WO2009063481A2

WO2009063481A2 - Method and system for analyzing power distribution

Info

Publication number: WO2009063481A2
Application number: PCT/IN2008/000428
Authority: WO
Inventors: Uttam Shivram Mane; Kumar Ramkrishna Bagul Kishore
Original assignee: Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited
Priority date: 2007-09-26
Filing date: 2008-07-04
Publication date: 2009-05-22
Also published as: WO2009063481A3

Abstract

A method and system for energy evaluation process includes receiving from an image capture device an image of a power usage reading device, and storing said image on a data storage device electronically coupled to a processing device, said data storage device further comprising a plurality of instructions executable by said processing device. The image is processed to identify at least one indicia on said image, and said at least one indicia is analyzed to indicate the state of said power usage reading device. The analysis of the state of multiple such power usage reading devices at each level is collated to determine points or channels of power loss at various stages of power transmission and distribution.

Description

METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR ANALYZING POWER DISTRIBUTION

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

Embodiments of the present invention relate to methods and systems for evaluation of power distribution, and more particularly to methods and systems for evaluating power distribution various stages of electricity distribution from a source to multiple level receivers.

Description of the Related Art

In the usual electricity transmission networks, the electric energy is supplied from a power station or the like, in a high voltage network. At subsequent stages, the electric energy is distributed among multiple receivers. The distribution is always accompanied by various types of energy losses at each level of the network. The energy losses may occur at various stages, for example, during transmission of electric energy, during reception or redistribution, among others.

There is a continuously increasing demand for electrical power, as cities grow and more and more industrialization occurs. To meet the increased demand, the electric energy needs to be conserved in every possible way, and at every possible stage.

While conserving energy largely depends on the usage styles of consumers, a lot of energy loss occurs during transmission and redistribution. In certain cases, analysis of difference between energy supplied by the power station and energy available to the end consumer for a particular period of time, indicate the transmission and distribution losses occur at over thirty percent. The power loss occurs in these cases due to many factors. Some of the factors include faulty equipment or transmission cables, and further, power theft is also a menace in many countries, that causes huge power loss.

Typically, power production or distribution agencies analyze power produced and supplied versus the power utilized by the consumer.

However, this procedure does not give any detail about the occurrence of those losses. For example, it will not give any indication of energy loss at each stage of distribution network. In many instances, there may be disagreement over how much power was actually withdrawn by an entity, and such contentious issues may also result in unaccountable power losses.

Moreover, the above-mentioned process is cumbersome and involves a lot of human intervention. This makes the whole process error prone and unreliable.

Accordingly, there exists a need in the art for an energy evaluation system that provides an audit of a power distribution system in an effective manner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

So that the manner in which the above recited features of the present invention can be understood in detail, a more particular description of the invention, briefly summarized above, may be had by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of levels in a network for distribution of power in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a view of a power usage reading device installed at each level of the network for distribution of electric energy in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3 illustrates a system for analyzing power distribution in accordance with an aspect of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flow diagram of a method for power distribution in accordance with an aspect of the present invention.

While the invention is described herein by way of example using several embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention is not limited to the embodiments of drawing or drawings described. It should be understood that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the invention is to cover all modification, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. The headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be used to limit the scope of the description or the claims. As used throughout this application, the word "may" is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words "include," "including," and "includes" mean including, but not limited to. Further, the word "a" means "at least one", and the word "plurality" means one or more, unless otherwise mentioned. As used herein, the terms "power", "electricity", "energy", "electrical energy" will be understood to mean one and the same thing, unless indicated otherwise from the context, and such terms have been used interchangeably throughout the specification.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of levels in a network 100 for distribution of power in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The network includes a power station 102, a sub-station 104, a feeder 106 and a district transformer 108. The electric energy is supplied from the power station 102 to multiple sub-stations 104. The electric energy is then supplied from the sub-station 104 to multiple feeders 106. The feeder 106 supplies energy to multiple district transformers 108. The district transformer 108 supplies energy to multiple consumers (not shown) within a particular district.

