MXPA00006134A - - Google Patents

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETECTING AND REPORTING AN ENERGY INTERRUPTION This application claims the benefit of the Provisional Application of the United States of America Number 60 / 068,832, filed on December 24, 1997. FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates in general to the field of utility meters. More particularly, the present invention relates to automatic systems and equipment used for remote reading of public utility meters, such as water, gas or electricity meters, via telephone lines and modems. Even more particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for detecting an interruption of power to a meter and its modem, and reporting the interruption to a central office. BACKGROUND OF THE I NVENTION The recent deregulation of the public services industry has created a market for products that facilitate the efficient distribution and supervision of electric power. In the past, public services have built systems that functioned in a coordinated but independent manner, and did not provide easy access to certain information needed to adequately supervise and control a substation, or multiple substations, and related power networks and typical of a central location. (The electrical distribution substations and equipment used herein, such as transformers, circuit breakers, disconnect switches, etc., are well known See, for example, United States Patent Serial Number 5,648,888, July 15, 1997, entitled "Energy Distribution Substation", for background information on such substations). For example, separate devices have been used to monitor an energy system to determine when an event has occurred, such as a loss of power, reduction in the supplied voltage, distortion of the current or voltage waveform, or sirnilar, in the system. One reason to monitor the power outage is economic, for example, power interruption will affect the equipment and processes that can cause improper operation and equipment damage, interruption of operations, and other anomalies. Additionally, with deregulation, many different companies provide energy. A consumer, such as a business, may not have the option to select their utility provider, and therefore the customer may now have a need or desire to determine the reliability of the energy provided by their current provider. Similarly, public services have a need to monitor the energy they supply to customers to ensure that they are reliable by providing the energy to retain their customers. The sooner a company knows about an interruption, the sooner it can be fixed. This provides a competitive advantage. Additionally, public services have a need to locate a fault location to determine at what point the interruption of power has occurred on a line. Therefore, public services and consumers now have the need for systems to coordinate functionality, such as energy quality supervision, through a network. One aspect of the present invention relates to a system for enabling a public service or one of its clients (such as a large energy consumer) to detect and be notified of a power outage. Although the meter reading technique via modem and telephone lines is well developed, some inherent problems persist in this technology, particularly with respect to the detection and reporting of an energy interruption. Therefore, there is a need for a method and apparatus for detecting and reporting an energy interruption that overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to an energy meter comprising: a modem having a modem power supply and a modem microcontroller; an energy supply for the energy meter coupled to the modem's power supply; a battery coupled to the modem's power supply; and a telecommunications interface coupled to the modem. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the modem microcontroller monitors the status of the power supply to the energy meter. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the modem controller of the modem switches the power supply of the modem to the battery when the power supply for the energy meter is interrupted. In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, the power supply of the modem to the battery when the power supply for the meter is interrupted. In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, the modem microcontroller makes an interruption information call via the telecommunications interface when the power supply for the power meter is interrupted. The interrupt information call informs interruption data comprising an identification, a date, and a time at which the power supply for the energy meter was interrupted. In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, the additional meter comprises intrusion detection and hanging means for determining the state of a telephone line before and during calls. In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, the meter further comprises a timer for timing a duration of an energy interruption. In a further embodiment within the scope of the present invention, an apparatus is provided for reporting an energy interruption in an energy meter to a remote site. The apcmp: a modem that has a modem power supply and a modem microcontroller; a battery coupled to the modem's power supply; and a telecommunications interface coupled to the modem. Another embodiment within the scope of this invention includes a method of transmitting data from an energy meter indicative of an energy interruption, comprising the steps of: detecting the power interruption; activate a battery modem; save interrupt data; and make an interruption report call to a remote site. In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the method further comprises the steps of: determining whether theor was satisfactory; turn off the