KR100437741B1 - System of remote measurement using embedded internet board - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a remote meter reading system using the Internet, the digital meter which is provided in the customer to measure the amount of use of power, gas, water and heat, such as digital integration and calculation; A consumer integrated indicator that collects and displays one unit as a unit; A data collection control unit connected to communicate with a plurality of the customer integrated indicators installed in a predetermined area, and having a decoding circuit therein to receive and store metering data from the customer integrated indicators; and in the data collection control unit. It is characterized by including an embedded Internet Board (Embedded Internet Board) that can transmit and receive the collected weighing data to the supplier's computer through the Internet.

According to the present invention, it is possible to easily implement a remote meter reading system over the Internet, which has been suggested in the related art only with low cost and small scale.

Description

Remote meter reading system using internet {SYSTEM OF REMOTE MEASUREMENT USING EMBEDDED INTERNET BOARD}

The present invention relates to a remote meter reading system using the Internet, and more particularly, it is possible to digitize various types of meters of consumers and to integrate them and check them with one indicator, and to integrate these customers in a predetermined area unit. After collecting the weighing data of each customer in the room, the meter can transmit the metering data of the corresponding area to the host computer through the embedded internet board dedicated to data transmission. It relates to a meter reading system.

The meter refers to an integrated calorimeter, power meter, water meter, gas meter, etc. installed in each consumer to display and calculate the amount of heat, power, water, and gas used.

Conventionally, the meter reader has to visit the home in order to read the meter, it takes time to read the meter, it is impossible to read the meter in the absence of the landlord, and there is a risk of invading the privacy of the individual. There was a problem that was impossible. In addition, the conventional meter was inconvenient to collect the data read by the meter reader and input it into the computer every time in order to calculate the bill and issue the bill.

Recently, in order to solve the inconveniences of the conventional meter reading method, there have been efforts to utilize a wired or wireless network for meter reading.

An example thereof is described in Korean Patent Publication No. 194-3378. The present invention discloses a system that enables remote meter reading at the same time as crime prevention using a CATV (cable TV) optical transmission network. However, the above-mentioned publication No. 1994-3378 has a limitation in that it can be remotely read only to customers who have a CATV network installed.

Another example of remote meter reading is disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 2000-24268 (filed date: 2000.2.2). In the specification of the 2000-24268 application, "A digital meter is sensed by sensing a meter of an analog meter, a pulse is generated, digitally measured, and directly connected to a local area network (LAN) or the Internet, such as water, electricity, and gas. "The remote automatic meter reading system of the meter invented so that the measurement data can be transmitted to a predetermined host computer", but the description is not specified and it is not clear, so it is difficult for a person skilled in the art to grasp the contents, especially a LAN server computer. Although it is schematically shown in the drawing that the installation of asymmetric data subscriber network (ADSL) equipment, etc., this is impossible to implement itself or excessively expensive configuration, there is a question in the feasibility of the implementation.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and the technical problem to be achieved by the present invention is to provide a remote meter reading system using the Internet that can be implemented not only realistically remote meter reading using the Internet, but also can be implemented at a low cost. have.

Another technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to display various meter integration data of each customer in one terminal so that the user can easily check his / her usage, and thus the confidence of the measurement data of the customer measured by the Internet. The present invention provides a remote meter reading system using the Internet.

1 is a block diagram of a remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention.

Figure 2 is a block diagram of the embedded Internet board of the components of the remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention.

Figure 3 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a digital integration calorimeter of the components of the remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention.

<Description of Symbols for Major Parts of Drawings>

1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, ...., Na, Nb, Nc, Nd: Digital Meter 2: Data Collection Control Unit

3: Embedded Internet Board 4: Internet Network

5: Provider's host computer 6: Administrator computer 7: User computer

D1, ...., DN: Consumer Integrated Indicator T1, ..., TN: Zone Integrated Transmitter

Remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention

A digital meter provided at a customer to measure the amount of power, gas, water and calories used to perform digital integration and calculation;

A customer integrating indicator which collects and displays various types of weighing data obtained by the digital meter in one terminal in a unit of customer;

A data collection control unit connected to communicate with a plurality of the customer integrated indicators installed in a predetermined area, and having a decoding circuit therein to receive and store metering data from the customer integrated indicators; and

And an embedded Internet board dedicated to transmitting and receiving data capable of transmitting the weighing data collected by the data collection control unit to a computer of a supplier through the Internet.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram of a remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention, Figure 2 is a block diagram of an embedded Internet board of the components of the remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention, Figure 3 according to the present invention A block diagram showing an embodiment of a meter among the components of a remote meter reading system using the Internet is shown.

