plurality of circuit breakers therein, in which the form factor permits a door of the power panel to close without wires protruding through the door of the power panel.

10. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the form factor constitutes a first form factor, and wherein a second form factor and a third form factor operate in conjunction with the first form factor to monitor a three-phase current upon the electrical current of the power line, wherein each of the first form factor, the second form factor, and the third form factor are respectively clamped upon one of three wires of the power line carrying the three-phase current.

11. The form factor of claim 10, wherein the first form factor, the second form factor, and the third form factor are clamped upon the three wires of the power line carrying the three-phase current adjacent to a three-phase circuit breaker for the power line, where each of the three wires exit the three-phase circuit breaker.

12. The form factor of claim 10, wherein the first form factor, the second form factor, and the third form factor are clamped upon the three wires of the power line carrying the three-phase current within an electrical apparatus which is electrically interfaced to the power line and which is powered by the power line.

13. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the current transformer measures the electrical current of the power line by producing a reduced current accurately proportional to the electrical current of the power line, and wherein the reduced current is input directly into the power monitoring device of the form factor.

14. The form factor of claim 1, wherein the form factor constitutes a roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device.

15. The form factor of claim 14, wherein the roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device having the transceiver therein to communicate data representative of the measurement of the electrical device comprises the roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device to communicate data to a peak power system having functionality to simultaneously monitor a plurality of roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring devices.

16. A method comprising:

selecting a power line to be monitored, the power line comprising a live electrical current traversing thereupon;

clamping a roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device onto the power line to be monitored without interrupting the live electrical current traversing the power line; and

receiving data from the roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device which is clamped upon the power line, wherein the data is representative of a measurement of the live electrical current traversing the power line;

wherein the roll-lock snap-on current transformer clamped upon the power line is formed from a double semicircle coil in which each of two halves forming the double semicircle coil are hingedly attached at a top side of the double semicircle coil which permit each of the two halves of the double semicircle coil to separate at a bottom side of the semicircle coil; and

further wherein a face at the bottom end of each of the two halves of the double semicircle coil comprise one or more rollers to permit each face to roll over a surface of the power line to be clamped upon during installation and removal of the roll-lock snap-on current transformer.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device comprises:

(i) a current transformer to measure the live electrical current of the power line,

(ii) a power monitoring device to receive the measurement of the live electrical current of the power line, and

(iii) a transceiver communicatively interfaced with the power monitoring device, wherein the transceiver to communicate the data representative of the measurement of the electrical current.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein receiving the data from the roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device which is clamped upon the power line comprises receiving the data via a data collection point external to the roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device via wireless interface or a power line controller interface.

19. A peak power system comprising:

a central data collection server to collect telemetric data; and

a plurality of roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring devices;

each of the plurality of roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring devices being formed from a double semicircle coil in which each of two halves forming the double semicircle coil are hingedly attached at a top side of the double semicircle coil which permit each of the two halves of the double semicircle coil to separate at a bottom side of the semicircle coil and further wherein a face at the bottom end of each of the two halves of the double semicircle coil comprise one or more rollers to permit each face to roll over a surface of the power line to be clamped upon during installation and removal of the respective roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring device.

20. The peak power system of claim 19, wherein each of the plurality of roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring devices comprises:

a current transformer to measure a live electrical current of a power line upon which each of the plurality of roll-lock snap-on current transformer power monitoring devices is clamped upon;

a power monitoring device to receive a measurement of the live electrical current of the respective power line; and

a transceiver communicatively interfaced with the power monitoring device, wherein the transceiver is to communicate the data representative of the measurement of the electrical current to the central data collection server.

21. The peak power system of claim 19, further comprising:

a peak power system interface, the interface to implement operations comprising;

selecting a manufacturer and model number for each of a plurality of equipment to be monitored;

retrieving equipment signatures from a database based on the manufacturer and model numbers selected;

analyzing the collected telemetric data based on the retrieved equipment signatures;

generating a good flag, an alert, or an alarm for each equipment selected to be monitored based on determined variance derived from a comparison of the retrieved signatures to a corresponding one of the plurality of the equipment to be monitored; and

instructing an operator via the peak power system interface based on the generated flag, alert, or alarm.