modem if the interrupt report call was successful; and make another interrupt report call to the remote site if the interrupt report call was not successful. In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the step of making another interrupt report call is carried out if the interrupt report call was not successful and if a number of interrupt report calls does not exceed a predetermined number. In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, if the number of interrupt report calls attempted exceeds the predetermined number, the modem is turned off and / or disconnected from the battery. In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the method further comprises the steps of determining whether the power interruption is still occurring before making an interrupt report call; determine if the power interruption is still occurring after making the interrupt report call; and turn off the modem if the power interruption has ended before or after making the interrupt report call. In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the method further comprises the steps of waiting for a predetermined time before making the interrupt report call. The above and other aspects of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART Figure 1 is a block diagram of an automatic measurement system incorporating a meter unit in accordance with the present invention.; Figure 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary modem according to the present invention; Figure 3 is a flowchart of an exemplary method of information and detection of power interruption in accordance with the present invention; and Figure 4 is a schematic circuit diagram of an exemplary modem comprising an energy interruption detection and information apparatus in accordance with the present invention. The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for detecting a power interruption in an energy meter and alerting a remote central computer about the interruption using information via call via a telephone line modem on the meter to a telephone number designated for interruption report. A pack or primary battery cell is placed inside the meter to operate the modem when line power is lost. The modem switches from a line power supply in the meter to the battery source when an interruption is detected and it is to be reported to the remote central computer. The battery source turns off when the interrupt call is aborted or completed. The meter reports a power interruption via a battery-powered modem in the meter. Additionally, the modem optionally comprises an additional microprocessor to implement intelligent processes such as an interrupt report protocol and a power saving or standby mode to save energy. The number of retries to call to report the power interruption and the time period between retries can be programmed. Figure 1 shows a block diagram of an automatic measuring system incorporating a meter unit in accordance with the present invention. A utility company 10 has a computer 15 coupled to a modem 20 in a central office. The modem 20 is coupled to a modem 35 located at a customer service site 30, which may be, for example, a business, a manufacturing or residential establishment, via a telephone line 25. The modem 35 is coupled to a public services meter 40 that measures the consumption of a public service by means of a public services consumption equipment (not shown). The modem 35 is stored in a memory (not shown) such as an EEPROM (programmable read-only memory and erasable electronically) or a RAM (random access memory) which may have a battery backup, residing in the meter 40 The data is communicated between the memory and the central office of utility company 10 on telephone line 25 using modems 20 and 35. Modem 35 is also coupled to a computer at a customer site to alert the customer of an interruption of energy or to provide usage data. The meter 40 can be any conventional electronic utility measurement meter such as the Alpha Power + ® Meter manufactured by ABB Power T &D Company, Inc., Raleigh, Carolina. The modem 35 is a modem? conventional except that it includes physical equipment and computer programs, such as a battery and a microprocessor, in accordance with the present invention, as described below with respect to Figure 2. Modem support can be provided on the computer's board. meter circuit. A modem board is used as a telecommunications interface to report data and alarms such as a line power interruption. The meter 40 may be programmed to call a specified telephone number for a billing reading and a second number when a power interruption occurs. In Figure 2, a block diagram of the meter 40 comprising the modem 35 of Figure 1 according to the present invention is shown. The modem 35 comprises a microcontroller 50, an integrated circuit of the modem 52, and a power supply 55. The power supply 55 can be a conventional modem power supply comprising, for example, a linear pre-regulator 57 and / or a switching regulator 58, with which those skilled in the art are completely familiar or a modem power supply such as that found in the Alpha Power + ® Meter manufactured by ABB Power T &; D Company, Inc., Raleigh, Carolina. The associated switches and discrete devices are not shown but are also known to those skilled in the art. The power supply 55 is coupled to the power supply of the meter 70 from which it receives energy. A battery or battery pack 56 is also coupled to the power supply of the modem 55 to provide the modem 35 in the event of meter power interruption. Commonly, the modem is powered by an output of 12 Volts not regulated. In some meters, the 12 volt output is provided by an interrupt regulator, while in other meters the output is the rectified output of a linear reduction transformer. When the line power