Bluetooth networking type water meter well multi-meter collaborative data reporting system and method

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of water meter equipment, in particular to a Bluetooth networking type water meter well multi-meter collaborative data reporting system and method. The system comprises a plurality of intelligent water meters provided with communication units, and further comprises Bluetooth modules arranged in meter bodies of the intelligent water meters, and the Bluetooth modules are used for broadcasting state information of the Bluetooth modules and receiving state information of other intelligent water meters; the timing module is arranged in the meter body of the intelligent water meter and is used for accumulating the total time value from the intelligent water meter to the last time of data reporting so as to correspondingly obtain the reporting accumulated time; and the control module is arranged in the meter body of the intelligent water meter and is used for judging the size relationship between the reporting accumulation time corresponding to other intelligent water meters uploaded by the intelligent water meter or the Bluetooth module and a system reporting threshold value and generating an accumulation time reset instruction. On the premise of not adding extra equipment, the data reporting success rate of all the intelligent water meters in one water meter well can be increased, and the average self-holding force of all the intelligent water meters is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of water meter equipment technology, specifically to a Bluetooth-networked multi-meter collaborative data reporting system and method for water meter wells. Background Technology

[0002] With economic development, water meter equipment in many rural areas has been gradually replaced with smart water meters on a large scale. However, due to the limitations of the actual environment, smart water meters in rural areas generally adopt a centralized installation mode in wells, that is, multiple smart water meters are deployed in a single water meter well to achieve intensive management.

[0003] These types of water meters are typically equipped with NB-IoT communication modules, automatically reporting data via cellular networks to replace traditional manual meter reading. However, since water meter wells are mostly located underground, the physical shielding layer formed by concrete well walls, metal pipes, and well covers causes severe penetration loss of NB-IoT signals. Some smart water meters, due to differences in installation location (such as the bottom of the well) or orientation (antenna direction), cannot stably connect to the base station. These smart water meters will experience periodic reporting failures due to insufficient real-time signal strength, resulting in an overall meter reading success rate of less than 80%. In addition, smart water meters in weak signal environments will repeatedly attempt to connect to the network, leading to a surge in power consumption, a significant increase in battery drain, and higher maintenance costs.

[0004] To address these issues, engineers often resort to setting up additional relay equipment to forward data. While this solves the communication problems of some smart water meters installed in weak signal locations to a certain extent, the installation of relay equipment requires a certain amount of space, which is a limitation. Furthermore, the operation of relay equipment requires additional power supply and maintenance, resulting in high costs. Moreover, its reliability is insufficient due to the humid environment inside the well, making it unable to support the data forwarding of smart water meters over long periods. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a Bluetooth-networked multi-meter collaborative data reporting system and method for water meter wells, which can ensure the data reporting success rate of all smart water meters in a water meter well without adding extra equipment, and improve the average power self-sufficiency of all smart water meters.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution adopted in this method is as follows: In a first aspect, the present invention provides a Bluetooth-networked multi-meter collaborative data reporting system for water meters, comprising multiple smart water meters, each smart water meter being equipped with a communication unit, and the system further comprising: A Bluetooth module is installed in the body of the smart water meter to broadcast its own status information and receive status information from other smart water meters, thereby enabling short-range information networking between multiple smart water meters. A timing module, which is installed in the body of the smart water meter, is used to accumulate the total time since the last data report was completed, so as to obtain the cumulative reporting time accordingly. The control module, which is installed in the body of the smart water meter, is used to determine the relationship between the reported cumulative time of the smart water meter or other smart water meters uploaded by the Bluetooth module and the system reporting threshold. If the reported cumulative time is equal to the system reporting threshold, the network connection and reporting operation are performed immediately. The control module is also used to generate a cumulative time reset command.

[0007] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the status information includes the water meter identification number and the reported cumulative time.

[0008] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the cumulative time reset instruction includes a cumulative time zeroing instruction O1 and a cumulative value non-zeroing instruction O2. The cumulative time zeroing instruction O1 is used to reset the timing module of the smart water meter and clear the reported cumulative time. The cumulative value non-zeroing instruction O2 is used to write a non-zero characteristic number while resetting the timing module of the smart water meter.

[0009] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the non-zero characteristic number is obtained by summing a base number and a random number.

