Techniques For Analysis Of Data From Smart Meters
AssigneeSacramento Municipal Utility District
InventorsRemington Clark, Jeff Berkheimer, Sheikh Hassan
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A computer system analyzes data from smart meters. The computer system can, for example, analyze the data from a smart meter to determine if the smart meter is connected to a different distribution transformer, if the smart meter is at a customer site where power theft is occurring, if the smart meter is located at a customer site having a solar photovoltaic system, if the smart meter is located at a customer site having an electric vehicle, or if the smart meter is located at a grow house.
Claims20
A computer system comprising at least one processor device, wherein the computer system is configured to:
- determine if voltage data received from a smart meter connected to an electric distribution system indicates that the smart meter is located at a customer site having a solar photovoltaic system that is sending power to the electric distribution system;
- determine if data indicating power usage received from the smart meter indicates that the smart meter is located at a customer site having an electric vehicle that charges from the electric distribution system;
- determine if the voltage data or the data indicating power usage received from the smart meter indicates that the smart meter is located at a grow house that uses substantially more power than other smart meters in a local area;
- and
- determine if the voltage data and the data indicating power usage received from the smart meter indicates that the power usage of the smart meter accounts for voltage drops measured by the smart meter to identify power theft.
A computer system comprising at least one processor device, wherein the computer system is configured to:
- determine if data indicating power usage received from a smart meter connected to an electric distribution system indicates that the smart meter is located at a customer site having an electric vehicle that charges from the electric distribution system by determining if power usage indicated by the smart meter increases rapidly to a peak that is more than power usage indicated by most other smart meters in a local area, and then decreases rapidly during multiple days of a multiple day period;
- and
- generate a flag for the smart meter if the data indicates that the customer site has an electric vehicle.
A method for determining if power theft is occurring at a utility customer site using a computer system, the method comprising:
- calculating voltage drops through distribution lines between a distribution transformer and smart meters connected to the distribution transformer in an electric distribution system using electric current values for the smart meters and resistances of the distribution lines;
- if a voltage drop between a voltage at the distribution transformer and a voltage measured by one of the smart meters does not match one of the voltage drops between the distribution transformer and the one of the smart meters calculated using the electric current values, calculating an electric current that causes the voltage drop between the voltage at the distribution transformer and the voltage measured by the one of the smart meters using the voltage measured by the one of the smart meters and the resistances;
- and
- comparing one of the electric current values that corresponds to the one of the smart meters to the electric current calculated using the voltage measured by the one of the smart meters.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.