Jim ‘Slim’ Mimlitz, SCADAmetrics
METER AUTO-DETECTION INTRODUCED…
North-American encoder-type water meters communicate using one of three protocol families: Neptune, Elster, and Sensus (..which is generally comprised of all makes, except Neptune and Elster). Furthermore, various meter makes/models have their own additional idiosyncrasies.
In the past, there were two EtherMeter tuning parameters which often required adjustment to help the EtherMeter communicate optimally with each make/model of water meter: PWRn and CLKLOWn. Within the EtherMeter Compatibility Matrix document, we enumerated the recommended values of PWRn and CLKLOWn for each make/model water meter.
Today, I am pleased to announce that all EtherMeters shipped on or after 08 Nov 2020 will contain a sophisticated meter auto-sensing routine, which simplifies EtherMeter commissioning!
As a consequence, the PWRn and CLKLOWn settings are now retired, and replaced with a single setting:
TYPEn
TYPEn can be set to either AUTO (default) or PULSE; which means that if the EtherMeter is connected to an encoder-type water meter, then you won’t have to change this setting! The EtherMeter will determine the required encoder protocol — quickly and automatically! However, if the user prefers to disable the auto-detection logic (not recommended), he may still do so and explicitly set TYPEn to NEPTUNE, SENSUS, or ELSTER.
ENHANCED ELSTER/HONEYWELL AUTO-DETECTION…
Another new user-friendly feature was introduced in this firmware release, which pertains to Elster (Honeywell) water meters. When an Elster meter is detected, the EtherMeter now automatically extracts the Units (UNITn) and Multiplier (EXPn) settings from the meter, as this information is conveyed via the Elster protocol.
PULSE METERS STILL REQUIRE SETUP…
When connecting to pulse-type meters, EtherMeter setup is now more intuitive, where the user sets the EtherMeter for pulse as follows:
SET TYPEn PULSE
UPDATED DOCUMENTATION…
The User Manual and Compatibility Matrix have been updated to reflect and document these improvements.
Are you interested in how SCADAmetrics’ EtherMeter technology can lend a competitive advantage to your automation system’s metering operations? It just got a little easier! Give us a call! We’ll be glad to discuss the details!