AMI Benefits for Water Utilities

Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) systems benefit utilities by providing near real-time meter data with the convenience of remote reading. Kamstrup AMI consists of only a few components to install and maintain. Understanding the individual components of your AMI hardware ensures a high level of confidence when selecting the right system for your utility today and for years to come.

Two components make up the Kamstrup AMI system: the data collector and the flowIQ® meter.

A data collector consists of one or two antennas, a topbox and a base station (or box). Antennas are installed as high as possible to pick up the radio signals from as many meters as possible. The Kamstrup AMI system operates on dedicated frequencies between 450 and 470 MHz; this is comparable to having a communication highway to yourself.

The topbox connects to the antennas via coaxial cables and functions as a converter, which sends the radio signal digitally from antennas to the base station. The closer the topbox and antennas are to each other the better, as reducing the length of the cable minimizes signal losses due to electrical noise.

The base station contains an Internet modem that allows the customer to use either a wired Internet connection (i.e., LAN) or the built-in 4G/CDMA connection. The base station is placed at ground level, making it easy to change Internet connection options (i.e., SIM cards) and/or service the data collector without having to access high elevations or unsafe areas.

These components are collectively known as “the data collector.” Once the data collector is connected to power and Internet, it is automatically self-configured to your utility’s licensed frequency and connects to the MDM/head-end system. WW

Kamstrup Water Metering is exhibiting at AWWA’s ACE18 expo in booth 16117. Learn more at kamstrup.com.

Circle No. 294 on Reader Service Card