[0010] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the communication unit is specifically an NBIoT communication module.

[0011] Secondly, this invention provides a Bluetooth-networked method for collaborative data reporting among multiple water meter wells, specifically including: Step 01: Select the smart water meter that first reaches the system reporting threshold and successfully connects to the network when the cumulative reporting is completed as the water meter to be reported; Step 02: After the water meter completes the data reporting, the control module clears the dynamically stored cumulative reporting time in the timing module by using the cumulative time reset instruction O1. Step 03: The reporting water meter scans other smart water meters in the vicinity via Bluetooth module and actively receives status information from each smart water meter; Step 04: The control module of the reporting execution water meter determines whether there is a corresponding smart water meter whose cumulative reporting time is greater than the system reporting threshold based on the status information of each smart water meter. If there is, the data to be reported from each smart water meter is downloaded in sequence according to the preset queuing rules and the data is reported. Step 05: Repeat step 04 until the reporting water meter cannot find a smart water meter whose reported cumulative time is greater than the system reporting threshold; the control module clears the reported cumulative time dynamically stored in the timing module again by using the cumulative time zeroing instruction O1.

[0012] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the preset queuing rule is specifically as follows: the reporting execution water meter sorts the multiple reported cumulative times corresponding to multiple smart water meters that are greater than the system reporting threshold according to their numerical values, and sequentially downloads and reports the data to be reported for each corresponding smart water meter in descending order of the reported cumulative time values.

[0013] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in step 03, after the reporting execution water meter completes the data reporting, the scanning time for scanning other smart water meters in the surrounding area is specifically 30 seconds.

[0014] As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, step 04 further includes an assisting reporting step: the control module of the reporting execution water meter downloads the reporting data of the smart water meters whose cumulative reporting time is greater than the assisting reporting threshold and less than the system reporting threshold according to the status information of each smart water meter and reports the data; and sends a non-zero cumulative value instruction O2 to the smart water meter to modify its reported cumulative time.

[0015] In summary, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: In this invention, multiple smart water meters in a water meter well are networked together via Bluetooth modules. Under the joint control of independent control modules and timing modules, smart water meters with good data reporting capabilities can assist other smart water meters that have not reported within the specified time in reporting.

[0016] In practical applications, the network environment is subject to change, and each smart water meter may potentially act as a reporting execution meter. This method ensures that any smart water meter has the ability to report its own data and assist other smart water meters in reporting data, enabling the network to form a decentralized star-shaped smart water meter reporting network. This allows for data reporting from all smart water meters in the entire meter well without adding any additional relay devices. Furthermore, by combining different zero-setting controls with the cumulative time reset command, it ensures that smart water meters acting as reporting execution meters are automatically moved to the end of the queue, preventing them from always acting as the reporting execution meter, thus balancing the power consumption of all smart water meters in the entire meter well. Attached Figure Description

[0017] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this specification, the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this specification. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0018] Figure 1 This is a structural diagram of the multi-table collaborative data reporting system; Figure 2 This is a flowchart of the multi-table collaborative data reporting method. Detailed Implementation

[0019] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be explained and described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the following embodiments are only preferred embodiments of the present invention and not all of them. Based on the embodiments in the implementation, Other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without inventive effort are all within the scope of protection of this invention. The terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings are used to distinguish different objects, not to describe a specific order. Furthermore, the term "comprising" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that includes a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but may optionally include steps or units not listed, or may optionally include other steps or units inherent to these processes, methods, products, or apparatuses.

[0020] Each smart water meter installed in a meter well contains a communication unit, a Bluetooth module, a timing module, and a control module. The communication unit is specifically an NB-IoT communication module. Relying on this module, each smart water meter can independently connect to the network and report data, enabling unattended meter reading. However, due to differences in installation location, orientation, and changes in the external network environment, any smart water meter may experience a possibility of weak signal strength preventing it from establishing a stable and effective communication connection. Nevertheless, every smart water meter needs to report data at set time intervals, such as every 24 hours (1440 minutes), reporting the cumulative water consumption data for that 24 hours.

