Communications: electrical – Continuously variable indicating – With meter reading
Patent
1991-02-19
1995-04-04
Peng, John K.
Communications: electrical
Continuously variable indicating
With meter reading
34087006, 34082515, 364493, 307 39, G05B 2302, H02J 314
Patent
active
054041368
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to utility metering.
The use of utilities has hitherto been metered by the utility supplier, in order to ensure that the consumer (whether industrial or domestic) is correctly charged for any utility supplied to the consumer's premises.
The present invention seeks to enable the use of utility metering data by the consumer, especially industrial consumers, to allow the consumer to ensure greater efficiency in the use of the utilities.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention, there is provided a method of monitoring the consumption of utilities business premises, in which the premises are notionally divided into zones, each of which contains at least one utility load to be supplied, and characterized in that utility metering means are associated with each zone, to record consumption within the associated zone, the zones are notionally combined into groups, each group including all of those zones which contribute to the provision of a specified product or service, and analysis means are provided in relation to each group, and are used to: and to combine the received data to provide data concerning the total measured utility consumption within that group; the expected utility consumption within each of the zones under each of a set of operating conditions, and combine asset data relating to the zones of that group to provide data concerning the total expected utility consumption within that group, measured utility consumption data; and utility consumption to be controlled in dependence on the result, of the comparison.
Preferably the zones are notionally combined by providing the analysis means with data identifying the zones which constitute each group. The identifying data may preferably be changed, whereby the groups may be re-organized.
Each zone may include loads For a plurality of utilities, and the utility metering means associated with each zone may record the consumption of each utility within the associated zone. The analysis means may be used to separately combine data relating to the consumption of each utility within each group of zones, to provide data relating to the total consumption of each utility within each group.
The analysis means may be used to combine all data relating to consumption of any utility within each group of zones, to provide data relating to the total utility consumption off each group. The analysis means may be operable to combine consumption data with tariff data to provide cost data relating to utility consumption costs.
There may further be provided additional utility metering means used to record quantities of a utility supplied to a zone or zones, and the analysis means may be used to compare the quantity of the utility supplied to the zone or zones and the measured utility consumption within that zone or those zones, to detect losses. The detected losses may be apportioned to the zones in which the losses occur, in proportion to the measured consumption within those zones, the apportioned losses being thereafter considered as additional consumption within the zones to which the losses are apportioned.
The invention also provides apparatus for monitoring the consumption of utilities in business premises notionally divided into zones each containing at least one utility load to be supplied, characterized in that the apparatus comprises utility metering means associated with each notional zone of the premises and operable to record consumption within the associated zone, and analysis means operable to analyze consumption data relating to the zones of groups of zones, into which the zones are notionally divided, each notional group including all of those zones which contribute to the provision of a specified product or service, and in that the analysis means are further operable in relation to each group to: and to combine the received data to provide data concerning the total measured utility consumption within that group; the expected utility consumption within each of the zone
REFERENCES:
patent: 4337401 (1982-06-01), Olson
patent: 4489386 (1984-12-01), Breddan
patent: 4510398 (1985-04-01), Culp et al.
patent: 4727315 (1988-02-01), Jones
Control and Science and Technology for the Progress of Society, Proceedings of the Eighth Triennial World Congress of the International Federation of Automatic Control, Aug. 24-28, 1981, Kyoto, Japan, vol. 6, 1981, Pergamon Press, Y. Negoro et al.: "A Total Energy Management System for Industrial Plants Based on Optimization and Demand Forecasting Techniques," pp. 3213-3218.
Adams, III W. Thad
Hill Andrew
Peng John K.
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