MX2010004161A - Device for measuring consumption patterns through the electric mains and method for use. - Google Patents

Abstract

Device for measuring consumption patterns through the electric mains and method for use thereof, comprising a microcontroller/processing unit control unit (2) and another auxiliary device; a modulator/demodulator communications unit (3); a suppy unit (4), which transforms the available current to the voltages (8) suitable for the operation of the device (1); and measuring unit (5) for measuring the electric consumption on the line (7) of the electric mains, the conditioning of this measurement, comparison thereof, if necessary, with a predetermined consumption pattern, and dispatch to the communications unit (3). A first example establishes a device for identifying the television programmes viewed on a television in order to measure audiences. A second example identifies the type of electric equipment associated with the electric line enabling compiling of statistics and subsequent studies.

Description

DEVICE FOR MEASURING CONSUMER PATTERNS THROUGH THE NETWORK ELECTRICAL AND USE PROCEDURE D E S C R I P C L I OBJECT OF THE INVENTION The invention, as expressed in the statement of the present specification, refers to a device for measuring consumption patterns through the electrical network.

More specifically, the object of the invention of the base patent consists of a device designed to measure the electrical consumption in a line or cable of the electrical distribution network, processing said measurements to determine consumption patterns of the set of users that they use the line corresponding to that distribution point, allowing for example to send them to a remote system to process said information.

By means of a comparison with pre-established patterns it is possible to determine particular characteristics of the electrical equipment that is carrying out the consumption. In a first embodiment, a method is established for identifying the television programs that are being played on a television to carry out audience measurements.

In a second example of embodiment a procedure is established that allows the identification of the type of equipment 6 electrical equipment associated with the line of the electrical distribution network to allow the realization of statistics and subsequent studies. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION At present and as a reference to the state of the art, it should be mentioned that the audience measurement is generally made with a limited number of individual terminals installed in homes, which (the vast majority) consist of a remote control that has to be manually pressed by the viewer every time the channel changes. These changes are stored in the device's memory.

There are also hearing measurement devices with a microphone that is responsible for detecting the sound of the channel that is tuned in each moment, sending the information at the end of the day to the control center. There is no record of any system that perform, at the individual or collective level, the measurement of the audience through the electric network, identifying and quantifying the channel that is being visualized by the consumption that the receiver or television receivers demand from the power supply network when amplifying the signals of audio and / or video coming from the station, and that does not violate the privacy of the group that is being sampled.

Also, it should be mentioned that the applicant is aware of some documents related to the invention, among which it is worth mentioning.

- DE-10056134, relating to a method for DETECTING RECEIVERS CONNECTED WITH THE ELECTRICAL NETWORK THAT SIMULTANEOUSLY RECEIVES THE DEFINED TRANSMITTER IMPLIES THE MODULAR OF THE SIGNAL OF THE IMAGE OF THE TRANSMITTER WITH THE SIGNAL THAT INFLUENCES THE ENERGY DRAWING "DETECTING RECEIVERS CONNECTED TO ELECTRICAL NETWORK SIMULTANEOUSLY RECEIVING DEFINED TRANSMITTER INVOLVES MODULATING TRANSMITTER IMAGE SIGNAL WITH SIGNAL INFLUENCING POWER DRAWN " - And document DE-19733414, relating to a system of MEASURE OF TV RECEIVERS CONNECTED TO A SPECIFIC PROGRAM - WHOSE MEASUREMENT IS TAKEN ON A PERIOD CONCERNING THE BOX OF THE SELECTED PROGRAM "MEASUREMENT OF TV RECEIVERS TUNED TO SPECIFIC PROGRAM - HAS CORRELATOR WHICH MEASURES POWER TAKEN OVER TIME PERIOD TO RELATE PICTURE TO PROGRAM SELECTED" It should be noted, however, that in both cases, although the objectives pursued are similar, the differences with the present invention are, as can be seen, widely differentiated, specifically in the following aspects: The present invention essentially works from the current consumption generated by the audio amplifiers, both radio and television, since in the case of televisions the consumption generated by the image is different depending on the different types of televisions, so that the information that can be obtained from the consumption produced by the image is not representative.

The invention herein proposed, unlike the cited documents, compares, in addition to the video signal, the envelope of consumption generated by the audio amplifiers, filtering, amplifying and integrating the consumptions of the audio signal both of the pattern signals of each channel to be observed and of the signal read at a point of the electrical network for analysis.

