1:network launched to advance smart metering in Germany
The 1:network is aimed to advance the market maturity of the 1:n radio solution which enables several meters to be connected to a single smart meter gateway.
The solution was developed by German metering company EMH Metering together with Baden-Württemberg grid company Netze BW, which together with other grid companies Stromnetz Hamburg and Stadtwerke Karlsruhe Netzservice comprise the founder members of the 1:network.
The goal underlying the 1:n solution was to overcome the limitations on meter connections to gateways and to reduce the complexity of connecting the meters without cables and thereby reduce the costs for the metering point operator.
“With the 1:n radio solution, even optional installation cases can be connected economically, i.e. those for which there is currently no SMGW installation obligation,” comments Arkadius Jarek, MSB Energiewende digital platform at Netze BW.
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“In this way, we can reach significantly more customers with our new services than envisaged by the mandatory rollout.”
In the new 1:n solution, communication between the meter and the gateway takes place via radio using the Open Metering System (OMS) wireless M-BUS protocol.
The protocol has been further developed in such a way that in future the calibration and regulatory requirements will be complied with when implementing the tariff application case 7 in the wM-BUS protocol.
EMH metering has also adapted the firmware of its smart meter gateway communication access security administrator so that the solution meets the requirements of Germany’s Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) and the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) for a smart metering system.
Laboratory tests of the 1:n solution have been successfully completed, the companies report. In the next step the solution is to be further developed to ensure the interoperability the OMS standard promises.
Peter Heuell, managing director of EMH Metering says the 1:network joins developers and users to accelerate the solution to the market.
“The better we know the specific requirements of metering point operators, the sooner we can incorporate them into further development,” he comments.
The solution also is envisaged to enable connections of other devices such as heat pumps and electric vehicle chargers.