The energy loss can occur at various stages of the network 100. For example, the energy loss can occur when the energy is supplied from the power station 102 to the sub-station 104. The energy loss may further occur when the energy is supplied from the sub-station 104 to the feeder 106 and/or when the energy is supplied from the feeder 106 to the district transformer 108. The energy loss may also occur when the energy is supplied to multiple consumers via the district transformer 108. For the purpose of this discussion, it is assumed that the energy (or power) loss occurs at one or more stages of transmission and distribution. Further, the energy losses may occur at each and every level of the network 100. It may be noted that various levels of the network 100 are shown as an example only, and embodiments of the present invention may be used with other similar network (s) also.

FIG. 2 illustrates a view of a power usage reading device 200 installed at each level of the network 100 (of FIG.1) for measuring consumption of electric energy at that level, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The power usage reading device 200 includes a power usage reading device identification field 230, a site identification field 220, an indicator 240, a reading field 210, a power usage reading device door 270, a power usage reading device window 280 and a power usage reading device lock 250. The power usage reading device identification field 230 indicates a power usage reading device identification number for unambiguously identifying a particular power usage reading device. The power usage reading device identification number contains, for example, a unique combination of a multiple alphanumeric characters, and as shown in the embodiment of FIG. 2, seven digits. The site identification field 220 indicates a site identification number for a particular site at which the power usage reading device 200 is installed. Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that multiple fields can be used for labeling the power usage reading device 200 depending upon the site at which the power usage reading device 200 is installed and various other parameters.

The indicator 240 indicates whether the power usage reading device 200 is operation or non-operational. According to an embodiment, the indicator 240 includes multiple light emitting diodes (LED) and the operation of the power usage reading device 200 is indicated by flashing of the LED. Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that a single LED can also be used instead of multiple LEDs. Moreover, any other visual or audible indicator can be used instead of LED.

The reading field 210 indicates a reading of the power usage reading device 200 at a particular instance of time. The reading is displayed as, for example, a combination of five numerals and the reading varies directly with a flow of electric energy through the power usage reading device 200. In other embodiments, any other number of alphanumeric characters, for example, may be used. According to one embodiment, the reading may change in increments of one unit, indicating the flow of one unit of electric energy through the power usage reading device 200. Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the power usage reading device 200 can be configured in a manner such that the reading varies in increments of one, two or any other increment corresponding to the flow of one or more units of electric energy through the power usage reading device 200. The power usage reading device door 270 protects the indicator 240 and the reading field 210 from external disturbances. The power usage reading device window 280 allows a person to see the indicator 240 and the reading field 210 when the power usage reading device door 270 is closed. Therefore, the indicator 240 and the reading field 210 are monitored each time ensuring a proper functioning of the power usage reading device 200.

The power usage reading device lock 250 locks the power usage reading device door 270 once it is closed. The locking prevents any kind of possible tampering with the reading field 210. An un-tampered lock of the power usage reading device 200 indicates a correct operation of the power usage reading device 200. The power usage reading device 200 is installed at a site with the help of multiple fasteners and/or screws (260). Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the power usage reading device lock 250 provides a tampering detection mechanism for the power usage reading device 200 and various other means, for example, seals may be used in place of or along with the power usage reading device lock 250.

FIG. 3 illustrates a system 300 for analyzing power distribution in accordance with an aspect of the present invention. The system 300 includes a server 310, one or more image capture devices 320i 32O_n (320), and a communication network 330.

