Concept Generation: A Digital Electricity Meter

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Outline

The demand for electricity as a commodity has been rising as consumers and providers become more concerned about the convenience of the existing system.
1. What is more, the change in lifestyle and the increasingly demanding life requires processes that save on time and money.
2. It is necessary to automate the electricity billing process, hence, the need for smart electricity meters that are able to record electricity consumption data and relay that data to the relevant recipients.
These digital electricity meters have various benefits and capabilities.
1. Providers and consumers are able to get data on electricity consumption at their desks to facilitate the payment process.
2. Some processes that consume a lot of time and cost money are eliminated.
3. The digital meter has other added features that provide various benefits to the provider and the consumer such as notification on power outages and power quality.
The relatively higher cost of the digital meters is justifiable as compared to the conventional electricity meters considering the value of their added features during their operation.
1. The features, thus allow a reduction of cost for the whole process of acquiring electricity consumption data. That is, it would be more expensive to acquire these data through the conventional meters as compared to the digital meter in spite of the fact that the initial cost of the digital meter is a bit higher.
The digital meter should be reliable, durable, provide convenience, and be secure to use or rather not vulnerable to criminal activities such as illegal programming.
The functional unit of the digital meter translates to the input function, the processing function, the output function, and the transmission function.
1. The input functions include the analog and digital signals for configuration, and the current or energy input.
2. The output functions involve the display of the processed data including notifications and billing information, and the electricity current/energy for continuity of power.
3. The transmission function involves linkage to a telecommunication system that sends data to the provider and consumer into a suitable media.
External search indicates the possibility of the viability of the digital electricity meter.
1. Lead users approve of its importance and demand.
2. Experts agree on the possibility of its design and implementation as well as the need to have such equipment.
3. Similar inventions also inspire its development in that they have been received positively in the market. Nonetheless, these innovations have limited features.
Internal search affirms the discovery made through external search.
1. That is there is the need to develop a gadget that sends electricity consumption data to the electricity provider and consumer.
2. However, the development team questions the significance of sending these data to both the provider and the consumer simultaneously.
3. The proposal is that the data could be sent to the billing agent centre, which would then send the processed data to the consumer after verification.
4. This would be vital for security.
There is a need to further explore the usefulness and cost-effectiveness of the processes.

Introduction

Electricity is a vital commodity, whose consumption has been rising with its demand. What is more, electricity consumers and providers are becoming more concerned about the accuracy, reliability, and effectiveness of the billing systems. With the reality of the increasingly demanding life, there is a need to introduce innovations in this sector to allow both the electricity providers and consumers to save on time and costs by eliminating certain physical processes. In this respect, it would be necessary that it is possible to send electricity retail data such as the amount consumed and charges to the provider and consumer. This, in addition, would allow consumers to receive electricity consumption data conveniently to make arrangements for payments. This requires that a reliable digital meter with the capability of sending data to a receiver is designed and produced for the market.

Problem clarification

The problem

The digital electricity meter would provide additional capability, services, and benefits as compared to the conventional electricity reading meters. The meter should be able to send data, more so data regarding electricity consumption, to the electricity consumer and provider through and a suitable medium; the possible appropriate media could be a mobile phone or the email technology for the consumer, and through email technology to the provider.

The electricity consumptions data that is sent to the consumer would be displayed as an electronic invoice in a format that would make it possible to print it out. The data would include the amount of energy consumed (which will be measured in kilowatt), the total charges as well as charges per kilowatt, the minimum charge, and the time when the electricity was consumed. In addition, the meter could analyse changes in electricity quality and relay this information to the consumer as well as the electricity service provider. These additional features, which are definitely not incorporated in the commonly used conventional analog meters should not translate to a very high cost for the meter.

The cost of the meter should be relatively low. It should be possible to retail the meter at an average price of 250 AUD (Australian Dollar). Although this is a bit higher than the average retail price of about 190 AUD of the commonly used meters, the additional benefits should make it competitive in the market.

As people adopt new modern lifestyles, there is also an increasing demand for the automation of various processes and activities. Electricity billing is one area where there is a growing demand for automation. So many people want to have their electricity bills delivered to them reliably and conveniently, and at the right time. This is to facilitate the consumers budgeting of their finances as well as eliminate some processes that consume a lot of time and money.

What is more, inclination to technology has driven several services-providing companies to deliver information through technology. In effect, consumers have felt the need to harmonize the mean by which they receive this information. Therefore, it would be crucial that electricity providers can send information to their customers electronically. In fact, the providers themselves need to receive certain data from the consumer side such as the electricity consumption and quality of electricity conveniently and efficiently.

Electricity service providing companies or their billing agents need to have information about their customers use of electricity. They need to have data on the amount of electricity to calculate various charges, and also information such as the quality of electricity to enable them to analyse their customers satisfaction, and may give them discounts. Therefore, the availability of devices that would allow them to implement a system that relays such data to them without the need for the physical processes would be very crucial.

