You may have multiple smart meters in your home. One may be a smart meter, another may be a smart gas meter, and a third may be a smart water meter. In addition to homes, smart meters monitor consumption at commercial and industrial facilities.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, more than 94.8 million Advanced Metering Infrastructures (AMIs) have been installed in the U.S. as of 2019.A 2019 European Commission Directorate General for Energy report predicts that approximately 125 million smart meters will be installed across the European Union by 2022.
The Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system measures, collects and analyzes energy and water use. The system consists of hardware, software, communications, consumer energy displays and controllers, meter data management software, and vendor business systems. AMI is becoming part of a larger "smart grid" initiative.
Before the advent of AMI, automated meter reading (AMR) systems allowed only one-way communication - from the meter to the meter reader. AMI provides two-way communication, allowing the utility to send information (as well as instructions and commands) to your home. This information can include time-based pricing information, demand response operations, and even remote service disconnects.
Smart meters communicate via cellular, Wi-Fi, wireless ad hoc networks over Wi-Fi, wireless mesh networks, low power long range wireless (LoRa), Wize (high radio penetration, open, using frequency 169 MHz) communications, ZigBee (low power, low data rate wireless), and Wi-SUN (Smart Utility Network). Smart meters can also communicate over a fixed wired connection, such as power line carrier (PLC).
Smart meters were originally developed in 1972 by Theodore Paraskevakos, a Greek-American inventor who was working at Boeing in Huntsville, Ala. Paraskevakos was also responsible for inventing a system for transmitting electronic data over telephone lines, which formed the basis of the Caller ID system.
For electric utilities, smart meters come at the right time, as deregulation in the 1970s and 1980s hit their bottom line hard. By measuring electricity consumption in near-real time, power companies can adjust prices based on when demand is highest, for example, by charging more in the summer and less in the middle of the night.
Another benefit for electric utilities is that smart meters eliminate the need for meter readers. The meter reader's job is to walk across the yard to read the customer's meter each month, thereby reducing the utility's labor costs. In addition to not having to open the door to the meter reader, the benefit to the customer is an end to the generally annoying bill estimates.
The Smart Grid Investment Grant (SGIG) program is again promoting smart meters as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).
Utilities continue to tout that smart meters can inform customers about their consumption, which will help them manage energy use and reduce energy bills. The reality, however, is that not only do many people not have access to this information, they don't even know where their smart meters are located in their homes.
In fact, a paper by a university researcher at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro found that customers often don't take any steps to reverse their electricity use during peak hours. A report by a British parliamentary group noted that people with smart meters save an average of only £11 a year on their energy bills, which is much less than the cost of installing a smart meter.
In the United States, AMI adoption varies by state. Washington, D.C., has the highest AMI penetration with 97% of all meters, and Nevada has 96%. Other states with high AMI penetration rates include. California, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Michigan, Oklahoma, Texas, and Vermont.
Globally, the top smart meter manufacturers are Elster, GE Energy, Itron, Landis+Gyr and Sensus. last week, Landis+Gry was at the center of an Internet storm when the Daily Dot reported on a hack that exposed a dark secret.
In February 2021, Texas experienced a once-in-a-lifetime snowstorm that officially killed 151 people and caused controlled power outages across the state. While some areas remained energized, others were plunged into a week-long period of darkness and cold.
More worryingly, "the region's income status does not appear to be a significant factor in the percentage of power outages ......" Neither is the presence of hospitals, police and fire stations."
This month, some Texas residents found their homes unexpectedly warm. They opted for a program that allows the power company to remotely raise the temperature of their thermostats. One resident told KHOU Radio, "I don't want other people controlling my stuff for me ...... If other people can manipulate it, I'm not for it."
This ability to operate smart meters remotely also worries Harsh. In the wake of recent ransomware attacks on gas lines and water treatment facilities, Hash told the Daily Dot he is concerned that smart meters could be the next target of hackers, and he is currently analyzing the remote shutdown mechanism of smart meters.
