What is smart metering?
A Smart meter generally refers to a type of advanced meter (usually an electrical meter) that identifies consumption in more detail than a conventional meter; and optionally, but generally, communicates that information via some network back to the local utility for monitoring and billing purposes (telemetering). The term ‘Smart meter’ typically refers to an electrical meter, but the term is also starting to be applied to the measurement of natural gas and water consumption. Similar meters usually referred to as time-of-use or interval meters have existed for years but ‘Smart meters’ usually involve a different technology mix such as real-time or near real-time reads, power outage notification, and power quality monitoring. These added features are more than simple AMR (automated meter reading). Smart Meters are also believed to be a less costly alternative to traditional interval or time-of-use meters and are intended to be implemented on a wide scale to all customer classes, includin