The digital electricity equipment, therefore, should be reliable, efficient, and durable as well as being automatic and programmable. In addition to the usual functions of a conventional meter, which is to record and display the amount of electricity consumed in terms of kilowatts, the digital electricity meter should make calculations and relay all data to the electricity providers billing centre and the customer. It should be possible to program the meter, more so, regarding the charge rates because these are not always constant and sometimes change with the changing status of an economy. However, it should be designed such that unauthorized persons are not able to configure it, or if any tampering occurs, the security unit of the electricity provider or the billing agents are notified.

Problem decomposition

The problem or the issue about the digital electricity meter is well understood in examining related functional parts independently. The meter records data, stores data, and computes and synthesizes data. It also relays these data to the electricity consumer and the electricity provider or the billing agent and also displays the recorded information on its integrated display unit. In this regard, it converts digital information into analog data for transmission.

Moreover, it should be possible to configure the digital meter locally as well as accept remote signals for remote configuration, probably from the billing centre. The fact that data or information into and from the digital meter is transmitted through a public network, authentications, and security measures are significant here. Furthermore, it should be able to also convert analog data into digital data. These constitute input, processing, output and transmission.

Functional decomposition

The functional elements of the digital electricity meter are represented in the diagram below. It features the input function, the processing function, the output function and the transmission function.

*Figure 1. A basic functional diagram of the digital electricity meter.*

The meter must accept electric current/energy synthesizes it into human-readable data, store it, and relays it to a transmission network that allows the data to be received through media such as a mobile phone or email.

*Figure 2. A functional diagram representing further decomposition of the digital electricity meter functions.*

On top of these critical functional components, the digital meter could give notifications for a power outage, monitoring for power quality. These functions are not very critical and could be traded off for the sake of reducing cost.

The critical components

Critical to the functioning and marketability of the digital electricity meter is the capability to read and display electricity data and relay the data to the billing centre and the consumer. Therefore, critical to the core functioning of the meter is a powerful processor that makes computation, and other components that would make analog/digital conversion as well as a display of the processed information.

The analog/digital conversion components can be either integrated independent from the digital meter, however, the digital meter should have the slots to connect such devices. This is vital to allow linkage to a telecommunication system.

External

Information on the proposed digital electricity meter was sought both internally and externally. An external search involved interviewing the lead users, experts, and professional societies as well as searching patents and literature, standards, and benchmarking (Ulrich and Eppinger 2004, pg. 100). The internal search involved individual and group methods in finding solutions for the existing problems (Ulrich and Eppinger 2004, pg. 100).

The outcome of an external search indicates that digital electricity meters that would send electricity data to consumers are in demand. The highest percentage of lead users interviewed indicate that they would wish to have their electricity data sent to them automatically. These lead users of the digital electricity meter, who include both the consumer and the electricity provider, indicated that the immediate benefit is the reduction of certain time-consuming physical processes, as well as cost for that matter.

What is more, most manufacturers of digital electricity meters that only record and display consumption data agree that digital meters are more preferred than meters because of their reliability and accuracy? However, consumers indicate reluctance in opting to incur more expenses for electricity billing. The cost-effectiveness of the digital electricity meter, nonetheless, outweigh the factors that discourage potential customer for the meter.

The overall cost of receiving electricity consumption data through printed invoices in a process that involves a physical reading of the meters is more expensive. Considering the cost of traveling by the meter reader and the consumer as well as the printing costs, this meter would cut a substantial amount of operating cost. Furthermore, its initial cost is only slightly higher than the conventional meters.

Several companies and entities have introduced smart meters that are almost similar to the proposed digital meter. They, in fact, send certain data to the electricity providers. However, they generally lack the capacity to send specifically electricity consumption data, although some innovations are coming up; currently, these innovations have a high retail price.

The meters are in demand to the electricity consumers; however, the electricity providers determine their use because it is, they who makes installation; in spite of that, consumers contribute to a greater extent the use of such innovations.

Internal search

The ideas generated by the development team of the digital electricity meter indicate support to the already determined features discussed above. Digital electricity meters are necessary with contemporary circumstances. To start with, almost all the analog and mechanical-based types of equipment are being replaced by digital gadgets. It is generally known that digital gadgets provide more precise results than mechanical equipment.

Moreover, digital technology is more reliable, efficient, and convenient especially citing that the trend is the computerization of processes. Most of the electricity reading meters that are on the market have been built using mechanical/analog technology. It is with the realization of the general trend in the market and most industries that make is crucial to consider the development of digital electricity meters. In fact, this is vital to allow interoperability with other digital-based systems. Even more crucial, is the consideration to add a feature to the digital meter that would allow automation of processes associated with it.