Referring to FIG. 1, in one consumer such as a home or a building, various types of meters such as an integrated calorimeter, power meter, water meter, gas meter, etc. are displayed by integrating the amount of heat, power, water, and gas used in the consumer. give.

As shown in FIG. 3, the remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention includes a digital meter in which various meters are digitized by using a sensor and an encoder. FIG. 3 exemplarily shows an integrated calorimeter (a) which measures the amount of heat used by the customer and charges the pay-per-agent among various meters. The integrated calorimeter (a) includes a flow temperature sensor (S1), a reflux temperature sensor (S2), a water quantity sensor (S3) and a digital calculation unit (OP) for integrating the metering data of the sensors, and the flow from the sensors And temperature difference and quantity data at the time of reflux, and integrated heat quantity is calculated from these data. That is, the sensors transmit the operation signal according to the flow temperature, the reflux temperature and the quantity change, and the digital operation unit OP accumulates the measured value.

Although only the digital total calorimeter a is shown in detail in FIG. 3, a power meter, a water meter, a gas meter, etc. can also be easily digitalized using a well-known technique.

1 and 3, the remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention is a single consumer to display and display the integrated value of the integrated calorimeter, water meter, power meter, gas meter, etc. Connect to the integrated indicator. In other words, each household has several types of meters, but by connecting them to a single consumer integrated indicator, the cost of equipment installed for measurement is reduced and installation is simplified. The consumer integrated indicator is preferably installed outdoors.

The digital measured data obtained by the various digital weighers 1a, 1b, 1c, and 1d of one customer are transmitted and stored by using the internal protocol in one consumer integrated display unit D, and displayed by the user's operation. To this end, the consumer integrated indicator is a data bus for transmitting digital measurement data obtained from various digital meters 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d of one customer using an internal protocol, a memory for storing measurement data, and a user. Or a display that allows the administrator to display and view weighing data.

Referring to FIG. 1, an RS485 communication protocol is provided between a plurality of consumer integration indicators D1, ..., DN between the consumer integration indicators D1, ..., DN and the Internet network 4. And a data collection control unit (2) which is coupled in such a way to send a metering data request signal to the corresponding customer integration indicators (D1, ..., DN), and receives the metering data corresponding thereto and stores it in an internal flash memory. Host connected to the Internet (4) by connecting the data acquisition control unit 2 and RS232 (RS232) communication protocol method to send a metering data request signal to the data collection control unit 2, and to receive the corresponding metering data An embedded Internet board 3 for transmitting to the computer 5 is further provided.

One data collection control unit 2 may be connected to tens to hundreds of consumer integration indicators (D1, ..., DN).

As shown in FIG. 2, the embedded internet board is inexpensively manufactured with only basic components necessary for data transmission. In other words, the embedded Internet board, in order to give only a data communication function, the serial port (3b) for transmitting and receiving data with the data acquisition control unit, the Internet connection connector (3d) for connecting to the Internet, TCP / IP protocol communication control Ethernet controller 3e for controlling, Filter 3f for removing noise between the Ethernet controller and the Internet connection connector, Memory 3c for storing data and programs, and Microprocessor 3a for controlling the respective parts. It consists only.

The data collection control unit 2 and the embedded internet board may be implemented as separate boards to transmit and receive data using the RS232 protocol, but may be implemented on a single board to separate the data. It is also possible to transmit and receive data by internal bus without RS232 communication. Hereinafter, a description will be given focusing on a case where it is implemented as a separate board.