[0021] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a Bluetooth-networked multi-meter collaborative data reporting system for water meter wells, such as... Figure 1 As shown, the system includes multiple smart water meters, each equipped with a communication unit. The system also includes: A Bluetooth module is installed in the body of the smart water meter to broadcast its own status information and receive status information from other smart water meters, thereby enabling short-range information networking between multiple smart water meters. The Bluetooth module can switch between multiple modes. When the smart water meter is not reporting its identity, When the Bluetooth module switches to broadcast mode, it broadcasts its own status information, including the water meter identification number and the reported cumulative time. The water meter identification number serves as the smart water meter's identity credential, allowing other smart water meters to recognize it. In broadcast mode, the Bluetooth module consumes very little power and has no significant impact on the smart water meter's self-sufficiency. When the smart water meter is reporting its identity, its Bluetooth module switches to search mode. Since the smart water meters in a meter well are installed relatively densely and are usually within Bluetooth communication range (10m), the Bluetooth module in search mode can actively receive data from multiple nearby smart water meters in broadcast mode.

[0022] A timing module, which is installed in the body of the smart water meter, is used to accumulate the total time since the last data report was completed, so as to obtain the cumulative reporting time accordingly. The function of the timing module is to accumulate time. The accumulation unit can be set to 1 minute. Taking a specified data reporting interval of 24 hours as an example, when the accumulated reporting time in the timing module reaches 1440 minutes, the smart water meter can be considered to have reached the reporting time point. The starting point of the reporting interval is when it is reset or modified by the accumulated time reset command, and the ending point is when the total time value reaches 1440 minutes.

[0023] The control module, which is installed in the body of the smart water meter, is used to determine the relationship between the reported cumulative time of the smart water meter or other smart water meters uploaded by the Bluetooth module and the system reporting threshold. If the reported cumulative time is equal to the system reporting threshold, the network connection and reporting operation are performed immediately. The control module is also used to generate a cumulative time reset command.

[0024] In the following embodiments, such as Figure 2 As shown, one specific implementation of this Bluetooth-networked multi-meter collaborative data reporting method for water meters is explained.

[0025] First, the cumulative reporting time dynamically stored in the timing modules of each smart water meter in the water meter well is different, which is set during the initialization configuration process. Therefore, it can be known that the cumulative reporting time of each smart water meter will not reach the system reporting threshold at the same time. If any start time is specified, there will inevitably be a smart water meter that is the first to reach 1440 minutes of cumulative reporting time. If the smart water meter successfully connects to the external network at this time, it will automatically become the reporting execution water meter. After reporting its own data, the reporting execution water meter first clears its own cumulative reporting time to zero through the cumulative time zeroing instruction O1 issued by the control module, so as to ensure that it falls to the "tail" of all smart water meters in the water meter well (if it does not clear its own time, the cumulative reporting time of the reporting execution water meter will further accumulate to exceed the system reporting threshold. If another smart water meter's cumulative reporting time also reaches the system reporting threshold at this time, the reporting execution water meter that has completed data reporting may be judged as a failed smart water meter, causing program conflicts and power consumption loss).

[0026] Next, the reporting water meter needs to undergo a scan, which takes 30 seconds. During the scan, its Bluetooth module switches from broadcast mode to search mode, downloading the status information of all nearby connectable smart water meters in broadcast mode to its own memory. Then, the control module of the reporting water meter extracts the cumulative reporting time from the status information, filters out data with a cumulative reporting time greater than the system reporting threshold, and reports this data along with the corresponding water meter identification number. It is evident that the smart water meters that were "helped" report all had cumulative reporting times exceeding the system reporting threshold, indicating that these smart water meters experienced independent network connection failures and data not being reported on time. In this case, the aforementioned smart water meter designated as the reporting execution water meter assisted in the data reporting.

[0027] Once the reporting execution water meter has completed reporting data from all the smart water meters requiring assistance obtained in the previous scan, it begins the next scan until it can no longer find a smart water meter whose cumulative reporting time exceeds the system's reporting threshold, at which point its reporting work ends. Because the reporting execution water meter itself accumulates its own cumulative reporting time during this process, its control module will use the cumulative time reset instruction O1 to clear the dynamically stored cumulative reporting time in the timing module. This ensures that when the reporting execution water meter relinquishes its "reporting execution water meter" status, its cumulative reporting time is zero, placing it at the end of the entire smart water meter network. This prevents a single smart water meter from consistently assuming the "reporting execution water meter" role, thus maintaining a balanced power consumption across the entire smart water meter network.