is lost to the meter 40, the modem 35 switches to the backup power of the battery pack 56 for the purpose of making a telephone call to notify the utility or the customer of the power interruption. The battery pack 56 may be located in the meter housing, as shown. The battery pack 56 preferably consists of lithium thionyl chloride cells connected in series. The modem microcontroller 50 monitors the battery voltage and warns of a battery failure. The utility company or customer can be informed about the status of the battery with data sent back via the telephone line. The microcontroller of the modem 5Q controls the direction or path of the data in series between itself, the integrated circuit of the modem 52 and the microcontroller of the meter 65. Under normal operating conditions (with the meter 40 activated) the microcontroller of the modem 50 operates to connect the integrated circuit of the modem 52 to the microcontroller of the meter 65. In this state, the microcoder of the modem 50 monitors the communication between the microcontroller of the meter 65 and the integrated circuit of the modem 52. When the microcontroller of the modem 50 detects a power failure, interrupts the communication between the meter 40 and the integrated circuit of the modem 52 and instead, opens the data communication between the modem microcontroller 50 and the integrated circuit of the modem 52. A preferred microcontroller 50 is a microcontroller PIC17C73 manufactured by Microchip. An RC224ATF modem manufactured by Rockwell is also preferred. Thus, the meter circuit has a switching means to operate a modem from the meter's power supply as long as a line voltage (line power) is present. When the line power, preferably a microcontroller 50, fails in the modem 35, the modem 35 changes to battery power and begins the process of an interrupt report call to a remote central computer or operator, for example, located in a remote location. utility company. The modem 35 waits a predetermined amount of time after the meter loses line power to avoid reporting momentary power interruptions, such as an oscillation of the power due to network voltage variations or a momentary decrease. Additionally, the meter 40 preferably enters a standby or power saving energy reduction mode (for example, it only keeps the time) to conserve the power of its own battery (not shown) while waiting to make the report call of interruption. After the predetermined waiting time, the modem 35 makes the interruption telephone call. The modem 35 checks to make sure there is no other device off the telephone line. If no other device is off-hook, the modem 35 is off-hook. Then, a power interruption call is made to a predetermined telephone number. The modem 35 makes the telephone connection with the remote computer 15 and expects the computer 15 to respond and respond with communication commands.

Modem 35 waits for a predetermined and programmable amount of time for the call receiving station to respond (remote computer 15 at central station 10). If there is no response, the modem 35 waits for a programmable and predetermined time period and the information call sequence begins again. This sequence is repeated until the information call is successful or a predetermined maximum number of retries or attempts has occurred. Thus, the power interruption report sequence is repeated until one or both of the following conditions occur: (1) the modem 35 successfully reports the interruption, or (2) the maximum number of retries has occurred. If the first attempt to make an interrupt call fails (i.e., if an off-hook condition of the telephone line or busy signal is encountered) the modem 35 is preferably placed in a low power mode during the wait time until that another attempt is made to make the interruption call. In the low power mode, preferably only the microcontroller 50 and the modem 52 operate in a low power (standby) mode for the duration of the wait to attempt a subsequent call. This reduces the power consumption during the waiting time. When the telephone call is complete and the modem 35 is in communication with the receiving station, the interrupt report is provided to the receiving station 10 and the receiving station 10 ends the session, ie the central computer Remote 1 5 sends a "log out" command when the call is finished. When the session is terminated or the attempt is aborted, the microcontroller 50 turns off the source of the battery 56, that is, the modem 35 is turned off to conserve power in the battery pack 56. Preferably, if a call does not lose its carrier , but there is no activity on the line for a predetermined period of time, the modem 35 ends the call. This elapsed time value is preferably programmable. The modem 35 uses intrusion detection and off-hook, as described, for example, in the patent application of the United States of North America co-pending "M ETHOD AND DETECTION APPARATUS OF I NTRUS ION AND DESCO LGA DO DE TELECOM UN ICAC IO N ES "Serial No. 08/998, 166, filed on December 24, 1997 (file of agent ABME-0244) which is hereby incorporated by reference, to ensure that the telephone line is available During the call for the interrupt report call, a very low power circuit is used to check that the telephone line is available.In addition, CMOS low energy integrated circuits are preferably used. Intrusion detection and off-hook can be used in accordance with the present invention Off-hook detection recognizes that the telephone is in use when the modem tries to make a call in. Intrusion detection recognizes when another telephone extension is "raised" while the modem 35 is in a communications session - the modem 35 will cease communications and leave the telephone line for the other party These features handle the issues that arise when a meter equipped with a modem is