KR20130067093A - Smart meter for protection of privacy and method for controlling memory tereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A smart meter is provided to improve the safety and security by making it difficult to completely extract data related to the privacy of a user from a memory even when exposed or damaged. CONSTITUTION: A meter-reading part(110) reads usage information of energy consumed at the consumer side. A storage part(120) includes one or more memories and stores data containing the energy usage information read from the meter-reading part and a security key to encrypt the information. A communications part(140) transmits data containing the energy usage information to an AMI(Advanced Metering Infrastructure) server and receives data transmitted from the AMI server. A control part(130) periodically or non-periodically changes the memory arrangement structure of the storage part and stores the changed memory arrangement structure in a memory management table. [Reference numerals] (AA) Start; (BB) End; (S105) Detect and store metering data; (S110) Is data transmit period approached?; (S115) Is data management period approached?; (S120) Rearrange bank, bit command, or word of memory; (S125) Change memory management table; (S130) Read and transmit stored metering data based on memory management table; (S135) Is process ended?

Description

Smart meter for protection of privacy and method for controlling memory tereof}

The present invention relates to a smart grid system for analyzing the energy usage pattern of the user according to the electricity usage information remotely read from the smart meter and adjust the energy demand of the user side according to the power supply capacity, and more specifically, The present invention relates to a smart meter and a memory control method thereof for protecting user privacy that can protect data stored in a smart meter that is easily exposed to a consumer.

Due to technological advancement and economic growth, the production and supply of electric power has become the most important essential element in the world, but it still depends on fossil fuels and its efficiency is very low. The use of fossil fuels has increased awareness of environmental destruction, and research on Smart Grid technology that integrates information and communication technologies into existing unidirectional power grid systems is actively being conducted.

The Smart Grid is a next-generation intelligent power grid that integrates information technology (IT) with existing power grids to increase the efficiency of power supply and use by exchanging real-time information in both directions between power suppliers and consumers.

In the smart grid, all electric devices that are operated by electricity are connected to a wired and wireless network, and they are made in an organic relationship by exchanging information with each other. In particular, Smart Meter collects and analyzes the energy used in real time, so that power usage prediction is possible and energy can be efficiently distributed.

AMI (Advanced Metering Infrastructure) is the core infrastructure of such a smart grid. This is a system for efficiently managing energy, as shown in FIG. 1, a smart meter 10 installed in each home and measuring device usage information and power usage of each home, and the smart meter 10. The AMI server 50 collects the device usage information and power usage amount of each home. In this case, the AMI server 50 may collect data of the plurality of smart meters 10 through a data collection unit (DCU) 30. Here, the data collection device 30 communicates with a plurality of adjacent smart meters 10 through a neighbor area network (NAN), and communicates with the AMI server 50 through a wide area network (WAN).

The AMI system can collect real-time energy usage information through two-way communication, and can manage energy based on this to reduce energy costs of homes and businesses, and efficiently manage the entire energy usage. have.

However, such a smart grid system, because a variety of information related to personal privacy is exchanged between the smart meter 10 and the AMI server 50, the exposure of the use home appliances, the exposure of activity information through the residual information, behavior tracking, real-time monitoring There is a risk of privacy infringement, such as censorship of consumers and consumer activities. Therefore, security measures against threats of personal privacy are also required.

In particular, since the smart meter is installed on the consumer side and is easily exposed to the outside, the possibility of data exposure through the smart meter and the resulting privacy invasion is very high.

For example, in the smart meter, since security key information is stored for protecting data transmitted and received, key information is exposed by an attack such as device decomposition, or there is a problem of updating and managing key information. There is a problem that distortion or forgery of the information stored in the meter is possible.

Therefore, there is a need for a solution that can ensure the safety of the data stored in these smart meters.

An object of the present invention is to provide a memory control apparatus and method for protecting user privacy that can protect data stored in a smart meter that is easy to be exposed to a consumer in a smart grid system.

