Capture of power quality information at the time a device fails

A method comprising:

• detecting, within a power control device, an abnormal condition, the abnormal condition indicative of one or more of
• an impending failure of the power control device;
• and
• a condition within the power control device indicative of a parameter being outside of a specified limit,
• wherein the power control device controls power to one or more power devices in a power distribution system;
• and
• transmitting a capture signal to a transient capture meter, the transient capture meter metering transient conditions of a branch of the power distribution system comprising the power control device, wherein the capture signal instructs the transient capture meter to capture one or more of current and voltage waveforms relevant to a time when the abnormal condition is detected.

An apparatus comprising:

• a signal receiver module within a transient capture meter that receives a transient capture signal from a power control device, the transient capture meter metering transient conditions of a branch of a power distribution system comprising the power control device, the power control device controlling power to one or more power devices in the power distribution system, the power control device
• detects an abnormal condition, the abnormal condition indicative of one or more of an impending failure of the power control device, and a condition within the power control device indicative of a parameter being outside of a specified limit;
• and
• transmits the capture signal to the transient capture meter in response to detecting the abnormal condition;
• and
• a transient capture module, within the transient capture meter, that captures one or more of current and voltage waveforms relevant to a time when the power control device detected the abnormal condition.