03/13/2012
A smart meter is usually an electrical meter that records consumption of electric energy in intervals of an hour or less and communicates that information at least daily back to the utility for monitoring and billing purposes. Smart meters enable two-way communication between the meter and the central system. Unlike home energy monitors, smart meters can gather data for remote reporting. Such an advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) differs from traditional automatic meter reading (AMR) in that it enables two-way communications with the meter.
Overview
The term Smart meter often refers to an electricity meter, but it can also mean a device measuring natural gas or water consumption.
Similar meters, usually referred to as interval or time-of-use meters, have existed for years, but Smart Meters usually involve real-time or near real-time sensors, power outage notification, and power quality monitoring. These additional features are more than simple automated meter reading (AMR). They are similar in many respects to Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) meters. Smart meters are also believed to be a less costly alternative to traditional interval or time-of-use meters and are intended to be used on a wide scale with all customer classes, including residential customers. (Interval and time-of-use meters are more of a legacy technology that historically have been installed to measure commercial and industrial customers, but typically provide no AMR functionality.)
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