used on a telephone line shared with telephone devices of the subscriber of the telephone on the same line. If the modem 35 is waiting or attempting to make an interrupt report call, the modem controller 50 preferably keeps track of the duration of any momentary power reset. If the duration of the power reset is less than a predetermined period of time, the modem controller 50 continues to try to make the interrupt call. If the duration of the power establishment is greater than the predetermined time period, the interrupt report call is canceled. Figure 3 shows an exemplary method of detecting a power line interruption, switching to battery power, and alerting a central computer or utility provider of the power outage. In step 100, the line power fails, and the method according to the present invention begins. If the modem is online, hang up. In step 105, a battery, such as the battery 56 of Figure 2, is turned on. The interruption data (for example, location identification, date and time of the interruption) are stored in a memory, in step 1 10. Also, preferably, when the power is lost, the meter 40 goes into a saving mode of energy. The system waits for a predetermined amount of programmable time in step 115. A timer is started when the power is interrupted. The timer is used to determine if the power interruption is an interruption of the power line or simply a momentary variation or blackout. The duration of the power interruption required to initiate an information line can be selected by the user (ie, it can be selected between approximately 0 and 255 seconds). The line power is checked in step 120. If the power has been reset (i.e., it is no longer off) in the predetermined amount of time, it is determined that a momentary power interruption occurred, such as a momentary power loss or variation , and not an interruption that is going to be reported as a line interruption. Therefore, the battery 56 is turned off in step 165, the modem is removed from the power saving mode in step 170 and the interruption process exits in step 175. The modem 35 resumes normal operation in step 175 At this point, additional processing performed by the meter may Occur, such as recording the momentary variation or blackout in an appropriate log. If the power is still off in step 120, then it is determined that an interruption has occurred, and the modem 35 is reset or initialized in step 125, and an interrupt call is made in step 130, to a predetermined telephone number and programmable. After making the interrupt call, it is determined in step 140 whether the power is still interrupted. If not,, then the processing continues in step 165 by turning off the battery 56. If the power is still interrupted after the interrupt call has been made, then it is determined whether the interrupt call of step 135 has been successful, in step 145. If the call was not satisfactory, then in step 150 it is determined whether the maximum number of attempts has been reached (a predetermined programmable number). It should be noted that a counter is used to count the number of attempts that have been made to make the interrupt call. The counter increments each time an interrupt call is made, and restarts after an interrupt call has been made. If the maximum number of attempts has not been reached, an attempt delay is implemented in step 1 55, the modem 35 is put into an energy saving mode during this delay, and in step 1 35 it is determined whether the energy is still interrupted. If the power is still interrupted in step 135, then another interrupt call is made and the processing continues in step 130. If the power is turned on and therefore not interrupted yet in step 135, then the processing continue in step 165 by turning off the battery 56. If the call was successful, in step 145, or if the maximum number of intentps has been reached, in step 1 50, the modem 35 is turned off in step 160 and all the components are deactivated. This eliminates all battery power during extended interruptions. When the power is restored, the modem resumes normal operation in step 175. The modem will resume normal operation when the line power is restored. At this point, further processing may occur, such that the meter 40 and the modem 35 alert the receiving station 10 that the line power has been restored. Once the interrupt report is provided to the receiving station 10, the receiving station 10 ends the session and the modem 35 is turned off to conserve power in the battery pack 56. If a call does not lose carrier, but does not there is activity on the line for a predetermined period of time, the modem 35 ends the call. i? Thus, the interruption report sequence is repeated until one of the following two conditions occurs: (1) the modem 35 successfully reports the interruption, or (2) the maximum number of retries has occurred. Preferably, if the power returns while an interrupt call is being made (i.e., the modem is off hook) the modem controller 50 continues to try to make the interrupt call. If the power returns while an interrupt call is not being made, the interrupt report call is canceled. When the power is restored (i.e., continuous power must be provided for a predetermined programmable time period between about 0 and 255 seconds) and meter 40 reports the reset. If an interrupt report call is in process (ie, the modem 35 is off hook) when the power is restored, the interrupt call is completed before making the reset call. If the interrupt call is in interrupt retry delay, the attempt of the interrupt report call is terminated by the modem controller 50 to allow the reset report sequence. If the modem 35 is being used (for example, to download meter data to the central office) (ie off-hook) when the line power is interrupted, the data download call is aborted (the modem is hung up).

