KR20040087637A - AMR terminals and AMR system using thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a remote meter reading terminal and a remote meter reading system using the same that enables remote meter reading by reading the meter value displayed on the analog meter as a digital value. Among them, the terminal of the present invention is an integrated meter having an analog metering unit that moves in proportion to the flow of the object to be weighed and a gear unit for rotating the number plate of the metering unit according to the movement of the analog metering unit. K number plates adapted to have and display a weighing value; K photodetectors for irradiating light to the number plate by emitting light and then receiving reflected light and detecting the light as an electrical signal; A terminal ID setting unit for setting a unique number (ID) of the terminal; Communication unit for communicating with the server side for the remote meter reading; And when the reading condition is met, by controlling the photodetector to read and store the measured value by comparing the intensity of the optical signal input from the photodetector with a predetermined reference value, and storing the stored weighing data when a data request is received from the server side. The remote reading terminal can be implemented at low cost by directly reading the numerical value of the weighing display unit, including a meter reading and a control unit transmitted together with the meter ID.

Description

Remote metering terminal and remote metering system using the same {AMR terminals and AMR system using

The present invention relates to a meter used for remote meter reading, and more particularly, to a remote meter reading terminal and a remote meter reading system using the same to read the meter value displayed on the meter directly as a digital value.

In general, the main resources such as electricity, water, gas, etc. are charged according to the demand of the consumer, so each user's facility is equipped with a meter to measure the amount of usage.

Figure 1a is a schematic diagram showing a conventional analog integrated meter, the conventional meter is made of a disk or the like that rotates in accordance with the amount of use, the analog metering unit 12 for measuring the amount of use and the mechanical movement of the analog metering unit 12 It consists of a gear unit 14 for rotating the number plate of the metering display unit 16 by using, and a metering display unit 16 for cumulatively displaying the amount of use as the gear unit 14 rotates.

At this time, as shown in Figure 1b, the weighing display unit 16 is composed of a number plate (16-1) rotated in accordance with the mechanical movement of the gear shaft (16-2), the number plate (16-1) Numbers from 0 to 9 are recorded so that the reader can read them and displayed in decimal notation according to the position of the numeric plate 16-1.

However, the metered value of such an analog meter has a problem that the meter reading costs are expensive due to the meter visitor needs to visit each visitor manually.

In order to solve this problem, a digital meter which measures digitally by generating a pulse is generated every time the rotating disc of the analog meter rotates. In the case of the image sensing method, there is a problem in that an expensive configuration is added to the components for image sensing.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a remote meter reading terminal and a remote meter reading system using the same that can read the weighing value digitally by partially improving the number plate part of the existing analog meter.

1A and 1B are schematic diagrams showing a conventional analog integrating meter,

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of an integrated meter for remote meter reading applied to the present invention,

3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a terminal for remote meter reading according to the present invention;

4 is a view illustrating a concept of directly reading a weighing value according to the present invention;

5 is a flowchart illustrating a meter reading procedure of a remote meter reading terminal according to the present invention;

6 is a block diagram of a remote meter reading system using a remote meter reading terminal according to the present invention,

7 is a flowchart illustrating a meter reading procedure of the remote meter reading system according to the present invention;

8 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the remote meter reading terminal used in the remote meter reading system according to the present invention.

* Explanation of symbols for main parts of the drawings

210: analog weighing unit 220: gear unit

230: Weighing display unit 240: Digital weighing unit

232-1 to 232-k: Numeric plates 241-1 to 241-k: Photodetector

242: meter ID setting unit 243: meter reading and control unit

244: communication unit 245: battery

246: power control unit

In order to achieve the above object, the remote meter reading terminal of the present invention, an integrated meter having an analog metering unit that moves in proportion to the flow rate of the object to be weighed and a gear unit for rotating the number plate of the metering unit according to the movement of the analog metering unit. A numeric keypad configured to have a different amount of reflection for each number pad and to display a weighing value; K photodetectors for irradiating light to the number plate by emitting light and then receiving reflected light and detecting the light as an electrical signal; A terminal ID setting unit for setting a unique number (ID) of the terminal; Communication unit for communicating with the server side for the remote meter reading; And when the reading condition is met, by controlling the photodetector to read and store the measured value by comparing the intensity of the optical signal input from the photodetector with a predetermined reference value, and storing the stored weighing data when a data request is received from the server side. Characterized in that it comprises a meter reading and control unit to transmit along with the meter ID.