In addition, the envelope of the total consumption of the network is compared with the envelope of the consumption of each of the channels, thus calculating what percentage of the signal corresponds to each of the channels.

Because depending on the highest or lowest volume in a house, the current consumption will be higher or lower, not only the number of televisions that are watching a particular channel is calculated (since could provide misleading information) but also statistically calculates the percentage of households that are watching one channel or another. This information is crossed with the resident population in the area where the sample has been taken in order to obtain the percentages of the number of people who watch a television or radio channel or another.

Another difference is given by the fact that the proposed invention has integrated a communication component to send the signal to a central where the signal is processed automatically, thus allowing to have on-line information of what is happening in reference to the hearings.

Therefore, it can be affirmed that, on the part of the petitioner, the existence of any other device for measuring consumption patterns through the electricity network that presents similar technical, structural and configuration characteristics to those presented by the petitioner is unknown. that is advocated here EXPLANATION OF THE INVENTION Thus, the device for measuring consumption patterns through the electrical network that the present invention recommends, which as mentioned above consists of a device that measures the electrical consumption at any point of the electrical distribution network where it is installed, It configures itself as an obvious novelty within its field of application, since from its installation a system is obtained exhaustively that allows to generate from these measurements information on consumption patterns of the inhabitants served by the electrical network from the chosen measuring point, also allowing transmitting said information to a remote system for its subsequent processing and presentation.

It should be noted that there is currently a lot of information in the electricity grid that is not analyzed or exploited properly. The measurement system that the device proposed by the present invention allows, in a non-intrusive way and without endangering the individual privacy of the people residing in the sampled areas, advantageously analyze the consumption habits of any electrical device in a specific geographical area .

Thus, when carrying out the measurements and analysis on points of the distribution network that use this distribution point, the privacy of each address is respected, since the data obtained represent a set of households, variables depending on the characteristics of the point of distribution. distribution in each zone.

For this, the device of the invention has the following functions: - Carry out measurements of electricity consumption in a line or cable of the electrical distribution network.

- Process said measurements to obtain a consumption pattern of the users served from that power distribution center.

- With said measurements it can either a) send them to a remote information processing system, where it will be treated in the way that best interests the specific application of the system, or b) the device itself object of the invention can perform a comparison with pre-established patterns to infer information about the volume of consumers that follow a certain pattern of consumption, which finally sends to the same remote system of information processing.give.

- Send to the remote system another type of information about its own operation (notification of faults, status of the device, etc.).

- Additionally, receive information from the remote information processing system to modify its behavior, or to establish the pre-established patterns mentioned in the previous point.

On the other hand, the measuring device object of this invention, in all communications to and from the remote system, will be identified by a unique identifier that is provided, to be distinguished from any other measurement device that may have installed simultaneously in the distribution network, and thus be able to differentiate the measures generated by each of them.

Thus, the objective of the invention is to allow the identification of consumption patterns in the line on which the device operates for subsequent comparison with pre-established patterns, or, to send these patterns to a central in which this is carried out. comparison.

The comparison allows to identify the type of electrical equipment that is operating in the line.

The basis of the operation of the system consists in the detection of the energy consumption of a television receiver or of all the receivers of a certain area under the control of the device.

Each television connected and tuned in a channel will lead to a variable power consumption, among other reasons, by the audio and / or video signal that is amplifying at that moment.

This variation in consumption is translated into variations in intensity caused by the amplification of said audio and / or video signals. The sum of a certain number of receivers in a zone, tuned to the same channel, will cause the sum of the intensity oscillations in the electrical network characteristic of the audio and / or video signal amplified at that moment.

This sum of the signal allows to determine the number of televisions that are displaying the same channel This signal, obtained for example from a single television receiver, or from a group of houses, or from a power distribution center or from a specific point of the network, in the preferred embodiment, is transmitted to the control center, where proceed to compare the sample signal with each of the original audio and / or video signals of the stations that make up the audience study, obtaining the values for each of the comparisons.

For this reason, the control center must have video and audio signal input from the channels that are to be established as comparison patterns.

It is said that preferably the sample signal is transmitted to a control center instead of performing it in the device itself because the pattern must be determined according to a signal that is changing over time and thus management is facilitated; however, it is possible that this comparison is also carried out in the device itself if it has the pattern.

The reference consumption patterns of each of the television channels will be determined in the control center and their comparison with the patterns obtained by the geographically dispersed devices can be carried out in the central or in each of the measuring devices after receiving these the reference pattern of the control center.