MEANS TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM As said solving means, the meter reading part which reads the energy use information consumed by the consumer side; A storage unit including one or more memories and storing data including energy usage information read by the meter and a security key for encrypting the energy usage information; A communication unit which transmits data including the energy usage information to an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) server side and receives data transmitted from the AMI server side; And referring to the memory arrangement structure of the storage unit set in the memory management table, storing the energy usage information read by the reading unit in the storage unit, reading the energy usage information stored in the storage unit at regular intervals, Transmitting to the AMI server, and periodically or aperiodically changes the memory arrangement structure of the storage unit, and provides a smart meter for user privacy protection, characterized in that it comprises a control unit for storing the changed memory arrangement structure in the memory management table do.

In the smart meter according to the present invention, the controller may change the memory arrangement structure at a waiting time other than a section for transmitting the data to the AMI server.

In the smart meter according to the present invention, the controller may change the memory arrangement structure by changing one or more of a memory bank use order, a bit use order, an instruction position or a word placement position.

In addition, the present invention as another means for solving the above-described problem, in the memory control method for user privacy protection of the smart meter for reading the energy usage information of the consumer side to provide to the AMI server, including at least one memory Storing a memory management table in which a memory arrangement structure of a storage unit which stores data including the energy usage information and a security key for encrypting the energy usage information is set; Checking whether a preset memory management period has been reached; Changing a memory arrangement structure of the storage unit when a memory management period is reached; And storing the changed memory arrangement structure in the memory management table.

The memory control method for protecting user privacy according to the present invention further includes a step of confirming whether a transmission period for the read energy usage information is reached, the memory management period is reached, and a transmission period for the energy usage information. If not, the memory arrangement structure of the storage unit may be changed.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a memory control method for protecting user privacy, the method comprising: storing energy usage information read by the meter reading unit by referring to the memory arrangement structure set in the memory management table; And when the transmission period for the energy usage information is reached, reading the energy usage information stored in the storage unit with reference to the memory arrangement structure and transmitting the read energy usage information to the AMI server through the communication unit.

In the memory control method for user privacy protection according to the present invention, the step of changing the memory arrangement structure, the memory arrangement by changing one or more of the memory bank use order, bit use order, command or word placement position It may be a step of changing the structure.

The memory control method for protecting user privacy according to the present invention may further include separately setting a memory management cycle and a data transfer cycle by time division.

According to the present invention, in implementing a smart grid system that collects energy usage information of a user in real time and enables efficient energy supply and use, a smart meter installed at a consumer side may provide energy usage information and energy usage information. By frequently changing the memory arrangement of the storage unit that stores data related to the user's privacy, such as a security key for secure transmission, even if the smart meter is exposed or damaged, the data related to the user's privacy is completely stored from the memory in the smart meter. It is difficult to extract, and therefore, there is an excellent effect to improve the safety for the smart meter.

1 is a block diagram showing the basic structure of an AMI system in a smart grid.
2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a smart meter according to the present invention.
3 is a flowchart illustrating a memory control method of a smart meter according to the present invention.
4 is a diagram illustrating an example of changing a memory arrangement structure according to an exemplary embodiment.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description and the accompanying drawings, detailed description of well-known functions or constructions that may obscure the subject matter of the present invention will be omitted. In addition, it should be noted that like elements are denoted by the same reference numerals as much as possible throughout the drawings.

2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a smart meter for user privacy protection according to the present invention.

Smart meter 100 according to the present invention shown in Figure 2 is installed on the customer side in the AMI structure as shown in Figure 1, to read the energy usage information of the customer, and transmits the result to the AMI server 50, Conversely, data such as charging information, control information related to energy supply and demand, etc. are received from the AMI server 50 to control energy supply and demand according to the received control information, or provide the charging information to a user. Here, the energy is energy used for moving a plurality of devices on the consumer side, illuminating lights, heating and cooling, and the like. Hereinafter, the electric energy will be described as an example.

Referring to FIG. 2, the configuration of the smart meter 100 according to the present invention will be described in detail. The smart meter 100 includes a meter reading unit 110, a storage unit 120, a controller 130, and a communication unit ( 140). In addition, the controller 130 includes a memory management module 131, a signal processing module 132, and a memory management table 133.