The server 310 is a computing device (e.g., laptop, desktop, Personal Desk Assistant (PDA)), such as those generally known in the art. The server 310 includes a data storage device 316, processing device 312 and support circuits 314. The processing device 312 may comprise one or more commercially available microprocessors-or microcontrollers that facilitate data processing and storage. The support circuits 314 facilitate the operation of the processing device 312 and comprise at least one of clock circuits, power supplies, cache, input / output circuits, and the like. The data storage device 316 comprises at least one of read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), disk drive storage, optical storage, removable storage, and the like. The data storage device 316 includes data 322, an operating system 318 and an application software 324, among other data and application programs.

The image capture device 320 includes devices configured to capture an image, for example an image of the power usage reading device 200. The image capture device 320 includes for example, a digital camera, among various other suitable devices generally known in the art.

The network 330 comprises a communication system that connects a computer system by wire, cable, fiber optic and/or wireless link facilitated by various types of well-known network elements, such as hubs, switches, routers, and the like. The network 330 may employ various well-known protocols to communicate information amongst the network resources. For example, the network 330 may be a part of the internet or intranet using various communications infrastructure such as Ethernet, WiFi₁ WiMax, General Packet

Radio Service (GPRS), bluetooth, infra-red, or a combination of such and other means such as those generally known in the art. In one embodiment, the system 300 may further include a client (not shown). The client is a computing device (e.g., laptop, desktop, Personal Desk Assistant (PDA)), such as those generally known in the art. The client includes a memory, a processing device and support circuits. The processing device of the client may comprise one or more commercially available microprocessors or microcontrollers that facilitate data processing and storage. The support circuits facilitate the operation of the processing device and comprise at least one of clock circuits, power supplies, cache, input / output circuits, and the like. The memory comprises at least one of read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), disk drive storage, optical storage, removable storage, and the like. The client is configurable to remotely access and operate the data within the server, to edit data and other processing functions. The client is generally usable to provide a secondary or remote access to the application program 324 or the data 322 on the server, for example, for an administrator of the energy evaluation process.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flow diagram 400 of a method for auditing power distribution according to an embodiment of the present invention. The method 400 will now be explained with reference to the systems and components of FIGS. 1 - 3. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that although the method 400 is described with reference to the components and systems of FIGS. 1 - 3, the method 400 is not restricted by such components and systems. That is, the method 400 may be implemented with system components other than those described in FIGS. 1 - 3, and such other system components will readily occur to those skilled in the art, and are included within the scope and the spirit of the instant claims.

The method 400 begins at step 402 and proceeds to step 404. At the step

404, the method 400 includes capturing an image of a power usage reading device 200, for example, using the image capture device 320. The captured image is configured to include the complete front face of the power usage reading device 200, including the portions that indicate structural integrity of the power usage reading device 200. At step 406, the captured image is communicated to a processing device, for example, the processing device 312. In one embodiment, the method 400 includes first storing the captured image on the data storage device 316, and then communicating the captured image to the processing device 312.

It is understood here that the data storage device 316 further includes instructions executable by the processing device 312. For example, such instructions are embodied in the application software 324 that is configured to be executable for implementing the method 400.

At step 408, the method 400 further includes processing the captured image to identify at least one indicia on the image. The indicia refers to any indicative graphic that represents a state of the various parameters pertinent to the power usage reading device 200, for example, power usage reading, location of the power usage reading device, status of the power usage reading device 200, among several others. At step 410, the at least one indicia is analyzed to indicate at least one state corresponding to the at least one indicia, of the power usage reading device 200. For example, if the indicia is power usage reading, the state analyzed is the power usage, if the indicia is the tamper free status of the power usage reading device 200, the state analyzed is tampering.

Accordingly, the method 400 entails capturing and analyzing the various indicia of the power usage reading device, for example the power usage reading device 200, corresponding to the various states of the power usage reading device 200. The method 400 is configured to capture and analyze data for multiple such power usage reading devices, for example, the power usage reading devices installed at various levels of the network 100, at different locations of power usage or power distribution. According to one embodiment, the data for multiple power usage reading devices is collected, so as to exhaustively include all the power usage reading devices in the network. According to another embodiment, the data for multiple power usage reading devices is collected to exhaustively include power usage reading devices up to a particular level (from the top level) till which level the power distribution needs to be analyzed.

