Design Article
Smart meters tackle water conservation
Gert Skriver, Kamstrup
12/10/2012 5:31 PM EST
Smart water metering
With the objective of providing reliable knowledge on water consumption and engage consumers in water conservation, smart water metering offers an array of possibilities.
The residential water meter has its place at the far most end of the distribution system from where a high frequency of reliable data is crucial for water pricing as well as for estimating renovation projects.
When applying smart technology in water meters they will not only serve as instruments for billing, but even act as tools for trouble shooting, early warning, and analysis and for consumer oriented visualization of consumption.
Two aspects of the smart water meter must be considered as equally important: the metering principle and the intelligent features.
Especially the ultrasonic metering principle has proven to be a certain method of providing reliable data. One of the world’s technology centers for ultrasonic metering is the company Kamstrup who has for more than 20 years developed ultrasonic heat meters for district heating and today claims a place among the world’s largest manufacturers of ultrasonic heat meters.
With the objective of providing reliable knowledge on water consumption and engage consumers in water conservation, smart water metering offers an array of possibilities.
The residential water meter has its place at the far most end of the distribution system from where a high frequency of reliable data is crucial for water pricing as well as for estimating renovation projects.
When applying smart technology in water meters they will not only serve as instruments for billing, but even act as tools for trouble shooting, early warning, and analysis and for consumer oriented visualization of consumption.
Two aspects of the smart water meter must be considered as equally important: the metering principle and the intelligent features.
Especially the ultrasonic metering principle has proven to be a certain method of providing reliable data. One of the world’s technology centers for ultrasonic metering is the company Kamstrup who has for more than 20 years developed ultrasonic heat meters for district heating and today claims a place among the world’s largest manufacturers of ultrasonic heat meters.
|
|
|
|
|
Navigate to related information
JmmWill
12/11/2012 12:18 PM EST
I like the ultrasound basis. I am electrosensitive and would be tortured if the smart meter were using radio communications which penetrated to my living areas.
Sign in to Reply
R Sweeney
12/19/2012 4:45 PM EST
So I guess you live in an area without radio and TV service, right? And you don't use a computer which emits an incredible amount of RF noise.
Oh, wait.
Sign in to Reply
JmmWill
12/11/2012 12:22 PM EST
OOPS! "The MULTICAL 21 therefore uses a standardized wireless communication, Wireless M-Bus, which is interoperable with other household meters and can be integrated into mesh networks."
I guess if I were bothered by this wireless electromagnetic feature, I'd have to use a lawsuit to force a different communication principle.
Sign in to Reply
green_is_now
12/12/2012 7:54 PM EST
Tiny bubbles...
How do they effect the acuracy?
Sign in to Reply
GPBobby
12/13/2012 7:54 AM EST
This is an awful lot of hype over very little. Sure, it's a more accurate and possibly cost effective durable meter which can save reading costs, but water is not electricity. You have very few quick fixes to cut usage. A goldfish display on my wall telling me I just flushed my water saver toilet is a so-what. Data is only useful to the extent it can alter outcomes and you already know what you can do to conserve water - new toilets, timed sink faucets, the newest washing machine, and go back to using ice cube trays (which could result in increased electricity consumption).
Most inside water is used (wasted) simply as a vehicle to transport sewage. Let's put our engineering talent and emphasis towards the source of the problem, not on fancy ways to tell us what we already know.
Sign in to Reply
WKetel
12/13/2012 3:19 PM EST
GPBobby certainly has a very good grip! A whole lot of water is indeed just used to make the sewers flow. But that could also be done using quite dirty water. In this "Greater Detroit" area it is common for leaking water mains to account for over half of the water flow, so it would be quite worthwhile to correct that problem.
So how about, instead of just boosting the prices for all, if water rates are set to follow consumption, so that the larger users pay more for gallon than the smaller users. And then find some other means to make our drains flush correctly.
Sign in to Reply
WKetel
12/13/2012 3:20 PM EST
GPBobby certainly has a very good grip! A whole lot of water is indeed just used to make the sewers flow. But that could also be done using quite dirty water. In this "Greater Detroit" area it is common for leaking water mains to account for over half of the water flow, so it would be quite worthwhile to correct that problem.
So how about, instead of just boosting the prices for all, if water rates are set to follow consumption, so that the larger users pay more for gallon than the smaller users. And then find some other means to make our drains flush correctly.
Sign in to Reply
docdivakar
1/1/2013 4:23 PM EST
A quick scan of the article leads me to this conclusion: the author makes a point about the seriousness of world's current water resources status and then starts with a case for accurate metering of water (where such metering infrastructure exists!)... and then morphs into an infomercial about Kamstrup's product and the case for ultrasonic water meters. Some astute readers above (@GPBobby included) made really sensible comments... indeed some countries already use (as well as some hotels in USA) recycled water for toilets.
In much of the developing world where running water is still a luxury to many households, the payback from conservation using hitech meters at customer premises is a less attractive proposition. Bigger pay back comes from good management of existing water resources. This is certainly not to say consumer behaviour and payback is any less important but is a nonstarter for a discussion on smart water meters.
MP Divakar
Sign in to Reply