The meter reading unit 110 reads energy usage information consumed by the consumer. More specifically, the smart meter 100 is installed on the main power line by one or a predetermined space unit (for example, floor) for each customer, and energy usage information consumed in the entire customer or energy usage information consumed in a specific space. Measure it. The energy usage information thus read is transmitted to the AMI server 50 through the data collection device 30 installed nearby or directly. At this time, when and how to transmit the energy usage information, such as the meter reading cycle of the energy usage information, the storage cycle of the energy usage information, the transmission cycle of the energy usage information in the smart meter 100, the power provider or service to build and manage the AMI It may vary depending on the supplier's settings. However, since the smart grid system requires a real-time reading of the energy usage information of the consumer side, the reading period of the energy usage information of the smart meter 100 is relatively short. On the contrary, transmitting the energy usage information read by the smart meter 100 in real time is not efficient because it may waste communication resources.

Therefore, the smart meter 100 may collect the energy usage information that is read in real time in a predetermined unit (or a predetermined time) and transmit it to the AMI server 50. In this case, the smart meter 100 may be the AMI server 50. The energy usage information is stored in real time until transmission to the side.

The storage unit 120 is a storage means for storing data and programs required for the operation of the smart meter 100, and may include one or more memories. In the present invention, any type of memory for implementing the storage unit 120 may be any one of RAM (Read Access Memory), DRAM, SRAM, and the like. The storage unit 120 provided in the smart meter 100 of the present invention stores energy usage information that is read in real time by the meter reading unit 110. In this case, the energy usage information may be temporarily stored until transmitted to the AMI server 50 side. In addition, the storage unit 120 may further store a security key for encryption for safely transmitting the energy usage information to the AMI server 50 as data required for the operation of the smart meter 100. In addition, if necessary, information such as user identification information and device identification information of the smart meter 100 may be further stored.

In this case, the memory arrangement structure of the storage unit 120 may be changed periodically or aperiodically under the control of the controller 130. Accordingly, the energy usage information, the security key, the user identification information, and the smart meter may be changed. The location and reading order of data stored in the storage 120, such as device identification information, may also be changed. This can be more easily understood from the operation of the controller 130.

The controller 130 is a means for controlling the overall operation of the smart meter 100, and controls the reading and transmission of energy usage information, and in particular, the periodic or aperiodic change of the memory arrangement structure according to the present invention.

To this end, the controller 130 includes a memory management module 131, a signal processing module 132, and a memory management table 133, and the operation of the controller 130 will be described based on the operations thereof. .

The memory management module 131 periodically or aperiodically changes the memory arrangement structure of the storage unit 120 storing data required by the smart meter 100 to protect user privacy according to the present invention. Even if 100 is exposed to other people, it is difficult to extract data related to a user's privacy from the storage 120. Herein, a time point at which the memory arrangement structure is changed is called a memory management cycle, and the memory management module 131 checks whether a preset memory management cycle is reached, and when the memory management cycle is reached, the memory of the storage unit 120 Change the layout structure. At this time, the memory management module 131 determines whether the processing period of the energy usage information or the transmission period of the energy usage information through the signal processing module 132, the standby state that is not processed for the energy usage information At this time, the load on the controller 130 is reduced by changing the memory arrangement structure.

The signal processing module 132 is a means for performing processing of data transmitted and received from the smart meter 100, in particular, the metered energy usage information. In particular, in the present invention, the signal processing module 132 may read the meter reading. The energy usage information read by the unit 110 is acquired in real time and stored in the storage unit 120. In this case, the data may be stored with reference to a memory arrangement structure set by the memory management module 131. In addition, when the energy transmission cycle is reached, the energy usage information stored in the storage unit 120 is read with reference to the memory arrangement structure set by the memory management module 131 and processed according to a preset communication protocol to collect data. Transmission to the device 30 or the AMI server 50 side.

The memory management table 133 stores a memory arrangement structure of the storage unit 120 set by the memory management module 131. The memory management table 133 is changed every time the memory arrangement structure is changed by the memory management module 131, and is referred to by the signal processing module 132 when reading / writing data.