Once all the data is available for all the power usage reading devices, at step 412, the method 400 includes identifying the amount and locations/channels of power loss and/or power usage reading device tampering. The step 412 is discussed in further detail below.

At step 414, the method 400 further includes generating a report of the analysis and at step 416, the method 400 includes generating a bill corresponding to the power usage reading device 200. In one embodiment, the server receives the image from the image capture device via a network or via a wired or a wireless communication mode, as described earlier. The step 416 includes printing this image on the bill. The method 400 ends at step 418.

In one embodiment, the at least one indicia include a power usage reading, and wherein said analyzing includes using an optical character recognition (OCR) mode to regenerate said power usage reading in character form. The at least one indicia further include a power usage reading, and wherein the analyzing includes using an optical character recognition (Hereinafter "OCR") mode to regenerate the power usage reading in character form.

In one embodiment, the OCR mode refers to an electronic or mechanical translation of images of text to machine-editable characters. Machine editable characters may be read and edited by a general purpose computer or other application specific electronic processing device. As mentioned the text image is optically recognized to provide machine editable characters, and the machine editable characters may be used to perform several calculations.

In one embodiment, the step 410 includes using the optical character recognition (OCR) mode to regenerate the indicia in character form readable from the data storage device 316. The indicia generated in character form is used for various purposes including, but not limited to, performing several calculations, storing the indicia on a general purpose computer, editing the indicia, printing the indicia and the like.

In one embodiment, the step 412 further includes performing calculations on the indicia in character form readable from the data storage device 316, and identifying potential sources of power loss. The potential sources of power loss can be identified by evaluating an amount of power consumed at each and every level of the network 100 during the transmission and reception of the power. The amount of power consumed at a particular level can be determined by, for example, calculating a difference between power received and power supplied at each level of the network 100. The difference determined at each level gives the power lost at that particular level of the network 100. Similarly, power loss can be determined for each level as well as for each and every sublevel.

Specifically, with reference to FIG. 1, if at level 1 (L1) the energy supplied is 100 units, while at the sub-level, that is level 2 (L2), the sum total of all power usage reading devices of L2 is 85 units, it is inferred that a transmission loss of

15 units (100 units - 85 units) has occurred between L1 and L2. Such power loss may occur due to faulty equipment at either L1 or L2 or both, or due to power theft at either L1 or L2 or both. Further, it is generally known that each sub-station will draw a designated amount of power, and if sub-station 104i shows having received a lesser amount than designated, or lesser amount that in normal operation, it may be inferred that the power loss occurred during transmission of power from L1 to sub-station 104i of L2.

The evaluation of power according to embodiments discussed above gives an indication of power losses and appropriate measures can be taken to minimize such losses. For example, if an evaluation result reveals that maximum power losses are occurring at the third level (L3) of the network 100 as compared to other levels, appropriate measures can be taken to monitor that particular level. In this way, losses can be minimized and increased demand for power can be met with some ease. Thus, the present invention helps in loss reduction which provides commercial value and helps in increasing revenue of the power distribution board.

5 In one embodiment, the analyzing step further includes performing multiple validity checks on the indicia readable from the data storage device 316, to identify potential sources of the power usage reading device tampering. The potential sources of power usage reading device tampering can be identified by, for example, identifying various indicia such as, but not limited to, condition of a 10 seal 250 of the power usage reading device 200, condition of a door 270 of the power usage reading device 200, condition of a window 280 of the power usage reading device 200 and other similar details.

In one embodiment, the identifying includes identifying potential sources of power loss as one of transmission loss, reception loss, theft loss, or equipment

15 loss. As discussed above, the transmission loss can occur while transmitting power from one level to another or from one level to one sub-level and the like.