The object of the present invention is also the identification of electrical equipment operating in an address for its subsequent treatment by the electricity supply company in such a way that subsequent statistical treatment is possible that allows offering the results as an additional service to the customer.

Additionally, the invention incorporates a pattern emitter in the consumer electrical equipment itself.

With this strategy, a consumer electrical equipment has a means of identification through the predetermined pattern that injects to the network during its operation along with the consumption that it is generating.

The advantage of this means is the unequivocal identification of the device and the ease of discrimination with the presence of other electrical equipment consuming from the same network.

By way of summary, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, a device as described is considered in which at least one reference pattern is the pattern corresponding to the consumption of a television by tuning a certain channel.

Likewise, in a variant embodiment, a device such as that described in which additionally provides the incorporation in each consumer device of a generating element of a pre-established consumption pattern injected on the power supply line of the consumption device is considered.

Finally, the measurement of the audience is also considered, making use of a device according to the invention where the following essential stages are carried out. • a reading of the current fluctuations of the electric line identifying consumption patterns, • a reading of one or more television channel signals to determine as many associated consumption patterns as channels, · Comparison between the consumption pattern with the reference standards of the channels considered, • determination of the number of televisions (T) visualizing each of the channels for the calculation of the audience.

The new device for measuring consumption patterns through the electrical network represents, therefore, an innovative structure of structural and constitutive characteristics unknown until now for this purpose, reasons that together with its practical utility, provide it with sufficient grounds to obtain the privilege of exclusivity that is requested.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS To complement the description that is being made and in order to help a better understanding of the characteristics of the invention, the descriptive specification is included, as an integral part thereof, of a set of plans, in which illustrative and non-restrictive the following has been represented: Figure number 1.- Shows, through a block diagram, a schematic representation of the new device for measuring consumption patterns through the electrical network according to the invention, in which the main parts and elements comprising as well as the disposition and relationship between them.

Figure number 2 - Shows an operating scheme according to the present invention for the determination of the degree of audience in an electrical network feeding a set of televisions.

Figure number 3 shows a diagram of operation according to the present invention in which each consumer device has an element for generating an identification pattern.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION In view of the described figures, and in accordance with the numbering adopted in them, one can observe an example of a preferred embodiment of the device for measuring consumption patterns through the electrical network, which includes the parts and elements that are indicated and described in detail below.

Thus, as shown in said figure, the device (1) in question is configured essentially from a control block (2), constituted by a microcontroller or similar processing unit and any other auxiliary device (memory, logic control, etc.) that suits; a communication block (3), constituted by a modulator / demodulator that adapts the signal provided by the control block (2) for transmission by the desired transmission means; a power block (4), which transforms the available power to the voltages (8) suitable for the operation of all the components of the device (1); and a measurement block (5) in which the measurement of the electrical consumption on the cable or line (7) of the electrical distribution network, the conditioning of this measure, its comparison, if applicable, with a pre-established pattern of consumption, and sending to the communications block (3).It should be noted that the control algorithms of the device (1) are implemented in the control block (2), for which it has inputs for the signals coming from the measurement block (5), communication indication and data received from the communication block (3) and, if it exists, for the battery charge level signal from the power block (4); and outputs for signals directed to the measurement block (5) and indication of communication and data sent to the communication block (3).

For its part, the communication block (3), which as mentioned is constituted by a modulator / demodulator that adapts the signal provided by the control block (2), can use a different transmission medium in each case, depending on the specific location of the device, having inputs for the communication and data indication signal sent from the control block (2) and for the modulated signal originating in the remote system, in which the information sent by the the same, and outputs for the communication and data indication signal sent to the control block (2), and for the signal in which the information to be transmitted has been modulated.

Finally, the power block (4), in addition to transforming the available power to the appropriate voltages (8), additionally, and only if considered necessary by its application, can include a device for supplying current in the absence of power, which It can be a rechargeable battery, but not be limited to it. The power block (4) has inputs for the voltage (6) accessible to the device (1) and outputs for all the voltages (8) necessary for the operation of the device (1), as well as, if any, for the rechargeable battery charge level signal to the control block (2).

Referring to Figure 2, and according to a first example of method of use of the present invention, the consumption of a particular device, the television is considered (T), where its operation generates disturbances in the power line (7) due mainly to the amplification stages of the audio and video signal.

The fluctuations of the generated current are not those of a television set (T) as a consumption device but those of the channel that is playing.