In addition, in order to achieve the above object, the system of the present invention, a remote metering server for giving a metering command to remotely read the metered value of each consumer, collecting and charging the metering result data; A concentrator for transmitting a meter reading command from the remote meter reading server through a communication network to a corresponding terminal for remote meter reading, and transmitting the received meter reading data to the remote meter reading server; And k number plates for displaying the measured value, each of the number pads having a different amount of reflection, and k number of light detectors for detecting the reflected light after receiving the reflected light after irradiating light to the number plate by light emission. A terminal ID setting unit for setting a unique number (ID), a communication unit for communicating with a server side for remote meter reading, and when the metering condition is met, the optical detector is controlled to determine the intensity of the optical signal input from the light detector. The weighing value is read and stored by comparing with the reference value of the meter, and when the data request is received from the server, the meter reading command and control unit transmits the stored weighing data together with the meter ID to receive the meter reading command from the concentrator through the local network. Remote reading stage for reading the value of the analog totalizer directly and sending it to the concentrator. The group consisting of features.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a total meter for telemetering meter to which the present invention is applied.

Referring to FIG. 2, the totalizer according to the present invention includes an analog metering unit 210, a gear unit 220, a metering value display unit 230, and a digital metering unit 240, to ensure the reliability of the meter. The analog metering unit 210 and the gear unit 220 and the weighing value display unit 230 use the conventional analog method as it is, but by partially changing the numeric plates 232-1 to 232-k of the weighing value display unit 230. Digital readings can be read directly.

The analog metering unit 210 is composed of a disc or the like that is rotated in proportion to the flow of the metered object, such as water, gas, electricity, etc., the gear unit 220 is a suitable gear mechanism using the rotational movement of the analog metering unit 210 Rotate the number plates 232-1 to 232-k of the measured value display unit 230.

The weighing value display unit 230 is composed of a proper number (k) number plates 232-1 to 232-k according to the weighing capacity, and displays the weighing value. The number plate is advanced one column to display the measured value in decimal. For example, in the integrated power meter, when the one-digit plate, the ten-digit plate, the hundred-digit plate, and the thousand-digit plate are used, 2, 4, 3, and 7 indicate that the cumulative power consumption is 2,437 Kw.

In particular, the numeric display panels 232-1 to 232-k used in the present invention are arranged such that the amount of reflection of light is hierarchically varied according to the numerical values recorded as shown in FIG. 4. You can read it directly.

Referring to FIG. 4, when the number plates 232-1 to 232-k are unfolded, the number pads 0 to 9 are coated with reflecting materials to different degrees, and as shown in the graph, the amount of reflection is hierarchically different. It is meant to be built. The numerical value is shown in Table 1 below.

number 0 One 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Reflective amount (%) 95 85 75 65 55 45 35 25 15 5

When the same light is incident as shown in Table 1, the relative reflection is about 95% in the number plate 0, about 85% in the number plate 1, and gradually decreases at equal intervals in the number plate 9 It is about 5%. As described above, by varying the reflectance for each numeric pad with respect to the same incident light, the numerical value can be read out by comparing the received amount (the intensity of the received signal) with the reference value. In Table 1, as the number increases, the amount of reflection decreases. On the contrary, as the number increases, the amount of reflection may increase or may have a continuous value rather than hierarchical.

3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a terminal for remote meter reading according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 3, the terminal for remote reading according to the present invention includes k number plates 232-1 to 232-k that have different reflection amounts for each number pad, and corresponding number plates 232-1 to light emission. 232-k) k light detectors 241-1 to 241-k for receiving the reflected light and detecting the reflected light after detecting light, and a meter ID setting unit 242 for setting a unique ID of the meter, When the reading condition is met, the photodetectors 241-1 to 241-k are controlled to compare the intensity of the light input from the photodetector with a predetermined reference value, read and store the measured value, and when the data request is received, the stored measured value data. It is composed of a meter reading and control unit 243 for transmitting the meter with the ID, the communication unit 244 for remote meter reading, the battery 245, the power control unit 246 for controlling the power supply of the battery.

Referring to FIG. 3, the number plates 232-1 to 232-k have different reflection amounts from each other according to the number pads, and the light detectors 241-1 to 241-k are supplied with power according to a control signal. The light emitting unit 241S generates light to irradiate light on the numeric keypad and the light receiving unit 241R receives light reflected from the numeric keypad to detect an optical signal corresponding to the numeric pad.

The meter ID setting unit 242 sets a unique number (ID) for identifying the meter of each consumer, and the meter reading and control unit 243 is composed of a microprocessor (MCU), the light detectors 241-1 to 241-k. After reading the optical signal received from) and comparing the reference signal with a predefined reference signal, the weighing value of the number plate is read and stored in YPIROM. At this time, the microprocessor divides and controls the operation mode into 'sleep mode', 'STBY mode' and 'normal mode' which operate with the minimum power to reduce power consumption. In the sleep mode, only the internal timer (RTC) function operates to operate at the minimum power, and then wakes up after a certain period or a predetermined condition. In the standby mode, power is supplied to the communication unit 244 so that the communication function operates normally. When the wireless signal is received through the communication unit 244, the communication unit 244 operates in the normal mode. The power controller 246 controls the power of the battery 245 according to the meter reading and the control of the controller 243 to minimize the power consumption.