When an interruption call is being made, if an intrusion or hang-up condition is detected (for example, the owner of the house raises his phone to make a call) the interrupt call is aborted. Figure 4 shows a schematic circuit diagram of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention. The modem's microcontroller 250 and the modem's integrated circuit 252 are similar to the modem's microcontroller 50 and the modem's integrated circuit 52, respectively, described above with respect to Figure 2. The exemplary modem additionally comprises a data access configuration ( DAA) 270 which is a conventional analog front end portion of a modem and is understood by those skilled in the art. The data access configuration 270 is connected to the PU NTA and RING terminals of the telephone line. A voltage-to-frequency converter 260 acts as an off-hook and intrusion detector by moving the PUNTA-RING voltage of the telephone line. The frequency-to-voltage converter is coupled to the PUNTA and TI MBRE terminals of the telephone line and converts the voltage across the terminals to a frequency that is compared with certain values or differences to determine the state of the telephone line. As described above, and as understood by those skilled in the art, off-hook is the state of a telephone data communication device during a call and while a call is initiated, that is, when the data communication device or phone connects to a telephone line. Intrusion is defined as a second telecommunication device connected in parallel that descumbles while a first device is already off-hook. Intrusion detection and off-hook status are achieved by monitoring the voltage between the PUNTA terminals and TI MBRE on the telephone line. In accordance with the present invention, it is determined whether the telephone line is available, ie hung, for the modem to use, to communicate the data of the power line interruption and also to determine whether the customer has picked up a telephone. or another telecommunications device while the meter's modem is using the telephone line to transmit the data to the central office. If an off-hook status is detected, the meter will not attempt to use the telephone line. If an off-hook status is not detected, the meter will use the telephone line, and the intrusion detector will continue to monitor the telephone line to know when another telecommunications device will be picked up (ie, an intrusion). As soon as an intrusion is detected, the detector releases the telephone line, so that the customer can use the telephone line. When there are no devices on the line that are off-hook, the voltage across the PU NTA and TI MBRE terminals is equal to the central office battery voltage, which under nominal conditions varies from about 42 volts to about 56 volts. Although these are nominal values, the actual values that can be found may be much greater or less than the nominal values due to factors such as resistance of the telephone line circuit. Although the present invention was designed to operate at voltages significantly greater or less than the nominal values stated above, the following explanation will assume that the nominal values are present. When the meter modem, or any other telecommunication device connected in parallel such as the customer's telephone, is off-hook, the voltage between PUNTA and TI MBRE is significantly lower due to the drop in I R or telephone line voltage. When off-hook, a telecommunications device commonly uses approximately 20 mA. Since the resistance of the telephone line circuit commonly varies from approximately 400 ohms to 1700 ohms, the PU NTA voltage to TI MBRE is reduced by at least 8.0 volts (although this value can vary significantly) when a device is off-hook (assuming that no other device connected in parallel is already off-hook). Although this is not possible under all combinations of battery voltage from the central office and the resistance of the circuit to determine with absolute certainty the off-hook status of other devices that are using a fixed voltage value, it is possible to determine the off-hook status dynamically adjusting the level. If a device is off-hook and then another device is picked up (for example, the meter's modem is in use, and then the customer picks up the phone) an intrusion occurs and the nominal value between the PU NTA and RING terminals falls. Intrusion detection can be achieved by monitoring changes (differences) in the telephone line voltage during a modem call. If, for example, the modem is in the middle of a call, it will provide approximately a 380-ohm load between the PUNTA and TI MBRE terminals. Assuming a 48-volt central office voltage and a 100-ohm circuit resistance, the circuit current will be approximately 30 mA and the voltage between PU NTA and RING on the modem will be approximately 1.6-volts. If a second device connected in parallel is also off-hook, the circuit current increases to approximately 39 mA, assuming that the load of the second device is 180 ohms. The voltage between PUNTA and RING is reduced to approximately 4.8 volts, compared to 16 16 volts before the intrusion occurred. Even under the worst case conditions, with a circuit resistance of 1700 ohms and 42 volts of office, center, battery voltage, the circuit constant will be approximately 20 mA when only the modem is off-hook. Then, the PU NTA to RING voltage will be approximately 7.7 volts. If a second device is picked up, the circuit current will increase to approximately 23 mA, therefore the PU NTA to RING voltage will be reduced to approximately 2.8 volts. Therefore, by monitoring the PUNTA to RING voltage during a call, the modem can detect an intrusion based on voltage levels or changes (or frequency changes that correspond to voltage changes) and release the line to its use by the device connected in parallel. The battery is preferably a battery pack containing four 3.6 volt cells connected in series. This configuration produces a terminal voltage of 14.4 volts. As modem circuits commonly require approximately 5 volts for your operation, a high-efficiency switching supply (regulator 220) (approximately 80-85%) is used to reduce the voltage to 5 volts. The current drawn from the battery is less than what the modem needs. The battery pack is located in the meter housing and is preferably connected to the modem through a three position MTA type connector 201. Preferably, the battery has a small size and has a wide operating