The host computer 5 is a computer of a supplier such as electric power or gas or a tolling manager thereof. The host computer 5 sends a metering data request signal to the embedded internet board at regular intervals or when necessary, and thus the metering data. Receives and stores the accumulated amount, fee, and date in the database.

According to the present invention, a single household data collection control unit (2) connected to the consumer integrated indicators (D1, ..., DN) of several households connected to the meter, the embedded Internet board (3) is the meter reading data of the area Is transmitted to the host such as supplier through the Internet and stored.

The data collection control unit 2 uses the microprocessor to periodically read the metering request signal to the home customer integration indicator (D1, ...., DN) periodically or at a specific date every month when the metering request signal comes from the host. The meter data transmitted and read is received and stored, and the embedded internet board 3 transmits the meter data to the host computer 5.

To this end, the data collection control unit 2 preferably includes a clock circuit (not shown) and a decoding circuit (not shown).

If a meter reading error occurs during the meter reading function, the host computer 5 reports an error condition. Users or administrators can connect to the Embedded Internet Board to check for error conditions.

The customer integration indicator D1,..., DN or the data collection control unit 2 may include a flash memory as a data storage device so that data is preserved even when power supply is interrupted by a power failure. In this way, only certain meters in a particular household can be re-read to store and transmit new readings.

Users or administrators can view meter reading data from anywhere on their computer with an Internet connection. That is, a user can log in to the host computer 5 to check his meter reading data through a certain authentication procedure through the Internet on his computer 7, and the zone administrator can also check his reading data through the Internet on his computer 6. By logging in to the host computer 5 through a certain authentication procedure, it is possible to check and manage necessary matters.

Hereinafter, a preferred meter reading method of the remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention will be described by way of example.

The remote meter reading method using the Internet according to the present invention is different depending on whether to use a "fixed IP" or a "floating IP" as the Internet protocol address (IP address) of the embedded Internet board 3, and in each of these cases, The difference is again depending on whether you use the Internet board in TCP server mode or TCP client mode.

<When the IP address of the embedded internet board is a fixed IP address>

Referring to the configuration diagram of FIG. 1 and the block diagram of FIG. 2, when an IP address of an embedded Internet board is a static IP address, an embedded Internet board ( Set IP address of 3). The IP address should be assigned to an available IP address depending on the network environment. Then, the parameters of the embedded internet board 3 are set. The parameters are the "password parameter" which allows only the approver to use the Embedded Internet Board (3), and the network and network for the Embedded Internet Board to operate in a TCP / IP network environment. The relevant "System Parameters" and "RS232 Communication Parameters" settings are required to connect the data acquisition control unit 2 and the RS232 (RS232) port.

1 and 2, a fixed IP address is used as an IP address of the embedded internet board 3, and the embedded internet board 3 is referred to as a TCP. When using in the (TCP) server mode, the host computer 5 periodically requests a TPC connection to the embedded Internet board 3 through the Internet network 40 (for example, a certain day every month). The Embedded Internet Board 3 accepts the connection, and the host computer 5 sends meter reading request signal data to the Embedded Internet Board 3. The embedded Internet board 3 receives the metering signal data with TPI. The meter signal data is sent under the pre-promised protocol such as batch meter reading, meter reading, meter reading in all generations, meter reading in particular generation. The embedded Internet board 3 outputs the received metering request signal data to the RS232 line and sends it to the data collection control unit 2. The data collection control unit 2 receives the metering request signal, interprets the condition, and sends a metering request signal to the consumer integration indicators D1,..., DN of the corresponding generation using a decoding circuit. One data collection control unit 2 is connected to dozens to hundreds of consumer integration indicators (D1, ..., DN), the connected tens to hundreds of consumer integration indicators (D1, ..., DN) Since it is connected to the data collection control unit 2 by the decoding circuit, only one customer integration indicator D1,..., DN is connected to the data collection control unit 2 at a time. When the data collection control unit 2 needs to communicate data from two or more consumer integration indicators D1,..., DN, the customer integration indicators D1,... And DN) request and receive meter data from the corresponding consumer integration indicators (D1, ..., DN). The customer integrated indicators (D1, ..., DN) are digital meters, 1a, ..., Na, digital power meters (1b, ..., Nb), and digital water meters, respectively. The data collection control unit 2 requests the read data from any one of 1c, ..., Nc and the digital gas meter (1d, ..., Nd) or various home digital meters (not shown). The data is transmitted to the data collection control unit 2 through the RS485 communication line, and the data is input to the embedded internet board 3 through the RS232 communication line. The Embedded Internet Board (3) transmits the input data to the host computer 5 in TPI.