Different televisions (T) manufactured by different manufacturers tuned to the same channel will generate similar patterns since they are amplifying the same audio and video signal.

If several television sets (T) are fed by the same electric line (7), the fluctuations will be added so that the proportion of consumption that each channel is generating will have to be calculated to establish the percentage of audience that each television channel is having. on the total of the consumptions of all the channels.

In this embodiment, the pattern read by the device (1) is transmitted to a control center (C) comparing the pattern with that generated from the signal (S) corresponding to the reference channel.

If the control center (C) receives a signal (S) then it is able to determine the number of televisions (T) that are displaying the channel corresponding to the signal (S) If, on the other hand, the control center (C) receives the signal (S) of a plurality of television channels, then it will be able to establish the audience percentage for each of the channels.

The procedure of this first example can be modified by having the device (1) itself receive the signal (S) to generate the comparison pattern. Likewise, you can carry out the comparison but the pattern can be provided by the central (C) itself. Although these variations are possible, it has been found to be more advantageous that it is the central one (C) that carries out the reception of the signal, the generation of the reference standards and the subsequent comparison.

A second example of use procedure, represented in figure 3, consists in the identification of a set of devices (DI, D2) of consumption thanks to the presence of an element (G) to generate an identification pattern, This element (G) of generation of identification patterns injects a pattern in the power line (7) that is previously known by the meter / or at least, identifiable as such.

In this case, the need to deduce the type of device (DI, D2) on the line (7) of power supply is ignored, but knowing the pattern that is to be located reduces the possibility of failure in the ID.

With this operating scheme, the device (1) for measuring consumption patterns is able to establish which devices (DI, D2) are in operation and how much they consume without this identification depending on the mode of operation. For example, a washing machine has different stages of operation that generate different patterns; however, if the reading is carried out on the signal emitted by the element (G) of generation of patterns there is no possibility of not knowing how to distinguish the device.

The uniqueness of the pattern used by the element (G) of generation of patterns allows the distinction of the electrical equipment used in each house to be possible without the point of reading being necessarily the entrance of the house; but it can be carried out at a common point to various homes.

This particular type of device can carry out the comparison with the known patterns both in the same device (1) as in the control center (C).

The possibility that the device is capable of producing statistical or detailed reports on the consumption of a set of associated consumption devices is also considered within the invention.

Having sufficiently described the nature of the present invention, as well as the way to put it into practice, it is not considered necessary to extend its explanation so that any expert in the field understands its scope and the advantages derived from it, stating that, within its essentiality, it may be carried out in other forms of realization that differ in detail from that indicated by way of example, and which will also achieve the protection that is sought provided that it is not altered, changes or modifies its fundamental principle .

Claims (8)

1. - Procedure for using a device (1) for measuring consumption patterns through the electricity network, especially a procedure for measuring the audience levels of one or more television channels, whose procedure comprises: • read the current fluctuations of the power line to identify consumption patterns, characterized in that it further comprises: • perform a reading of one or more television channel signals to determine as many associated consumption patterns as channels, • compare the consumption pattern with the reference standards of the, or of the channel (s) considered (s), and • determine the number of televisions (T) through which each of the channels is being viewed, for purposes of audience calculation.

2 - . 2 - Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the reading determination of the reference pattern or patterns is carried out in a measuring device (1).

3. - Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the reading determination of the reference pattern or patterns is carried out in a control center (C).

4 - . 4 - Method according to claim 3, characterized in that the comparison of patterns is carried out in a control center (C).

5 - . 5 - Device for measuring consumption patterns through the electrical network, in particular a device for implementing a method according to one or more of claims 1 to 4, by means of which measurements of electrical consumption are made in a line or cable of an electrical distribution network, with a view to the processing of said measurements and the generation of a consumption pattern of the set of users that use that distribution point and its comparison with reference standards, either in the device or either in a remote system, characterized in that said device includes an element (G) generating a pattern of pre-established consumption, which is injected on the power supply line (7) of the consumer device.

6 -. 6 - Device according to claim 5, characterized in that it also comprises means for producing statistical or detailed reports on the consumption of the set of consumer devices.

7. - Device according to claim 5, characterized in that the comparison of the pattern read on the electric line (7) is made with means included in the device (1).

8. - Device according to claim 5, characterized in that the comparison of the pattern read on the electric line (7) is made with comparison means incorporated in a control center (C) to which said pattern is transferred after having been performed the reading with the device (1).