temperature range (e.g., -40 ° C to + 85 ° C) so it can be used in outdoor applications. A preferred battery is a lithium thionyl chloride cell manufactured by Tadiran Batteries Ltd. A series of programmable parameters are used to maximize the possibility of making a call in a timely manner while conserving battery power. One of these parameters is the minimum time the power is interrupted before making an interrupt call (ie, the initial wait time after the power fails before initiating the call sequence). The time of the power interruption required to initiate a report call is programmable. If an interruption duration exceeds this value, an interrupt call is programmed. Another programmable parameter is the maximum waiting time for the central office interrupt registration system to respond (ie, the maximum period of time that the modem remains off-hook in an attempt to make an interrupt call.) If the call does not is satisfactory in this period of time, the modem hangs up and programs another call). Another programmable parameter is the maximum waiting time until a new attempt in case the interrupt call is not made (ie call retry delay) and another parameter is the number of times the call is attempted. The data is stored in a memory, preferably an EEPROM (programmable read-only memory and electronically erasable) that resides in the meter. This data is sent to a memory in the modem, preferably a programmable read-only memory that can be erased electronically when the energy is applied to the meter and the modem is initialized. Another variable is the minimum period of time between power interruptions required to activate an interrupt call. A series 205 diode (preferably a BAS20 device) and a pair of P-channel metal oxide field-effect transistors back to back (shown as elements 210 A and B) are used to protect the battery from currents of reverse load.

This is a safety measure used to prevent the battery from being punctured if it is charged. A silicon diode is preferred because the reverse charge current is preferably limited to no more than 5 m which greatly reduces the danger of drilling. The diode 205 provides primary protection against the reverse load, the transistor 210A provides secondary protection. BATT_EN is normally kept low by the microcontroller 250, so that 210A will be off and will block the reverse current flow. It should be noted that the body diode for 210A is in the direction of normal current flow when the modem is on battery power. Therefore, 210A can not be used to turn the battery power on and off. That is why the transistor 210B is also used. The transistor 210B is in the opposite direction to 210A to block the current in the forward direction. When the meter's power fails or is lost, the meter will set ERROR_AD_OUT low. When this input goes down, the microcontroller 250 activates the battery by activating BATT_EN high. This turns on transistor 203, which turns on 210A and 210B. The resistor 207 carries the gates of 210A and 210B up to its source voltage to keep them turned off until BATT_EN rises. The resistor 202 ensures that the transistor 203 remains off when the microcontroller 250 is being reset. The modem microcontroller 250 controls the data address between itself, the modem 252 integrated circuit and the main meter microcontroller (item 65 in the Figure 2).

Under normal operating conditions (with the meter turned on) the microcontroller of the modem 250 ^ connects the integrated circuit of the modem 252 to the microcontroller of the meter 65. In this state, the microcontroller of the modem 250 is able to monitor the operation. When the modem microcontroller 250 detects a power failure, it interrupts the communication between the meter and the integrated circuit of the modem 252 and opens the data communication between the modem's microcontroller 250 and the modem's integrated circuit 252. A linear regulator is provided low static current, low drop voltage, 215. Regulator 215 (preferably LP2951 CM manufactured by National) is used as a pre-regulator to protect the switching regulator 220 from meter supply voltages that exceed the maximum value of the switching regulator 220 (16.5 volts). The regulator 215 is commonly on when the modem is operating under the energy of the meter. When the line power to the meter is lost, the meter sets the ERROR_FALSE to low. This activates the OFF input to regulator 215 high, which shuts off the linear regulator. The diode 205 prevents current from flowing in the OUTPUT leg of the regulator 215 when the battery is activated. The capacitor 225 (preferably T495X476MO20AS manufactured by Kemet) acts as a massive input capacitor for the switching regulator 220 and as an output capacitor for the linear regulator 215. The capacitor 225 preferably stores enough energy to activate the modem board in the Change of energy from the meter to battery power. Assuming a drop in voltage of 3 volts, capacitor 225 can support the modem for approximately 3 ms with a worst case load. The modem driver of the modem 250 activates the battery in less than 3 ms after a power failure warning. The resistors 240, 241 form a voltage divider that provides the microcontroller 250 with a fraction of the battery voltage. This is used to detect battery faults in case of a low battery voltage. The placement of the battery inside the meter greatly simplifies the installation of the meter because there are no extra battery boxes or modems to be mounted, and therefore there is no additional wiring between the extra boxes of the battery and the meter. It should be noted that the components shown are exemplary only and that those skilled in the art will understand that components for equivalent functionality can be used. The standard components of a modem are not shown, including a telephone insert, modem coupling transformer, and temporary voltage protection components. The baud rate of communications between the modem and the central station can be selected. Preferably, the data sent during the integrated circuit comprises the Account Identification, modem serial number, time of the interruption, modem status, and low battery indicator. Although illustrated and described herein with reference to certain specific embodiments, the present invention is not intended to be limited by the details shown. Instead, several modifications can be made to the details within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims and without departing from the invention.