When using a fixed IP address as an IP address of the embedded Internet board 3 and using the embedded internet board 3 in a TPC client mode, a data collection controller (2) transmits the meter reading data request signal to the consumer integration indicators D1, ..., DN of each generation sequentially by using the decoding circuit periodically (specific day) by the built-in clock circuit. Reading data stored in the customer integration indicator (D1, ..., DN) is transmitted to the embedded Internet board (3) through the data collection control unit 2 by the reading request signal. In the embedded Internet board 3, the IP address and port of the host computer 5 that accepts the data are input in advance. When data is input from the data collection control unit 2, the designated host computer ( It attempts to connect to the designated TPC port of 5) and transmits the input data to the host computer 5 by TPI. That is, even if the host computer 5 does not require meter reading data, the meter reading data is periodically transmitted to the host computer 5 by the clock circuit 101 built in the data collection control unit 2 so that the meter reading data is transmitted to the host computer 5. Stored.

1 and 2, when the IP address of the embedded Internet board 3 is a fixed IP address, a general user or an administrator uses his or her computer 6, 7. The metered data can be inquired by accessing the host computer 5 via the Internet network 4. In addition, it is possible to connect to the embedded Internet Board (3) through the Internet network 40 using the general computer (6,7) to request the meter reading data transmission. At this time, it is necessary to know the IP address of the embedded Internet board (3).

<If the IP address of the embedded internet board is a floating IP address>

When using a dynamic IP address as an IP address of the embedded internet board 3 and using the embedded internet board in a client PC mode, an embedded internet board A fixed IP address is used as an IP address of the board 3, and the embedded Internet board 3 is used in the client PC mode.

A floating IP address is used as an IP address of the embedded internet board 3 according to FIGS. 1 and 2, and the embedded internet board 3 is placed in a TPC server mode. In case of use, in order to connect to the embedded internet board 3, the IP address connected to the embedded internet board 3 must be known. However, when the embedded Internet board 3 uses a dynamic IP address, the IP address of the embedded internet board 3 may change from time to time, which is a problem.

At this time, the host computer 5 is set to a host computer 5 having a fixed IP address, and a transmission cycle can be set in the embedded internet board 3, and then the embedded internet board is used as the transmission cycle. (Embedded Internet Board) 3 sends its IP address, MAC address, and Local Port number to the host computer 5 having a fixed IP address. Therefore, when the host computer 5 or the user or administrator computer 6 or 7 wishes to access the embedded Internet board 3, the host computer 5 or the user or administrator computer 6 or 7 needs to access the embedded Internet board 3 before connecting to the embedded Internet board 3. After connecting the host computer 5 to obtain the stored IP address of the embedded Internet board 3, and connecting to the embedded Internet board 3, the embedded Internet board Even when (3) uses a floating IP address such as high speed communication, the embedded Internet board (3) can be read as a server.

Embedded Internet Board (3) is provided with a function that can request MAC address and password, and only when the proper information is inputted, the Embedded Internet Board (3) reads the meter data. It is desirable to allow the data collection control unit 2 to request the transfer request, so that only a specific person can query the meter reading data. Even if the MAC address and password are accidentally exposed, the meter reading data retrieved from the customer integration indicator (D1, .., DN) and the data collection control unit 2 can be read only, and the reading of the meter reading data is impossible. It is desirable to prevent the reading data from being deleted or changed.

In the case of using a floating IP, it is preferable to set the power of the embedded internet board to be turned on or off at a predetermined cycle or at a specific time, so that the floating IP is re-assigned and communicated each time the power is turned on. This prevents the embedded Internet board from being connected to the Internet unnecessarily.

