Another technology: AMR over phone network:
October 22, 1997
Automated Meter Reading Trial Begins in
Portland; GTE,
Schlumberger and Lucent Technologies Join
Forces
PORTLAND, Ore., Oct. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- One of the
nation's first tests of automated utility meter reading over the
public telephone network has begun in suburban Portland.
GTE (NYSE: GTE), in cooperation with Schlumberger
Company and Lucent Technologies (NYSE: LU), is trialing the
automatic retrieving of electric meter readings over existing
phone lines in an effort to bring new services to its customers in
the area and reduce operating costs.
If the trial is successful, the dispatching of meter readers on
house-by- house inspections could become a thing of the past.
Starting with 100 to 200 residential and small business
customers in the trial, GTE plans to expand the service over the
next few years if the system works as anticipated.
Automated meter reading will allow electrical utilities to
reduce operating costs, read meters more frequently and
accurately, as well as immediately notify utilities in the event of
a power outage. In addition, it also sets the stage for an array of
new services which can be provided, including the continued
automation of electronic devices in the home such as security
systems and appliances which can be controlled remotely.
In the trial, GTE is providing the phone lines and central office
switches, with Schlumberger providing the meter-reading
equipment and central data collection computer. Lucent
Technologies is providing the network switching system link
over the 5ESS(R) switching system.
"We are pleased to be offering a highly efficient method for
meter reading and service monitoring to utility companies,"
said Eileen O'Neill Odum, Regional President - GTE
Northwest. "By using this new technology over the public
switched network, utility companies now have an attractive
alternative to both traditional meter reading methods and to
the prospect of investing in new network assets."
David Smith, Intelligent Pathway service manager for Lucent,
said "The phone system offers integration to the Internet and
with deregulation, a utility customer may be anywhere. Using
the Internet and phone lines to communicate with the customer
is the future of communications."
By taking meter readings more frequently, utilities can establish
a daily "demand profile" for the customer. This kind of
information is critical as the electrical power industry prepares
for deregulation, as well as allowing companies to evaluate new
service offerings such as immediate billing verification or
service outage detection.
With revenues of more than $21 billion in 1996, GTE is one of
the largest publicly held telecommunications companies in the
world. In the United States, GTE offers local and wireless
service in 29 states and long-distance service in all 50 states.
GTE was the first among its peers to offer "one- stop shopping"
for local, long-distance and Internet access services. In Oregon,
the company serves more than 440,000 customer lines, 72
percent of them in the Portland area. Major operating areas
near Portland include nearly all of Washington County,
Gresham and part of Clackamas County. Additional
information about GTE can be found on the Internet at
gte.com .
Lucent Technologies (LU) designs, builds, and delivers a wide
range of public and private networks, communications systems
and software, consumer and business telephone systems and
microelectronics components. Bell Laboratories is the research
and development arm of the company. For more information
about Lucent Technologies, headquartered at Murray Hill, N.J.,
visit the website at lucent.com .
Technical Background
The nation's first test of Lucent Technologies' Intelligent
Pathway Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) Service from
multiple 5ESS(R) Switches has begun in suburban Portland.
GTE will use special software on the 5ESS Switching System to
communicate with utility meters over the phone lines without
ringing the phone or disturbing the customers.
This technology is an improvement over older methods of
telephone-based telemetry systems. Intelligent Pathway uses a
unique capability in the telephone switch that knows to treat
the call to the meter as a "no-ring" data call, enabling a utility
computer to communicate with a small device at the home or
inside the meter and obtain the information needed to bill the
customer, or check for tampering or even detect service outage.
The trial will start with 100-200 residential and small business
customers. Expanding the number of participants is easily
accomplished by simply installing the AMR units at the home
and connecting them to the phone lines. No additional utility or
phone equipment is necessary to add customer AMR units.
AMR will permit the utility to access the meter whenever the
phone line is not busy. In about 2-6 seconds up to 4 meters at
one site can be read and the data sent back to the utility over
the phone line.
The telemetry system provided by GTE will have many
applications beyond meter reading. Intelligent Pathway is a
data communications path that may be used to communicate
with intelligent devices in the home. This trial is designed to test
this technology and to evaluate operational impacts.
In this trial, GTE is providing the phone lines and central office
switches. Lucent Technologies is providing the Intelligent
Pathway software and central office service unit off the 5ESS
switching system, and the Schlumberger company is providing
the meters, and meter reading software for the trial.
/CONTACT: Roger Frizzell of Lucent Technologies,
972-325-4710; or Bill Kula of GTE, national contact,
972-718-6924; or Melissa Barran of GTE, local contact,
425-261-5855/ |
