US Patent No: 7,227,462
Number of patents in Portfolio can not be more than 2000
Extremely fast polling method for determining the presence of individual electric meters on a power line
Stats
-
Jun 5, 2007
Issued date -
Mar 9, 2005
filing date -
11/075,506
serial no -
In Force
status
Importance
Loading Importance Indicators...
Abstract
A "super-fast" polling method for electrical meters for outage detection. In response to a query, a large group of electric meters (M) all simultaneously transmit reply signals over an electrical distribution network using TWACS.RTM.. The signals are separated by an inbound detector (IB) at a receiving end of the network. This allows a very large number of meters to be polled in a very short period of time to determine whether or not an outage has occurred at the location of each meter. Each meter transmits a bit pattern, and bit patterns are designed so a group of meter units can transmit their patterns simultaneously over a power line (L) to the inbound detector. The presence or absence of a bit pattern in the received signal conveys the presence or absence of the associated meter in the system. The ability to transmit multiple bit patterns in parallel requires that they be orthogonal to each other. The Hadamard matrices are a class of matrices whose rows could be used as a set of bit patterns.In addition to super-fast polling for outage detection, the method of the invention can also be used to poll meters for the presence of an alarm condition, as well as for both outage detection and an alarm condition.
Loading the Abstract Image...
First Claim
Related Publications
Loading Related Publications...
International Classification(s)
- [Classification Symbol]
- [Patents Count]
Cited Art
| Patent Info | (Count) | # Cites | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| 5,384,712 Energy monitoring system for a plurality of local stations with snapshot polling from a central station | 60 | 1991 | |
| 5,315,531 Energy monitoring system for a plurality of local stations with snapshot polling from a central station | 53 | 1992 | |
|
|
|||
| 4,446,462 Method and apparatus for multiple frequency transmission of information in a digital communication system | 23 | 1982 | |
| 5,903,594 Power line communications spread spectrum protocol | 26 | 1997 | |
|
|
|||
| 5,491,463 Power line communication system | 103 | 1993 | |
|
|
|||
| 6,278,357 Apparatus and method for implementing digital communications on a power line | 59 | 2000 | |
|
|
|||
| 5,940,009 Apparatus and method to detect tampering with an electronic utility meter | 42 | 1997 | |
|
|
|||
| 5,553,094 Radio communication network for remote data generating stations | 216 | 1994 | |
|
|
|||
| 6,195,018 Metering system | 170 | 1996 | |
|
|
|||
| 6,351,223 System and method for reading and transmitting water meter data utilizing RF signals | 46 | 1999 | |
|
|
|||
| 4,559,520 Method for communication utilizing multi-mode reception | 24 | 1982 | |
|
|
|||
| 6,710,721 Radio frequency automated meter reading device | 53 | 1999 | |
Patent Citation Ranking
Maintenance Fees
| Fee | Large entity fee | small entity fee | micro entity fee | due date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.5 Year Payment | $3600.00 | $1800.00 | $900.00 | Dec 5, 2014 |
| 11.5 Year Payment | $7400.00 | $3700.00 | $1850.00 | Dec 5, 2018 |
| Fee | Large entity fee | small entity fee | micro entity fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Surcharge - 7.5 year - Late payment within 6 months | $160.00 | $80.00 | $40.00 |
| Surcharge - 11.5 year - Late payment within 6 months | $160.00 | $80.00 | $40.00 |
| Surcharge after expiration - Late payment is unavoidable | $700.00 | $350.00 | $175.00 |
| Surcharge after expiration - Late payment is unintentional | $1,640.00 | $820.00 | $410.00 |