The communication unit 244 is made of a wired modem or a wireless modem according to the nature of the local network to communicate with the server side.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a meter reading procedure of a remote meter reading terminal according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, when the meter reading and the control unit 243 are in a predetermined condition and the meter reading is required, the meter reading and control unit 243 controls the light emitting unit 241S to emit light (S1 and S2). The light receiving unit 241R receives the light reflected by the light emitting units 241S from the numeric keypads 232-1 to 232-k, converts the light into an electrical signal, and converts the digital signal to digital to read and measure the digital meter of the control unit 243. It is provided as an input port (DI or analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) port (S3).

The meter reading and control unit 243 reads the numbers on the numeric keypads 232-1 to 232-k by comparing the magnitude of the reflected light signal input through the light receiving unit 241R with a reference value. At this time, in order to further improve the reliability, the weighing value reading process is repeated several times, and when the predetermined number (for example, three times) is reached, the read values are compared with each other (S4 to S7).

If the comparison result is matched, the weighed value is stored as it is. If the weighed value is not matched, the average value is calculated and stored in the EEPROM (S8 ~ S10).

6 is a block diagram of a remote meter reading system using a remote meter reading terminal according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, in the remote meter reading system, N remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n installed in each user's home are connected to one concentrator 620-1 through the local network 602. , M concentrators 620-1 to 620-m are configured to be connected to the remote meter reading server 630 through a communication network 604. The local network 602 is a communication network for connecting the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m and the remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n, which can be either wireless or wired. Various methods such as Bluetooth or WLAN can be used. In the case of the wired method, a power line communication method using a power line modem, RS-232C, RS-422 method, or PSTN modem method may be used. The communication network 604 connecting the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m and the remote meter reading server 630 may be a wireless network (mobile communication network, PCS network, TRS network, etc.), a wired network (PSTN), a satellite network, or the Internet. Etc. are possible.

In the remote meter reading system, as shown in FIG. 7, when the server 630 requests the meter to be read by the concentrator 620-1, the concentrator 620-1 determines the terminal 610-. After requesting the meter reading in 1), the meter data is received and processed by the server 630. At this time, the meter reading method includes a 'full meter reading' that requires the meter reading to all terminals under the control of the concentrator 620-1, and an 'individual meter reading' requesting the meter reading by interfering with a specific terminal.

First, the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m have information about the remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n and information on the concentrator ID of the area under their jurisdiction. The ID of the concentrator can be set using an internal inactive memory, a setting switch, or the like, and this information is input to the remote meter reading server 630.

The remote meter reading server 630 transmits a packet requesting full meter reading to the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m. The concentrators 620-1 to 620-m decode the reading command when the reading command is received from the remote reading server 630 to determine the type of the command. In general, the format of the packet transmitted from the remote metering server 630 to the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m includes a header, a telephone number, a server telephone number, a concentrator ID, a start address, an end address, information, and a CRC. It consists of.

The concentrators 620-1 to 620-m transmit a "ACK" if normal after receiving a command from the remote meter reading server 630, and transmit a "NAK" requesting retransmission if there is a problem.

Then, the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m generate a wake-up command to wake up all the remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n having jurisdiction according to the full meter reading command. 610-1 to 610-n), and each of the remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n wakes up at the same time and performs automatic meter reading to prepare meter reading data.

Subsequently, the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m generate and transmit data request packets for each of the remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n, and accordingly, the corresponding remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-m. n) transmits meter reading data to the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m.

Upon receiving such metering data, the concentrator 620-1 to 620-m temporarily stores the data, and then repeats the data request and metering data receiving process for the next remote metering terminal 610-1 to 610-n. When the reading of the reading data is completed for all the remote reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n, the entire terminal is sent to sleep by sending a sleep command to all the reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n. Switch.

Then, when the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m receive a data request according to the entire meter reading from the remote meter reading server 630, the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m transmit the meter reading data to the remote meter reading server 630.

Meanwhile, in the case of individual meter reading, the remote meter reading server 630 transmits a packet requesting the individual meter reading to the concentrator. The concentrators 620-1 to 620-m decode the command when the command is received from the remote meter reading server 630 to determine the type of command. The concentrators 620-1 to 620-m transmit ACK when the command is normally received from the remote meter reading server 140.

