Battery-Powered Gas Metering With Local Volume Correction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Battery-powered gas and water meters face challenges in power consumption management due to high energy usage in sensor functions, data processing, and communication, leading to reduced battery life and increased costs for millions of units.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a metrology unit that processes flow rate measurements, corrects raw gas volume data using temperature information, and accumulates corrected data for later transmission, reducing the need to transmit temperature data and minimizing power consumption and bandwidth usage by separating the metrology and index units, allowing for flexible communication schedules and efficient data reporting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If temperature data is transmitted from metrology unit to index unit, then gas volume correction can be performed, but battery power is consumed and data transmission bandwidth is used
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the temperature correction calculation function from the index unit and relocates it to the metrology unit. This allows temperature data to be processed locally where it is generated, and only the corrected gas volume results need to be transmitted to the index unit, thereby eliminating unnecessary data transmission while maintaining correction accuracy
Solution Approach 2:
The metrology unit performs self-correction of gas volume measurements using its own temperature sensor and correction algorithm. By autonomously correcting its measurements before transmission, the metrology unit reduces the data transmission burden and conserves battery power without requiring continuous communication with the index unit for correction calculations
2Reliability
If flow rate data is transmitted frequently to index unit, then real-time monitoring is achieved, but battery power is consumed rapidly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements periodic accumulation of flow rate measurements at the metrology unit, transmitting aggregated data at scheduled intervals rather than continuously. This periodic transmission approach maintains monitoring reliability while dramatically reducing power consumption compared to continuous real-time transmission
Solution Approach 2:
The metrology unit performs preliminary accumulation and correction of flow rate data before transmission to the index unit. By pre-processing and aggregating measurements locally, the system reduces the frequency and volume of transmissions required, thereby conserving battery power while maintaining data integrity
3Loss of information
If all sensor data is transmitted to index unit, then complete data availability is achieved, but data transmission bandwidth is wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential corrected gas volume results from the metrology unit and transmits them to the index unit, leaving intermediate sensor data and raw measurements at the metrology unit where they are generated. This selective data transmission maintains data completeness for billing purposes while eliminating wasteful transmission of redundant information
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by processing and correcting data at the metrology unit where it is generated, ensuring data accuracy and completeness locally without requiring all raw sensor data to be transmitted. Each unit operates with the quality and data completeness appropriate to its function
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for the design and operation of an efficient battery-powered meter are described herein. A metrology unit of the meter may be at least partially located in the gas flow of a pipe, and measures gas flow rate data according to a static flow sensor. The metrology unit calculates raw gas-volume data using at least the flow rate data as input. The metrology unit measures gas temperature to produce gas temperature data, and adjusts the raw gas-volume data, based at least in part on the gas temperature data, to produce corrected gas-volume data. The metrology unit accumulates the corrected gas-volume data over multiple minutes, hours or even days, and then sends the accumulated corrected gas-volume data to an index unit of the meter. By accumulating the data over time, fewer data transmissions are required. The index unit may send the accumulated the accumulated corrected gas-volume data to a utility server.