Collecting data from pulse meters

Time-series data from utility meters can be valuable for many applications, but getting reliable data from some meters can be challenging. A common option on many older meters is a pulse output that provides some information about the rate of consumption. Electric utility companies can often add a pulse output to an existing commercial meter.

Also, certain measuring devices output their data in the form of digital pulse trains. Some examples include pulse output water meters and electrical energy meter. In the case of flow meters, the pulse frequency is converted to flow rate (GPH OR LPH), and the number of pulses counted over time is converted to energy use (kWh). These rates can be calibrated to correlate closely with the dial readings of the meter in use at a rate proportional to the customer’s energy use. The customer can then interface the pulses to either demand-control equipment or an energy information system. Some of these energy information systems are often BACnet. 

How can we interface to the meter's pulse output?

• First, we need to know what interface standard is used by the pulse output; common interface standards are KYZ (a.k.a. Form C relay closure) and digital KYZ (actively driven digital output).
• Second, we need to find out what the upper frequency limit is on the pulse stream. Armed with that information, we can choose a compatible device that can count the pulses, apply a scale factor, and make the data accessible through a communication interface.

The Cimetrics B6070 is designed to reliably convert data from pulse meters to BACnet. It provides a BACnet/IP interface for commodity/utility flow meters that have a pulse output. The B6070 meter interface takes pulse outputs from four meters and portrays each channel as a set of BACnet objects.

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