Claims (20)

1. CLAIMS 1. An energy meter that comprises: a modem that has a modem power supply and a modem microcontroller; a power supply for the energy meter coupled to said modem power supply; a battery coupled to such modem power supply; and a telecommunications interface coupled to said modem.
2. 2. The energy meter according to claim 1, wherein said modem microcontroller monitors said power supply for the energy meter.
3. 3. The energy meter according to claim 2, wherein said power supply of the modem is changed to said battery when the power supply for the energy meter is interrupted.
4. 4. The energy meter according to claim 2, wherein said modem microcontroller changes said power supply of the modem to said battery when said power supply for the energy meter is interrupted.
5. The energy meter according to claim 2, wherein said modem microcontroller makes an interrupt report call via said telecommunications interface when said power supply for the energy meter is interrupted.
6. The energy meter according to claim 5, wherein said interrupt report call reports interruption data comprising an identification, a date, and a time at which said power supply for the meter was interrupted. Energy.
7. The power meter according to claim 5, further comprising intruder and off-hook detection means for determining the state of a telephone line during such an interrupt report call.
8. The energy meter according to claim 1, further comprising a timer for timing a duration of an energy interruption.
9. 9. An apparatus for reporting a power interruption in an energy meter to a remote site comprising: a modem having a modem power supply and a modem microcontroller; a battery coupled to such modem power supply; and a telecommunications interface coupled to said modem.
10. 10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said modem is activated by such a battery after power interruption occurs in the energy meter. eleven .
11. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said modem microcontroller makes an interrupt report call to the remote site via said telecommunications interface after the power interruption has lasted for at least a predetermined duration of time.
12. 12. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said interrupt report call informs interruption data comprising an identification, a date, and a time of power interruption.
13. The apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising a timer for measuring in time a duration of the power interruption.
14. The apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising intruder detection and off-hook means for determining a state of a telephone line during said interruption report call. 5.
15. A method for transmitting data from an energy meter indicative of an energy interruption, which comprises the steps of: detecting the interruption of energy; activate a modem through a battery; store interruption data; and make an interruption report call to a remote site.
16. 16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising the steps of: determining whether the said interrupt report call was successful; turn off said modem if the aforementioned interrupt report call was satisfactory; and making another interruption report call to said remote site if such an interruption report call was not satisfactory.
17. The method according to claim 16, wherein such step of making another interrupt report call is made if the said interrupt report call was not successful and if a number of interrupt report calls attempted n? exceeds a predetermined number.
18. 18. The method according to claim 17, wherein if said number of attempted interrupt report calls exceeds said predetermined number, said modem is turned off.
19. The method according to claim 15, further comprising the steps of determining whether such power interruption is still occurring after making such an interruption report call; and turn off such a modem if said power interruption has ended prior to and after making such an interruption report call.
20. 20. The method according to claim 15, further comprising the step of waiting for a predetermined time before making the aforementioned interrupt report call. RESU MEN A method and apparatus for detecting a power interruption in an energy meter and alerting a remote central computer about the interruption using information by modem call (35) in the meter to a designated telephone number for interrupt report. A primary battery pack or cell (55) is placed inside the meter (40) to operate the modem (35) when line power is lost. The modem (35) switches from a line power source in the meter (40) to the battery source (55) when the interruption is detected and is to be reported to the remote host as an interrupt call. The battery source (55) goes off when the interruption is completed or aborted. The number of call retries to report the power interruption and the time period between retries can be programmed.