In the present invention, the memory arrangement structure of the storage unit 120 may be changed by changing one or more of the memory bank use order, bit use order, instruction or word placement position of the storage unit 120.

Therefore, the memory management table 133 may be implemented to be aware of changes in memory bank usage order, bit usage repair, instruction or word placement order, and the like.

Finally, the communication unit 140 transmits the data including the energy utilization information to the AMI server 50 side or directly to the AMI server 50 side under the control of the control unit 130, and the AMI server side 50. Receives data transmitted from the) and transfers it to the controller 130. In the smart meter 100, the communication unit 140 may be made in various communication methods such as PLC (Power Line Communication), Zigbee, Bluetooth, Ethernet.

Hereinafter, a memory control method of the smart meter configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. 3.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a memory control method of a smart meter according to the present invention.

Smart meter 100 according to the present invention is to provide the AMI server by reading the energy use information of the consumer side, in this case, for protecting the privacy of the user by external exposure, important information (energy use information, security key, user / Managing the memory arrangement of the storage unit 120 in which the identification information of the device is stored. At this time, in one embodiment of the present invention, in order to reduce performance degradation and load increase of the smart meter 100, a data transmission cycle for processing energy usage information and periodically transmitting it to the AMI server 50, and the memory arrangement Alternately execute memory management cycles that change the structure in time division.

To this end, the smart meter 100 according to the present invention sets the data transmission cycle and the memory management cycle so as not to overlap each other in advance. In this case, the memory management period is preferably set at an interval longer than the data transmission period. Too often changing the memory arrangement structure may unnecessarily degrade the performance of the smart meter 100, so it is desirable to set it to such an extent that it can most effectively prevent exposure of data related to the privacy of the user.

For example, when data transmission of the smart meter 100 is performed in units of several tens of minutes to one hour, the memory management cycle may be performed in a time zone where the change of energy usage information of the user is minimal, for example, in several days or weeks. For example, it is preferable to set in bedtime or outing time zone.

In addition, the smart meter 100 implements and stores a memory management table 133 in which a memory arrangement structure of the storage unit 120 is set in order to manage memory for protecting user privacy. The memory management table 133 may be set to a memory arrangement structure created at the manufacturing stage, or may have a different initial memory arrangement structure for each user by the smart grid system operator. The memory management table 133 may be stored in the controller 130, and in another case, a smart card having a security function such as a SIM (Subscriber Identificaion Module) is separately connected to be stored in the smart card for enhanced security. It may be.

Thereafter, the smart meter 100 detects the original function, that is, the metering data (energy usage information) through the detector 110 in real time and stores it in the storage 120 (S105). In this case, the energy usage information is stored in the storage unit 120 according to the memory arrangement structure with reference to the memory arrangement structure set in the memory management table 133. Therefore, in the case of a third party who does not know the memory arrangement structure, it is difficult to completely acquire the data stored in the storage unit 120.

The smart meter 100 checks whether the previously set data transmission period has been reached (S110). In addition, the smart meter 100 checks whether the previously set memory management cycle has been reached (S115).

When the memory management cycle is reached as a result of the check in step S115, the memory arrangement structure is changed (S120). At this time, the change of the memory arrangement structure is to change the storage location of the data, instructions, etc. in the storage unit 120 so that the third party does not know. Specifically, the memory bank use order, bit use order, instruction or word placement position. To change one or more of them.

The changed memory layout structure is set in the memory management table 133 as a new memory layout structure (S125).

On the other hand, when the data transmission cycle is reached as a result of the check in step S110, the smart meter 100 refers to the memory arrangement structure set in the memory management table 133 and uses the pre-stored energy from the storage unit 120. Data is read, data processing such as encryption of the read energy usage information is performed, and the result is transmitted to the AMI server 50 side (S130). In this case, the security key for encryption may be obtained from the storage 120 based on the memory arrangement structure set in the memory management table 133.

The above-described step S105 to step S130 are repeatedly performed while the power of the smart meter 100 is turned on.

