[LINK] "Smart" electricity meters use Zigbee and 915-928 MHz mesh

[Tom Worthington]

Robin Whittle wrote:
> Two Victorian distributors ... use meters ... radio card ...
> Tom Worthington has a page discussing another distributor's plans to
> use WiMax to the "smart" meters... WiMAX ... looks a lot more expensive
> and presumably involves licensed spectrum and expensive microwave or
> fibre links. ...

Yes, SP AusNet plans to use WiMax with spectrum licensed to Unwired:
<http://www.tomw.net.au/blog/2009/10/smart-electricity-meters-may-displace.html>. 


WiMax can use a mesh architecture, so SP AusNet could reduce the number 
of base stations by having signals relayed form meter to meter. But I 
suspect SP AusNet plans to create a wireless network suitable for 
selling broadband services, not just smart meters. As an example, if 
they put a WiFi chip in the smart meter, then they can offer a wireless 
broadband service to the household and to the street.

It would be attractive to the electricity distributor to offer the 
householder broadband access along with electricity. With enough 
wireless smart meters there would be complete wireless coverage of a 
suburb. Apart from data services, this could provide telephony (but 
there may not be enough bandwidth for TV).


-- 
Tom Worthington FACS HLM, TomW Communications Pty Ltd. t: 0419496150
PO Box 13, Belconnen ACT 2617, Australia  http://www.tomw.net.au
Adjunct Lecturer, The Australian National University t: 02 61255694
Computer Science http://cs.anu.edu.au/people.php?StaffID=140274