AMI for Consumer Billing

Kalkitech solution for Commercial & Industrial (C&I) and Domestic Consumer Metering tries to cover every aspect required by a utility/ consumer to efficiently monitor, control and manage revenue/ costs. Ideally,  an advanced metering system in a smart grid setup should be able to empower the  consumer to participate in demand response programs. This will be a win-win situation for all parties as the power consumption can then be shifted to non-peak hours where tariff/ billing rates are low and also less strenous on the power system. 

Our AMR/AMI solution is based on some of the key products in the metering portfolio maintained by Kalkitech. Getting real-time data for demand side management requires an end to end advanced metering infrastructure, with the meter at the domestic consumer connected to the Central Data Collection System (CDCS) and through a host of communication channels and metering support. The solution includes all components necessary for the smooth functioning of utility processes such as Multiutility Smart Meters (electricity, gas and water), Intelligent Modems (IM), Data Concentrator (DC), AMI Head End (AHE) and Meter Data Management System (MDMS). 

At the heart of a consumer AMI system is the Smart Meter. Typically a smart meter is required to support various features like Multi-tariff, Automatic Billing, Remote Connect/ Disconnect and Remote Firmware upgrade. To support these features, it is desired that the meters support a wide variety of communication channel options like Zigbee, PLC or GPRS and standard communication protocols like DLMS and ANSI. But, today most of the existing installations have only legacy meters that might support only serial communication channels and/or proprietary protocols. The communication capability of such legacy meters can be enhanced by means of smart Meter Interface Cards/Meter Interface Units like Kalkitech SYNC 6xx /SYNC 19xx . The MIC/ MIU imparts standard based communication capability to these meters which otherwise might support only legacy communication protocols.  Data concentrator is an intelligent embedded device which can be installed any where in the LV network to communicate with meter periodically and on demand. The data concentrator will internally store the data read from meters and will be served to central system either by PULL or by PUSH mode. Kalkitech SYNC 17xx is a scalable meter data concentrator which can handle more than 1500 meters, supports various protocols including DLMS/ COSEM and with multiple communication options such as serial, RF, GPRS, PLC. In addition to meter read, SYNC 17xx metering DCU can also handle alarms, events and detection of new meters. 

The central system operates based on automatic scheduled tasks as well as on manual intervention via Graphical User Interface (GUI) softwares. Configuration data, instantaneous process/ status values and profile/ historic information acquired from the meters are historically stored in a relational database. This database enables access from central system application software as well as from external systems and programs. The central software is an interoperable head-end meter data collection system that supports a wide range of meter types, terminals and concentrators. The data can then further be sent to other enterprise integration/ billing/ SCADA/ DMS applications. 

Consumer metering might involve different scenarios like Apartment complex metering, Independant house/ villa metering as well as C&I metering. A typical apartment complex metering might need only an RS 485 multidrop (as meters are in a single location) to connect to the DCU and the data can be transferred to the  Energy management system in the apartment complex. In independent houses/ villas/  commercial building, the meters might need RF meshes/ PLC to communicate data to the data collection unit as the meters could be at a distance of 20-200m. In case of industrial consumer metering, where the density of meter would be very less and distance between meters very high, a direct GPRS connectivity in meter could be the best solution.  

One of the key aspects of the solution is the importance it gives to data security and integrity. The solution ensures a highly secured data exchange at various steps through NERC/ CIP compliant security, User Management in Configuration Utility to prevent unauthorized configuration as well as end to end SSL encrypted VPN security  that prevents intended/ unintended tampering . Another key feature is the EMC/ AMI requirement satisfaction by key devices in the solution like the SYNC metering data concentrator (SYNC 17xx). 

Consumer metering data is the key input for almost all smart grid applications making the billing AMI system critical for every stake holder in the power supply chain. A typical distribution utility that requires Distribution Management Systems to perform key tasks like Network management, Fault Location Identification & System Restoration (FLISR), Volt VAR Control (VVC), Consumer Engagement for Demand Response and Billing need to make use of the real time data from the AMI system.

The key benefits of implementing Kalkitech's AMI Solution for billing/ Energy Accounting includes:

Kalkitech SYNC 600 series consists of MIC that can be plugged into Energy Meters through a TTL interface to enhance the communication capabilities of the meters. The device acts as a data converter for last-mile connectivity for Energy Meters and also as a data concentrator for sub-metering devices if required.  It supports communication channels like Zigbee/ GPRS/ PLC/ RS 485 on the DCU side and standard metering protocols like DLMS, ANSI, Modbus, IEC 61107.   MIC can also be customized based on the requirements for the meter.          

For more information on Kalkitech SYNC 200, please visit SYNC 200 Series