AMR transmitter with programmable operating mode parameters
AssigneeBadger Meter, Inc.
InventorsJohn A. Olson, Mark Lazar, Syed Mateen, Kelly Laughlin-Parker
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention provides a method and circuitry for programming an AMR transmitter to operate in different modes. The device can be programmed as to any one or all of the following parameters: transmission power according to the physical environment of the installation; power level and modulation type for drive-by or fixed network application; and frequency of data transmission to conserve battery life. A laptop computer or other type of programming device communicates through an optical IR port to enter these parameters.
Claims15
A method for programming the operating mode of a utility meter transmitter unit for use in an automatic meter reading network, the utility meter interface unit comprising:
- storing operating parameters in a utility metering transmitter unit for determining the following functions:
- transmission power of the transmitter unit according to a physical environment of an installation of the transmitter unit, wherein the physical environment comprises a type of enclosure in which the transmitter unit is situated;
- a selection of one of two significantly different power levels differing by at least an order of magnitude and a selection of one of at least two modulation types for communicating with a drive-by receiver and a fixed network receiver, respectively;
- and
- frequency of occurrence of data transmissions over a predefined interval to conserve battery life;
- and
- transmitting one or more of said operating parameters into the utility meter transmitting unit using a programming unit.
A utility meter interface unit for use in an automatic meter reading network, the utility meter interface unit comprising:
- a circuit for storing operating parameters for determining the following functions:
- transmission power of a transmitter unit in the utility meter interface unit according to a physical environment of an installation of the transmitter unit, wherein the physical environment comprises a type of enclosure in which the transmitter unit is situated;
- a selection of one of two different power levels differing by at least an order of magnitude and a selection of one of at least two modulation types for communication with a drive-by receiver and a fixed network receiver, respectively;
- and
- frequency of occurrence of data transmissions over a predefined interval to conserve battery life;
- and
- wherein said circuit is capable of receiving said operating parameters from an external programming unit.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.