What has been described above is just an embodiment for implementing the remote meter reading system using the Internet according to the present invention, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, the subject matter of the present invention as claimed in the following claims Without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention to the extent that any person skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains various modifications can be made.

According to the present invention, it is possible to easily implement a remote meter reading system over the Internet, which has been suggested only in the theoretical manner, with low cost and small scale equipment.

In addition, it is convenient to be able to check the accumulated amount of all the meters from one terminal at any time in the consumer, as well as to check their usage through the Internet, which has the advantage of increasing the reliability of the usage fee.

Claims (10)

A digital meter which is provided in the customer to measure the amount of power, gas, water and calorie usage and performs digital integration and calculation, and collects, displays and stores various metering data obtained from the digital meter in one terminal in a customer unit. In the remote meter reading system using the Internet including a consumer integrated indicator, The remote meter reading system using the Internet; A data collection control unit connected to communicate with a plurality of the customer integrated indicators installed in a predetermined area, and having a decoding circuit therein to receive and store metering data from the customer integrated indicators; and Remote meter reading system using the Internet characterized in that it comprises an embedded Internet Board (Embedded Internet Board) for transmitting and receiving data collected by the data collection control unit to the host computer of the supplier via the Internet. The method of claim 1, The digital meter is selected from any one of a digital cumulative calorimeter, a digital power meter, a digital water meter, a digital gas meter or various digital weighing devices in the home. The digital cumulative calorimeter is a flow temperature sensor, a reflux temperature sensor, a quantity sensor and the Remote reading system using the Internet characterized in that it comprises a digital calculation unit for obtaining the temperature difference and quantity data at the time of reflux and reflux from the sensors, and calculate the accumulated calories from these data. delete The method of claim 1, The consumer integrated display includes a data bus for receiving digital measurement data obtained from various digital meters 1a, 1b, 1c, and 1d using an internal protocol, a flash memory for storing weighing data, and a user or administrator. Remote meter reading system using the Internet, characterized in that comprises a display for displaying and viewing the weighing data. The method of claim 1, The embedded Internet board is provided with a serial port for transmitting and receiving data with the data collection control unit, an internet connection connector for accessing the Internet, an Ethernet controller for TCP / IP protocol communication control, and the Ethernet controller to give only a data communication function. A remote meter reading system using the Internet comprising only a filter for removing noise between the Internet connection connectors, a memory for storing data and programs, and a microprocessor for controlling the respective parts. The method of claim 1, The data collection control unit includes a microprocessor, a flash memory, a decoding circuit, and a clock circuit, and is coupled to a plurality of customer integrated indicators in an RS485 communication protocol, and requests meter reading data from the embedded Internet board. When the signal is received, the meter reading data request signal to the corresponding customer integration indicator, the remote meter reading system using the Internet, characterized in that for receiving and storing the meter reading data corresponding thereto. The method of claim 1, The embedded Internet board is provided with a fixed IP and used in a TPC server mode, and sends a meter data request signal to a data collection controller according to a periodic or occasional TPC connection request from a host computer. A remote meter reading system using the Internet, characterized in that for receiving the meter reading data that is a response to the data collection control unit for transmission to the host computer. The method of claim 1, The embedded Internet board is assigned a fixed IP or a floating IP and used in the client PC mode, and the meter is periodically read according to the date and time specified by the clock circuit built in the data collection control unit. A remote meter reading system using the Internet, characterized by transmitting a data request signal and receiving meter data, which is a response of the consumer integrated indicator, to periodically send meter data to a host computer through the Internet. The method of claim 1, The embedded Internet board is assigned to a floating IP and used in the TPC server mode, and the host computer having its own IP address, MAC address and local port number as a fixed IP address. By transmitting, either the user computer, the administrator computer or the host computer to obtain the IP address of the embedded Internet board from the host computer to access the embedded Internet board (Embedded Internet Board) Remote meter reading system using the Internet, characterized in that using the (Embedded Internet Board) as a server. The method according to claim 8 or 9, When the floating IP is applied to the embedded internet board, the power of the embedded internet board is turned on and off at a predetermined cycle or at a predetermined time, so that the meter is read only at the time when the embedded internet board is turned on. system.