Service Provider Mobility: WiMAX: Innovative

Application in Energy Consumption and

Automated Smart Metering.

Posted by Proscovia Nalweyiso May 18, 2010

On March 16, 2010, the FCC released the National Broadband Plan . Perhaps one of
its most important objectives is to deploy broadband internet access to all households in
America so that they can subsequently employ efficient energy saving and real time IP-
based reporting technologies like Automated Smart Metering.

Automated Smart Metering is implemented by using an intelligent system called a Smart

grid. A Smart grid is an intelligent system that monitors computerized home utilitie and avails
usage reports in a real time manner. This helps to prevent energy leaks while providing
efficient use of energy. It is installed at customers homes to read daily power, water, and
gas consumption of each and every computerized appliance in real time. It helps to control
activities in homes by increasing or decreasing energy consumption during peak periods. It
transfers this energy consumption information via 4G WiMAX networks for monitoring and
billing purposes.

The biggest reason for using WiMAX technology in the smart grid is because of its mobility
and high bandwidth capacity,data rates range from 1Mbps to 15Mbps and more depending
on the equipment used by the service provider and the Customer Premise Equipment
(CPE).

According to the Smart Grid Facilitation Act of 2007, “smart grid technologies can
provide information about costs, availability, and the ability of given power plants
to provide ancillary services to the grid and can record the performance of these
facilities in response to those signals”.

COMPONENTS AND WORKING OF THE SMART GRID

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Service Provider Mobility: WiMAX: Innovative Application in Energy Consumption and Automated Smart
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Components of Smart Grid include:

Automated meter infrastructure (AMI) or Smart Meters(image). AMI helps to record meter
readings digitally so the customers can view how much energy their utilities and appliances
are consuming on a daily basis. AMIs also transfer this information to government offices
when connected via wireless networks. A smart meter is an IP-enabled device
designed to be used as “plug n’ play” to make deployment and maintenance
simple and cost-effective.  Smart meters inside the home have one IP address, as
it relates to the main universal router.  All the meter readings—including water,
electricity, and gas—are read by the only concerned billing officials using the
authorization code, say A001 for electricity board, A002 for gas company, and
A003 for water or another utility that cannot be read from a universal router.
[maxwell.com]

Distribution automation system: A distribution automation system is a computer system

that helps to control the energy flow instantly during the ebb and high demand periods and
responds to this demand across the grid system i.e. emergency resilience.

Smart Grid Interoperability with Mobile WiMAX:

AMIs collect unique data such as meter identity, energy consumption, and time stamps,
as well as time synchronization every 15 to 60 minutes. This information is transmitted as
IP packets over the wireless network using another universal router fitted as a CPE. The
universal router in turn transmits this data to respective energy sources like electrical or
water substations through a WiMAX Tower.

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Service Provider Mobility: WiMAX: Innovative Application in Energy Consumption and Automated Smart
Metering.

Fig. 2. Image courtesy GridNet.com

A WiMAX-based transmitter/receiver, with 360 radical towers, is installed in the backhaul

of communications systems to communicate with collection points. They aggregate data
from millions of "smart meters", which collect data from homes and transmits to the receivers
(explained through next diagram). It acts as router that can connect various networks,
products, and languages to build a digital power grid. An IP-based grid router provides a

bridge between proprietary smart grid devices from companies.

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Service Provider Mobility: WiMAX: Innovative Application in Energy Consumption and Automated Smart
Metering.

Fig. 3 Image courtesy Light River.Com

Smart metering is needed for efficiency, reliability and a safe environment.[cpuc.ca.gov/

PUC/energy]

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Service Provider Mobility: WiMAX: Innovative Application in Energy Consumption and Automated Smart
Metering.

1. Reliability and quality: Digital reading in real-time is more accurate and reliable, and
it provides quality of energy. It is capable of instantaneously reporting, updating, and billing
at the end of a power outage in contrast to other systems that can take weeks to repair and
return online.

2. Stability: Prevents power outages and ensures a stable, continuous flow of energy.
Notification of power outages, tampering, power quality, remote programmability, and two-
way wireless communication.

3. Efficiency: Maximizes energy that reaches the end user thereby providing efficient
consumption.

4. Green/Clean environment: It helps to avoid carbon dioxide from being released in air
causing global warming and pollution.

5. Remote and automatic control: Customers can effectively control all the
utilities of their ‘smart home’ such as lighting, heating devices and gas.
Customers can access their bills on demand at any time. All the appliances
connected to the smart grid can be controlled in real-time.

The reasons mentioned above are a clear descripton of what American people need on the
frontier of energy consumption

because the predominantly analog current system is no doubt out of rythm with the IP-based
digital ecosystem where crystal clearly the

21st century America/world is headed.

Automated Smart Metering is the hottest emerging market because its going to improve
reliability,flexibility and cost saving on important necessities (utilities) and still promote a
green enviroment at the same time.No doubt this businss venture is going to be a cashcow
to technology eagle companies like Cisco,Intel.Motorola, imagination at work.Oracle et al
[gridnet.net] that plan to get involved,unless they execute their plans wrongly or face many
federal constraints.

By Prosy.S.Nalweyiso

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Service Provider Mobility: WiMAX: Innovative Application in Energy Consumption and Automated Smart
Metering.

[ACK partners Preethi,Lou Ann,Naren,Linsey]

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