4 is a diagram illustrating a modification of a memory arrangement structure according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the smart meter 100 according to the present invention, the memory arrangement structure of the storage unit 120 may be changed in a manner of changing the order of use of the memory banks, the order of use of bits, and the arrangement of instructions or words as described above. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example in which an order of use of a memory bank is changed.

In Fig. 4, the left side shows the memory arrangement structure before the change, and the right side shows the memory arrangement structure after the change.

As shown, after the change of the memory arrangement structure, the location of the memory bank has changed, and thus, even if the memory arrangement structure is acquired at a certain point in time, the memory arrangement structure is changed again, so that it is continuously stored in the storage 120. It is difficult to obtain the data, and it is difficult to extract complete data (energy usage information, security key, etc.) in order when the memory arrangement structure is not known.

Therefore, the present invention can prevent leakage of data through the smart meter through periodic or aperiodic changes of the memory arrangement structure, thereby ensuring the privacy of the user.

The memory control method of the present invention described above may be implemented in software form readable through various computer means and recorded on a computer readable recording medium. Here, the recording medium may include program commands, data files, data structures, and the like, alone or in combination. Program instructions recorded on the recording medium may be those specially designed and constructed for the present invention, or they may be of the kind well-known and available to those having skill in the computer software arts. For example, the recording medium may be an optical recording medium such as a magnetic medium such as a hard disk, a floppy disk and a magnetic tape, a compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM), a digital video disk (DVD) Includes a hardware device that is specially configured to store and execute program instructions such as a magneto-optical medium such as a floppy disk and a ROM, a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, do. Examples of program instructions may include machine language code such as those generated by a compiler, as well as high-level language code that may be executed by a computer using an interpreter or the like. Such hardware devices may be configured to operate as one or more software modules to perform the operations of the present invention, and vice versa.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention, and are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. It is self-evident to those who have knowledge. In addition, although specific terms are used in the specification and the drawings, they are only used in a general sense to easily explain the technical contents of the present invention and to help the understanding of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

100: Smart Meter
110: meter reading
120:
130:
140:

Claims (8)

Meter reading unit for reading the energy use information consumed by the consumer side;
A storage unit including one or more memories and storing data including energy usage information read by the meter and a security key for encrypting the energy usage information;
A communication unit which transmits data including the energy usage information to an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) server side and receives data transmitted from the AMI server side; And
By referring to the memory arrangement structure of the storage unit set in the memory management table, the energy usage information read by the meter reading unit is stored in the storage unit, and the energy usage information stored in the storage unit is read at regular intervals, and the AMI is read through the communication unit. And a controller which transmits to a server and periodically or aperiodically changes a memory arrangement structure of the storage unit and stores the changed memory arrangement structure in the memory management table. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the control unit
The smart meter for user privacy protection, characterized in that for changing the memory arrangement structure in the standby time other than the interval for transmitting the data to the AMI server. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the control unit
And modifying the memory arrangement structure by changing one or more of memory bank usage order, bit usage order, instruction or word placement position. In the memory control method for protecting the user privacy of the smart meter that provides the AMI server by reading the energy usage information of the customer side,
Storing a memory management table including one or more memories and a memory arrangement structure of a storage unit configured to store data including the energy usage information and a security key for encrypting the energy usage information;
Checking whether a preset memory management period has been reached;
Changing a memory arrangement structure of the storage unit when a memory management period is reached; And
And storing the changed memory arrangement structure in the memory management table. 5. The method of claim 4,
Confirming whether or not a data transmission period for transmitting the read energy usage information is included;
And when the memory management period is reached and the transmission period for the energy usage information is not reached, changing the memory arrangement of the storage unit. The method of claim 5,
Storing energy usage information read by the reading unit in the storage unit with reference to the memory arrangement structure set in the memory management table; And
When the transmission period for the energy usage information is reached, the method further comprises reading the energy usage information stored in the storage unit with reference to the memory arrangement structure and transmitting the energy usage information to the AMI server through the communication unit. Memory control method for protection. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein altering the memory layout structure
And changing the memory arrangement structure by changing one or more of a memory bank use order, a bit use order, an instruction position or a word placement position. 5. The method of claim 4,
And separately setting a memory management cycle and a data transfer cycle by time division.

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