[0028] In another possible embodiment, the cumulative time reset instruction includes a cumulative time zeroing instruction O1 and a cumulative value non-zeroing instruction O2. The cumulative time zeroing instruction O1 is used to reset the timing module of the smart water meter and clear the reported cumulative time. The cumulative value non-zeroing instruction O2 is used to write a non-zero characteristic number while resetting the timing module of the smart water meter. The non-zero characteristic number is obtained by adding a base number and a random number.

[0029] Unlike the above embodiments, the cumulative time reset instruction also includes a cumulative value non-zero instruction O2, which is used to assist the reporting step. That is, the control module of the reporting execution water meter downloads the data to be reported from smart water meters whose cumulative reporting time is greater than the cooperative reporting threshold and less than the system reporting threshold, and reports the data; and sends the cumulative value non-zero instruction O2 to the smart water meter to modify its reported cumulative time.

[0030] Specifically, based on the power consumption characteristics of existing devices, it is known that the average power consumption of the NBIoT communication module varies significantly when performing different actions. When performing network search and network attachment, the average power consumption is about 100mA, and the time is about 20 seconds. This process consumes a lot of power, but the average power consumption for data upload is only about 5mA. The process of connecting to other smart water meters using a Bluetooth module takes about 10 seconds, and the connection power consumption is about 3mA. It can be seen that if a reporting water meter can report the data of other smart water meters that have accumulated a certain amount of data while performing its own reporting action, the network search power consumption of one or more smart water meters during their own reporting can be saved by the small amount of additional Bluetooth connection power consumption. Since the former power consumption is at least an order of magnitude smaller than the latter, this step can reduce the overall power consumption of a smart water meter network.

[0031] Specifically, the control module of the reporting execution water meter downloads the data to be reported from smart water meters whose cumulative reporting time is greater than the cooperative reporting threshold but less than the system reporting threshold, based on the status information of each smart water meter, and reports the data. The cooperative reporting threshold can be set to 1380 minutes (23 hours) for example, and the system reporting threshold is still set to 1440 minutes (24 hours). At this time, the reporting execution water meter can report the data of other smart water meters whose cumulative reporting time has reached 23 hours but not 24 hours. This process does not consider whether the smart water meter being assisted in reporting has reliable network capabilities, nor does it consider whether it has the ability to self-report after actually reaching 24 hours.

[0032] Unlike the above embodiments, in this process, after the reporting execution water meter assists in reporting the data to be reported by a certain smart water meter, the control module of the reporting execution water meter will send a cumulative value non-zero instruction O2 to the smart water meter. The cumulative value non-zero instruction O2 resets the timing module of the smart water meter and writes a non-zero characteristic number. This non-zero characteristic number is obtained by adding a base number and a random number. For example, the base number is 10 and the random number is an integer between [0, 50). The non-zero characteristic number after the sum is less than 60 minutes. This ensures that after the reporting execution water meter clears its own reported cumulative time with the zero instruction O1, it will always be ranked after all the smart water meters that are being assisted in reporting. This ensures that the next active reporting time of each smart water meter that is being assisted in reporting is earlier than that of the reporting execution water meter, and avoids the reporting execution water meter repeatedly playing the role of assisting in reporting, which would cause a bias in power consumption.

[0033] In summary, in this invention, the time points at which the cumulative reporting time of each smart water meter reaches the system reporting threshold differ. As long as one smart water meter in a water meter well can be stably connected to the network, all smart water meters in that well can report data. Furthermore, different smart water meters do not always assume the role of reporting execution meters; rather, each smart water meter has the opportunity to assume this role, thereby achieving a relative balance in the power consumption of the entire smart water meter network system. Based on this, combined with the collaborative reporting mechanism, the total power consumption of the entire smart water meter network system can also be reduced.

[0034] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment disclosed in this application and an explanation of the technical principles employed. Those skilled in the art should understand that the scope of protection involved in this disclosure is not limited to technical solutions formed by specific combinations of the above-described technical features, but should also cover other technical solutions formed by arbitrary combinations of the above-described technical features or their equivalents without departing from the above-disclosed concept. For example, technical solutions formed by substituting the above features with (but not limited to) technical features with similar functions disclosed in this disclosure.