Similarly, the reception loss can occur while receiving power within a network i

100. The theft loss occurs generally by human interference whereby a considerable amount of power is lost by the network 100 to external sources. The 20 equipment loss generally involves consumption of power by the equipment involved in transmission, reception or at any level or sub-level.

The techniques disclosed herein as discussed with respect to the various embodiments provide various benefits. For example, embodiments of the present invention provide for identifying the sources of power loss from a power distribution network in a convenient and quick way. Further, according to various embodiments, the issue of non-repudiation by an end customer or entities at various power distribution levels may be effectively treated, since analysis of the power usage at each level provides certainty of power usage at that level.

While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present invention, other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, and the scope thereof is determined by the claims that follow.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A method for analyzing power distribution comprising:

receiving from an image capture device an image of a power usage reading device;

storing said image on a data storage device electronically coupled to a processing device, said data storage device further comprising a plurality of instructions executable by said processing device;

processing said image to identify at least one indicia on said image; and

analyzing said at least one indicia to indicate the state of said power usage reading device.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one indicia comprises at least one of a power usage reading, a location of said power usage reading device, an identification of said power usage meter, a status of said power usage reading device, or a physical security seal of said power usage reading device.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one indicia comprises a power usage reading, and wherein said analyzing comprises using an optical character recognition (OCR) mode to regenerate said power usage reading in character form.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein said analyzing comprises using an optical character recognition (OCR) mode to regenerate said indicia in character form.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein said analyzing comprises performing calculations on said indicia in character form, and

identifying potential sources of power loss.

6. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein said analyzing comprises performing validity checks on said indicia in character form, to identify potential sources of said power usage reading device tampering.

7. The method as claimed in claim 5, wherein said identifying comprises identifying potential sources of power loss as one of transmission loss, reception loss, theft loss, or equipment loss.

8. The method as claimed in claim 5, further comprising generating a report of said analysis.

9. The method as claimed in claim 5, further comprising generating a bill corresponding to said power usage reading device.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said server receives said image from said image capture device via a network.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said server receives said image from said image capture device via a wired or a wireless communication mode.

12. A system for analyzing power distribution comprising:

an image capturing device configured to capture an image of a power usage reading device;

a processing device electronically coupled to a data storage device, said data storage device comprising a plurality of instructions executable by logic, said processing device configured to execute said plurality of instructions; and

a communication mode communicably coupling said image capture device to said processing device,

wherein said plurality of instruction are configured to process said image to identify at least one indicia on said image.

13. The system as claimed in claim 12, wherein said at least one indicia comprises at least one of a power usage reading, a location of said power usage reading device, an identification of said power usage reading device, a status of said power usage reading device, or a physical security seal of said power usage reading device.

14. The system as claimed in claim 12, wherein said at least one indicia comprises a power usage reading, and wherein said analyzing comprises using an optical character recognition (OCR) mode to regenerate said power usage reading in character form.

15. The system as claimed in claim 13, wherein said analyzing comprises using an optical character recognition (OCR) mode to regenerate said indicia in character form.

16. The system as claimed in claim 15, further comprising a power distribution network comprising:

at least one power station, at least one sub-station, at least one feeder, and at least one district transformer,

wherein each of said wherein at least one power station, at least one sub-station, at least one feeder, and at least one district transformer are coupled to at least one corresponding power usage reading device, and wherein said processing device is configured to perform calculations on said indicia in character form, and identify potential sources of power loss in said power distribution network.

17. The system as claimed in claim 16, wherein said processing device is configured to identify potential sources of power loss as one of transmission loss, reception loss, theft loss, or equipment loss.

18. The system as claimed in claim 16, wherein said processing device is configured to generate a report of said calculations and identification of potential sources of power loss.

19. The system as claimed in claim 12, wherein said communication mode is via a communications network.

20. The system as claimed in claim 12, wherein said communication mode is a wired or a wireless communication mode.