Smart 3-Ph E-Meter

As a result of increasing law regulations, energy subscribers will gain more freedom to choose between tariffs and utilities, optimizing their energy costs. However, with the rise in renewable energy generation, local utilities need more efficient ways to monitor energy consumption at the subscriber level to adjust conventional energy production accordingly. The utility's business model - prepaid vs. postpaid - will mainly depend on local consumption patterns and payment habits. Consequently, future electricity meters will require reliable bidirectional communication to meet these evolving needs. The choice of solutions, whether wired or wireless, will depend on local circumstances.

System Benefits:

• The calculated energy parameters are digitized and transferred via UART to the application controller through an optical isolator.
• The digitized metrology data transferred through the optical isolator reaches the applications controller, an Arm^® Cortex^®-M4 device with 512kB flash and 256kB RAM.
• The LED and RS-485 interfaces enable reliable bi-directional serial communication during production and field operations.
• For remote areas with poor grid quality, 2G or 5G wireless connectivity is essential for reliable communication.
• A mechanical switch detects tampering attempts, triggering a register flag when the meter case is opened.
• For urban deployments, reliable connectivity is essential, whether through Sub-1 GHz data logging or wired power line communication (PLC). This system features a high-performance narrowband PLC modem IC, supporting both G3-PLC and PRIME specifications.
• Two independent DC/DC bucks supply power to the wireless module and the application meter, while three LDOs provide independent power for each metrology phase.
• The RS-485 interface requires its own galvanic isolation. Optionally, the same LDO can be used if an additional flyback output is available.