[0035] Furthermore, while several specific implementation details are included in the foregoing discussion, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of this disclosure. Certain features described in the context of individual embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented individually or in any suitable sub-combination in multiple embodiments.

Claims

1. A Bluetooth-connected multi-meter collaborative data reporting system for water meters, comprising multiple smart water meters, each smart water meter being equipped with a communication unit, characterized in that, The system also includes: A Bluetooth module is installed in the body of the smart water meter to broadcast its own status information and receive status information from other smart water meters, thereby enabling short-range information networking between multiple smart water meters. A timing module, which is installed in the body of the smart water meter, is used to accumulate the total time since the last data report was completed, so as to obtain the cumulative reporting time accordingly. The control module, which is installed in the body of the smart water meter, is used to determine the relationship between the reported cumulative time of the smart water meter or other smart water meters uploaded by the Bluetooth module and the system reporting threshold. If the reported cumulative time is equal to the system reporting threshold, the network connection and reporting operation are performed immediately. The control module is also used to generate a cumulative time reset command.

2. The Bluetooth networking multi-meter collaborative data reporting system for water meter wells according to claim 1, characterized in that, The status information includes the water meter identification number and the reported cumulative time.

3. The Bluetooth-connected multi-meter collaborative data reporting system for water meter wells according to claim 2, characterized in that, The cumulative time reset instruction includes a cumulative time zeroing instruction O1 and a cumulative value non-zeroing instruction O2; the cumulative time zeroing instruction O1 is used to reset the timing module of the smart water meter and clear the reported cumulative time; the cumulative value non-zeroing instruction O2 is used to write a non-zero characteristic number while resetting the timing module of the smart water meter.

4. The Bluetooth networking multi-meter collaborative data reporting system for water meter wells according to claim 3, characterized in that, The non-zero characteristic number is obtained by summing the base number and the random number.

5. A Bluetooth-networked multi-meter collaborative data reporting system for water meter wells according to claim 4, characterized in that, The communication unit is specifically an NBIoT communication module.

6. A Bluetooth-networked method for collaborative data reporting among multiple water meter wells, characterized in that, The methods include: Step 01: Select the smart water meter that first reaches the system reporting threshold and successfully connects to the network when the cumulative reporting is completed as the water meter to be reported; Step 02: After the water meter completes the data reporting, the control module clears the dynamically stored cumulative reporting time in the timing module by using the cumulative time reset instruction O1. Step 03: The reporting water meter scans other smart water meters in the vicinity via Bluetooth module and actively downloads the status information of each smart water meter; Step 04: The control module of the reporting execution water meter determines whether there is a corresponding smart water meter whose cumulative reporting time is greater than the system reporting threshold based on the status information of each smart water meter. If there is, the data to be reported from each smart water meter is downloaded in sequence according to the preset queuing rules and the data is reported. Step 05: Repeat step 04 until the reporting water meter cannot find a smart water meter whose reported cumulative time is greater than the system reporting threshold; the control module clears the reported cumulative time dynamically stored in the timing module again by using the cumulative time zeroing instruction O1.

7. A Bluetooth-networked multi-meter collaborative data reporting method for water meter wells according to claim 6, characterized in that, The preset queuing rule is as follows: the reporting execution water meter sorts the reported cumulative time corresponding to multiple smart water meters that are greater than the system reporting threshold according to the numerical value, and downloads and reports the data to be reported to each corresponding smart water meter in descending order of the reported cumulative time value.

8. A Bluetooth-networked multi-meter collaborative data reporting method for water meter wells according to claim 6, characterized in that, In step 03, after the reporting execution water meter completes the data reporting, the scanning time for scanning other smart water meters in the surrounding area is specifically 30 seconds.

9. A Bluetooth-networked multi-meter collaborative data reporting method for water meter wells according to claim 6, characterized in that, Step 04 also includes an assisting reporting step: the control module of the reporting execution water meter downloads the reporting data of smart water meters whose cumulative reporting time is greater than the assisting reporting threshold and less than the system reporting threshold according to the status information of each smart water meter and reports the data; and sends a non-zero cumulative value instruction O2 to the smart water meter to modify its reported cumulative time.

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