# US 2014/0156093 A1 · Auto-discovery of smart meter update interval > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2014/0156093 A1 - Document ID: US20140156093A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 13/693,088 - Filed: 2012-12-04 - Published: 2014-06-05 - Earliest claimed: 2012-12-04 - Assignees: General Electric Company - Applicants: General Electric Company - Inventors: Joseph Mark Brian; Robert Marten Bultman; Jeff Drake - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140156093A1 ## CPC - G01D 4/002: {Remote reading of utility meters} - H04Q 9/00: Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom - H04Q 2209/60: for transmitting utility meters data, i.e. transmission of data from the reader of the utility meter - Y02B 90/20: Smart grids as enabling technology in buildings sector (smart grids supporting the management or operation of end-user stationary applications in general, or like technologies with no associated climate change mitigation effect Y04S20/00) - Y04S 20/30: Smart metering, e.g. specially adapted for remote reading - G01D: MEASURING NOT SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR A SPECIFIC VARIABLE; ARRANGEMENTS FOR MEASURING TWO OR MORE VARIABLES NOT COVERED IN A SINGLE OTHER SUBCLASS; TARIFF METERING APPARATUS; MEASURING OR TESTING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - H04Q: SELECTING (switches, relays, selectors H01H; wireless communication networks H04W) - Y02B: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO BUILDINGS, e.g. HOUSING, HOUSE APPLIANCES OR RELATED END-USER APPLICATIONS - Y04S: SYSTEMS INTEGRATING TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO POWER NETWORK OPERATION, COMMUNICATION OR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES FOR IMPROVING THE ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATION, TRANSMISSION, DISTRIBUTION, MANAGEMENT OR USAGE, i.e. SMART GRIDS ## Abstract A control device is connected to a smart meter. The control device includes a communication engine configured to retrieve an energy consumption value from a measuring unit coupled to the smart meter based on a polling interval. The control device includes a discovery engine operatively coupled to the communication engine and configured to discover an update interval of the smart meter by increasing the polling interval iteratively from an initial value until a difference is detected between successively retrieved energy consumption values. Furthermore, the device includes a user interface engine, operatively coupled to the discovery engine and the communication engine, configured to estimate a utility consumption at a present time based on the difference value and the polling interval. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An control device operatively connected to a smart meter, comprising: a communication engine configured to periodically retrieve an energy consumption value measurement from a measuring unit coupled to the smart meter based on a polling interval; a discovery engine, operatively coupled to the communication engine, configured to discover an update interval of the smart meter by increasing the polling interval iteratively from an initial value until a subsequently retrieved energy consumption value exceeds a value of a first retrieved energy consumption value; and a user interface engine, operatively coupled to the discovery engine and the communication engine, configured to estimate a utility consumption at a present time based on the values of successively retrieved energy consumption values and the polling interval. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The control device of claim 1, wherein the discovery engine is further configured to increase the polling interval linearly with a base increment. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The control device of claim 1, wherein the user interface engine is further configured to estimate the utility consumption based on the successively retrieved energy consumption values of the measuring unit. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The control device of claim 1, wherein the smart meter comprises an electricity meter. ### Claim 5 (depends on 6) The control device of claim 6, wherein the measuring unit is a cumulative watt-hour register. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The control device of claim 1, wherein the smart meter comprises a gas or water meter. ### Claim 7 (depends on 8) The control device of claim 8, wherein the measuring unit comprises a cumulative volume register. ### Claim 8 A method of discovering an update interval of a smart meter, comprising: determining an initial polling interval; retrieving an energy consumption measurement value from a measuring unit coupled to the smart meter based on the initial polling interval; determining the update interval by increasing the initial polling interval iteratively until a subsequently retrieved energy consumption measurement value exceeds a first retrieved energy consumption measurement value; and estimating a utility consumption at a present time based on the difference between successively retrieved measurement values and the polling interval. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, further comprising updating an in home display with the utility consumption at the present time. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, wherein increasing the initial polling interval iteratively further comprises increasing the initial polling interval linearly with a base increment. ### Claim 11 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, wherein the smart meter comprises an electricity meter. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein the measuring unit comprises a cumulative watt-hour register. ### Claim 13 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, wherein the smart meter comprises one or more of a gas or water meter. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the measuring unit is a cumulative volume register.