AMI Communication System
NES Technologies specialize in the PLC Communication system and NES Group, has deployed more than 40 million smart meters across the world on PLC Technology. Beside being the most cost-effective solution for years for AMI applications PLC enables solutions with a lot of benefits over Wireless communication such as PLC Utilizes Utility power lines infrastructure with limited OPEX, there is automatic establishment of communication during the installation process and thereby avoiding any costly waiting times for the installer, No extra installation effort (such as external antenna installations) is required even in challenging environments, Communication is achievable in extremely difficult meter locations (for example, metal shielded cases, deep underground installations, etc. World wide, PLC is a more acceptable technology with population of around 740 million of the total smart metering population of 1140 million, i.e. almost 65% world AMI population. Major countries, which adopted PLC communications for their AMI Systems are Italy, France, USA, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, Finland, Poland, Japan, South Korea, China, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Egypt, Argentena, Columbia, Chile, etc.
Power Line Communication System
PLC uses the power lines that run between the Discom’s low-voltage distribution transformer and the customers’ meters. By embedding PLC into the distribution line, it enables solutions to obtain a level of grid intelligence that cannot be matched by any wireless solution. The NES system’s adaptive, self-healing mesh communications, repeating technology is designed to ensure that meters are reachable whenever desired. Here are some of the specific highlights of the NES System and its PLC technology that enables reliable communications that are not included in other vendors’ PLC solutions:
- Patented, field-proven repeater path selection algorithm
- Digital signal processing
- Incorporates several unique technical innovations to ensure reliable communication
- Automatically switches frequency if blocked by noise
- Noise rejection and cancellation and Forward error correction
Data Control Node (DCN)-3000
These intelligent infrastructure devices let a utility leverage its NES System solution beyond AMI or smart metering. The concentrators provide a power line mesh to ensure meter communications, isolate and pinpoint outage and other service issues, and minimize wide-area communications costs. They communicate with System Software located at a utility’s service center over any IP-based backhaul.
The DCN combines the high-quality data concentrator technology you are used to with more computing power and greater flexibility. The DCN’s Linux operating system provides a strong built-in platform for adding additional drivers and distributed applications that allow you to adapt to the changing needs of your low voltage distribution grid. This expansion ability enables you to expand your sensor connectivity at the transformer, stay ahead of necessary security requirements in the industry and take advantage of exciting new functionality from NES as it is made available.
The DCN 3000 can be installed at any point in the low-voltage power line network, including at the distribution transformer, co-located behind an IEC meter.
Control Point Module
- Enables electricity meters and smart grid devices to integrate into NES’s proven three-tier smart metering and grid system
- Supports remote firmware upgrades and reconfiguration
- 4 x 16 channel data logging and load profiling
- Multipurpose Expansion Port
- Comprehensive event, outage, and informational logging
FAQ
- There is immediate establishment of communication during the installation process and thereby avoiding any costly waiting times for the installer.
- No antenna tuning or adjustment of antenna direction is required.
- Communication is reliable in extremely difficult environments (for example, metal shielded cases, deep underground installations, etc.).
There are no changing environmental conditions due to seasons or weather that affects signal strength once the devices are installed.
Power lines by design, information collected at LV substation level create ability to manage a logical, geographical area. Decentralized control, required for decentralized generation.
Another powerful tool is the ability to continuously monitor the quality of the distribution line through both power quality and PLC signal data. The PLC signal amplitude is dependant on the impedance of the line, more so than the line voltage itself because of the signal frequency. As a line starts to degrade the impedance will increase thereby degrading the PLC signal quality.
Clever tracking of this data can potentially be utilized to preempt a line failure
- Automatic shifting between frequencies when noise or attenuation blocks one of them
- Advanced low overhead FEC to correct errors instead of retransmitting back again to reduce traffic
- Any meter can be a repeater with Automatic repeater location algorithm .Supports repeating with up to 8 hops
- Measures received signal strength and margin of each path
- Measures relative phase of each meter
- DCU Determines and stores 10 agents for each meter
- Determines best path (including best frequency) based on historic performance of multiple parameters over time
- Learns multiple paths to ensure readily available, reliable backup paths to reach distant meters
- Algorithms are improved and upgraded over time
- Advanced digital signal processing supports Impulse noise cancellation,Tonal noise rejection and Corrects channel distortion effects
NES data concentrator is able to coordinate data from smart meters, enabling the detection and reporting of trouble conditions, such as line breaks, phase-specific outages, device failures, tampering and risky voltage levels. With proven reliability for gathering both on-demand and automatic collection of consumption, power quality measurements and load profiles, you can be more confident in detecting outages quickly, locating faults successfully and proactively monitoring the general health and operation of your low voltage grid network.
NES PLC based system is self-configuring. NES PLC devices utilize the automatic topology management (ATM) feature of the system, by which data concentrators automatically discover those meters and other devices with which they can communicate and report this list to the system software and utility applications. These data concentrator services make installing NES meters no more difficult than installing conventional meters.
There is no need for the installer to associate meters with data concentrators or to verify operation of the communications network. ATM not only ensures the discovery and communication path, but it also can identify which transformer a given meter is connected to and on which phase(s). This provides accurate information to the utility to identify power quality issues and make grid planning decisions based on accurate detailed information, not available from other systems..