A smart digital meter would even be more necessary considering the emerging lifestyles. First, people are increasingly adopting lifestyles that require efficiency and enhancement of various processes. Automation is a solution to these requirements. Therefore, it is significant that processes that are involved in electricity billing be automated to conform to the contemporary trend. This makes the development of smart meters that are able to record, display and send electricity data to electricity consumers and providers very viable. Such kind of an electricity meter means that a communication network system would be involved to implement its capability.

The meters, therefore, must be designed such that they are compatible with the telecommunication technology that is available in the market. It would be a tragedy to build meters that would necessity the development of other unique technologies for communication to be possible. However, there is the significant question of the importance of the meters capability to send data to both the billing agent and the consumer.

There is the issue of the need by the electricity provider or the billing centre to verify the correctness of data before it is sent to the consumer. Therefore, it would be more sensible to send the data to a central billing centre, which then sends the processed information to the consumer. Furthermore, it would be the design of the communication network or system that should make consideration on the need to have data sent to both the consumer and the provider simultaneously. Apparently, as long as the meter is able to communicate through a telecommunication system, then it would be possible to have data reach any number of recipients.

What should be of most importance in regard to communication is the capacity of the smart digital meter to support a certain amount of data flow. Note that designing the communication system such that electricity data is first verified by the billing agents or the electricity providers is vital to ensure that the providers or their billing agents are in control of the information that is received from the digital meters. This is so, especially in a situation where there is the tampering of the device or a compromise in the communication network to avert cases of conflict between the provider or agent and the consumer over issues of misleading or mismatch of data; thus, the agent or provider would be able to rectify the information before it is sent to the consumer.

Systematic Exploration: the concept combination table

The functioning of the smart digital meter would require that certain components are incorporated in its design. The most critical components include a processor or an integrated circuit that is able to interpret electricity current and synthesize it into a digital language and human-readable language. Further, the processor should be able to make computations and return numerical data. In addition, the meter should have input capability that makes it possible to read electricity current signals and computer signals for both local and remote configurations.

It should also have output capability where data can be displayed locally through a small integrated display unit. Moreover, it should allow the connectivity of a communication system that allows data to be transmitted to the provider and the consumer. Thus, there should be an integrated system that converts digital data into analog data for transmission through the telecommunication system and also converts the received analog signals into digital data.

Table 1. A concept combination table for a digital electricity meter.

Convert electrical current into numerical data and text	Output the numerical data and text	Send the numerical data and text notifications
Processor (Integrated circuit) Electric current synthesizer	Display unit Moving current	Mobile phone display Email notification Text notification

Reflection

There are very critical considerations that would be vital for the development of this kind of digital electricity meter. They include relatively low cost, accuracy, and reliability, convenience, efficiency, and viability. That is would it be more convenient to have information sent automatically to the consumer and the electricity provider than employing the physical process of acquiring that information, probably from a simple conventional meter?

This question leads to the whole cycle of the physical as compared to the automated process while factoring in the overall cost and time spent; definitely, automation results in reduced cost and the time spent. It would be necessary to emphasize these advantages to potential customers to make them realize the overall cost-effectiveness of the digital meter as compared to the conventional meters.

On top of the core function of recording, displaying, and sending electricity data to the consumer and electricity provider or the billing agent, the digital meter could send notifications on power outages and power quality to the provider and consumers as well. This would allow the provider to make improvements to ensure the stability of the electricity output and also give compensations to consumers who are affected by interruptions.

It would also allow providers to make proper distribution of electricity based on the consumption data recorded by the meter. Nonetheless, not all electricity providers are willing to provide such compensation, and so this could act as a deterrent. It is this fact that make is necessary to focus on the core functions of the meter which are to record, process, and display electricity consumption information and send that information to the electricity provider and consumer.

Nonetheless, there are issues in sending data to both the provider and consumer simultaneously. The electricity provider or their billing agents might opt to have the electricity consumption information sent to their centre first, perhaps to undergo a verification process or to make sure they are in control in case there is an emergency situation before the information is sent to the consumer.

This would avert instances of conflict between the provider and the consumer when, for instance, information sent to the consumer is falsified through tampering of the system and the provider had not taken measures to rectify the misinformation.

The information gathered through this concept generation process may have left out some necessary functions. Therefore, there is a need to explore further into literature, experts, lead users as well as analyze the success of the existing smart meters and make a review on the gathered information to come up with a product that is superior to previously defined designs. This would entail extensive research for an extended time.

References

Concept generation, 2009. Web.

Karl, T, U, and Steven, D, E 2004, Product design and development, (4^th edn), p. 117, Irwin McGraw-Hill, New York.

Ogot, M, Okudan-Kremer, G, Kremer, G 2004, Engineering design: a practical guide, Trafford Publishing, United Kingdom.

Webster, J 1999, Wiley encyclopedia of electrical and electronics engineering online, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York.

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