Engineers collaborate to enhance smart metering and grid systems

05 January 2012

Posted by Satvir Bhullar

A new collaboration has been announced between engineers in the US and South Korea aimed at improving smart grid and metering standards.

Under the plans by researchers, they will create a network platform that employs wireless sensing and control systems to create a more robust grid.

The experts from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and the Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER) have formed a ten-year partnership that will see new technologies developed for the smart grid.

It will employ the UCLA WINSmartGrid, which allows an array of devices and smart meters in the home to be monitored, connected and controlled wirelessly through a central communications system that can also feed data to the WINSmartGrid network.

UCLA scientist and Project Leader Rajit Gadh stated: "We're also working on being able to send a signal for electricity to flow back into the grid, be it energy that has been collected by solar panels or electricity that has been stored in the batteries of [electric vehicles]."

The announcement comes as data from Pike Research showed global smart meter shipments rose to 19.2 million during the three months to September 2011, a 5.3 per cent rise year-on-year.

According to the report, North America in particular has seen steep growth in the rollout of the devices over the third quarter of last year, with a large number of deployment projects announced in the period.

Advanced metering infrastructure is increasingly being adopted by utilities companies around the world in order to provide customers and businesses with more detailed and accurate information about their energy use and China is expected to see a large-scale rollout of the technology over the coming months.

"Global smart grid deployments continue to enjoy strong growth momentum, particularly those involving smart meter rollouts," stated Neil Strother, Senior Analyst at Pike Research.