If the individual meter reading command, the individual wake-up packet is transmitted to the corresponding remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n in order to wake up the designated remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n. The designated remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n prepare the metering data by performing automatic meter reading after waking up according to the individual meter reading command. Subsequently, the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m generate and transmit data request packets to the corresponding remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n, and accordingly, the corresponding remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-m. n) transmits meter reading data to the concentrators 620-1 to 620-m. Upon receiving such metering data, the concentrator 620-1 to 620-m checks whether there is an abnormality and if it is normal, sleeps the corresponding remote metering terminals 610-1 to 610-n individually. When the individual data request is received from the remote meter reading server 630 after temporarily storing the received data, the individual meter reading data for the designated remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n is transmitted. The remote meter reading server 630 transmits an ACK when data is normally received.

8 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the remote meter reading terminal used in the remote meter reading system according to the present invention.

When the remote meter reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n operate in the sleep mode and receive a wake-up due to a predetermined condition, the remote reading terminals 610-1 to 610-n turn on the communication function by supplying power to the communication unit 244 in the standby mode (801). ~ 803).

When a signal is received from the concentrators 620-1 ˜ 620-m through the communication unit 244, the signal is switched to the normal operation mode and the received command is decoded (804 ˜ 806). If the received command is a reading command, the reading procedure is performed as shown in FIG. 5, and if the data is requested, the stored reading data is transmitted together with the meter ID. It operates in the minimum power mode (807 ~ 812).

As described above, according to the present invention, since the meter can be remotely metered, the meter reader does not need to visit each consumer directly, thereby reducing labor costs and reducing the metering cost, and using the conventional analog method, manual metering is possible. At the same time, reliability can be guaranteed compared to the digital pulse method, and the remote metering terminal can be implemented at low cost by directly reading the numerical value of the weighing display unit.

Claims (10)

An integrating meter having an analog metering unit which moves in proportion to the flow rate of the object to be weighed and a gear unit for rotating the number plate of the metering unit according to the movement of the analog metering unit, K number plates, each number pad having a different amount of reflection and for displaying a weighing value; K photodetectors for irradiating light to the number plate by emitting light and then receiving reflected light and detecting the light as an electrical signal; A terminal ID setting unit for setting a unique number (ID) of the terminal; Communication unit for communicating with the server side for the remote meter reading; And When the reading condition is met, the photodetector is controlled to read and store the measured value by comparing the intensity of the optical signal input from the photodetector with a predetermined reference value, and when the data request is received from the server through the communication unit. And a meter reading and control unit for transmitting the metering data through the communication unit together with the meter ID of the terminal ID setting unit. The terminal of claim 1, wherein the terminal for remote meter reading further comprises a power controller configured to control battery power according to the meter reading and the control of the controller. The terminal of claim 2, wherein the meter reading and control unit comprises a microprocessor. The power supply control unit of claim 3, wherein the meter reading and control unit controls the power control unit to be divided into a sleep mode operating in a minimum power mode, a standby mode of turning on only a communication function, and a normal mode of normal operation. Remote meter reading terminal. The remote meter reading terminal of claim 1, wherein the number plate is configured to increase or decrease the amount of reflection in a hierarchical manner corresponding to the number of the number plate. The terminal of claim 1, wherein the number plate is configured to continuously increase or decrease the amount of reflection corresponding to the number of the number plate. The terminal of claim 1, wherein the light detector comprises a light emitter for generating light when the power is supplied, and a light receiver for receiving the light reflected from the number plate and converting the light into an electrical signal. The terminal of claim 1, wherein the communication unit is any one of a power line modem, a wired modem, and a wireless modem. A remote metering server for issuing a metering command to remotely read the metered value of each consumer, and collecting and billing and statistical processing of the metering result data; A concentrator for transmitting a meter reading command from the remote meter reading server through a communication network to a corresponding terminal for remote meter reading, and transmitting the received meter reading data to the remote meter reading server; And Each number pad has a different amount of reflection and has k number plates for displaying the weighing value, k light detectors for detecting the reflected light after receiving light from the number plate by emitting light, and detecting the electric signal. A terminal ID setting unit for setting a number (ID), a communication unit for communicating with a server side for remote meter reading, and when the reading condition is met, the light detector is controlled to determine the intensity of the optical signal input from the light detector. It is composed of weighing reading and control unit that reads and stores weighing value in comparison with reference value and transmits the stored weighing data together with the meter ID when a data request is received from the server side. And a remote meter reading terminal for directly reading a meter value of an analog integrating meter and transmitting the meter reading command to the concentrator when a meter reading command is received from the concentrator through a local network. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the local network is a communication network for connecting the concentrator and the remote meter reading terminal, either wireless or wired, the communication network is a wireless network, a wired network connecting the concentrators and the remote meter reading server (PSTN), satellite network, or any one of the Internet, the remote meter reading system.