KR100342780B1 - A radio handy terminal for remote measuring - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a handy terminal for carrying a meter reading remotely. The present invention is a remote meter system having a wireless meter and a cradle having a charging function and a computer connected to the cradle by a communication line, which can transmit the meter value wirelessly, communication with the wireless meter and wireless meter reading Wireless transmission and reception means for inputting the data; Serial communication means for communicating with the computer via the cradle; Memory; Display means; Key input means; Perform a predetermined program according to the key operation of the key input means to display a menu and status for operation on the display means, download data for meter reading from a computer through the serial communication means, and transmit and receive the wireless transmission and reception means. And a main processor for classifying the meter reading file received through the customer and storing the meter reading file in the memory and transmitting the meter reading file to the serial communication unit after the meter reading is completed. Accordingly, the handy terminal according to the present invention receives metering data from a meter having a wireless function and stores it in a memory so that the meter reader can read even when the meter is separated from the meter. There is an effect to reduce the manpower and time spent on.

Description

A handy handy terminal for remote metering

The present invention relates to a wireless meter reading technology using a wireless, and more particularly to a handy terminal for carrying a remote meter reading by a meter reader.

In general, the amount of electricity, gas, and tap water used in each household is measured through an electricity meter, gas meter, water meter, and the like, and the meter reader reads the instructions of the meter to calculate monthly usage and charges for a fee. In this way, when the meter readers read and record the instructions of the meter every day, a lot of manpower and time are required, which increases the cost. In particular, when the meter is located where it is difficult to see the instructions or when the customer is absent during the visit, there is a problem that the meter is difficult to visit again.

In order to solve the difficulty of the meter reading, the remote metering technology using the telephone line has been introduced, but it has not been put into practical use due to the communication cost and the cost for additional equipment.

On the other hand, KEPCO introduces and uses a metering system that allows meter readers to enter guide values while holding hands. In other words, in the conventional meter reading system consisting of a handy terminal, a cradle, and a computer, the meter reader visits each home while carrying a handy terminal, checks and inputs the guidance value of the electricity meter, and when the meter is completed, the handy terminal is placed on the cradle In addition to charging, the meter data can be transferred to a PC so that the meter data can be processed on the main computer.

However, even in such a conventional metering system, the meter reader has to check the instructions of the electricity meter visually and then directly input the metering value to the handy terminal. That is, in the past, the meter readers visited each home to see the electricity meter and used the meter in the meter or directly input the amount of usage using the handy terminal.If the electricity meter of each household is installed in a place where the meter is not easily seen, or the landlord It was difficult to accurately read because there was no time to read, and it was very time consuming because you had to visit all the homes to see and read the amount of electricity.

In order to solve the above problems, the wireless terminal is embedded in the handy terminal and the electricity meter to automatically read the meter reading value when reading the meter, and store the data, and return to the point after the meter reading is completed, and automatically read the meter data. Its purpose is to provide a wireless handy terminal for remote meter reading that can be transmitted to a PC).

Figure 1 is an example showing the configuration of a remote meter reading system to which the present invention is applied,

2 is an example of a meter for wirelessly transmitting a meter in the remote meter reading system of FIG.

3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a handy terminal according to the present invention;

4 is a flowchart illustrating an operation procedure of a handy terminal according to the present invention;

5 is a flowchart illustrating a remote meter reading procedure of a handy terminal according to the present invention.

* Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings

102: power meter 104: gas meter

106: water meter 110: handy terminal

120: cradle 122: docking unit

130: personal computer 140: network

150: remote meter reading host system 302: RF module

306: LCD module 308: DRAM

310: flash memory 312: BIOS ROM

314: second coprocessor 316: real time clock (RTC)

318: keyboard 320: main processor

322: serial I / O 324: first coprocessor

326: power supply 330: battery pack

In order to achieve the above object, the device of the present invention, in the remote meter reading system having a wireless meter capable of wirelessly transmitting the weighing value and a cradle having a charging function and a computer connected to the cradle by a communication line, Wireless transmission and reception means for communicating with the wireless meter wirelessly to input a meter reading value; Serial communication means for communicating with the computer via the cradle; Memory; Display means; Key input means; Perform a predetermined program according to the key operation of the key input means to display a menu and status for operation on the display means, download data for meter reading from a computer through the serial communication means, and transmit and receive the wireless transmission and reception means. It is characterized in that it comprises a main processor for storing the meter reading file received through the customer to store in the memory, and the meter reading file after the completion of the meter reading to the serial communication means.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a remote meter reading system to which the present invention is applied.

Referring to FIG. 1, the remote meter reading system wirelessly detects power consumption, gas consumption, and tap water usage. For this purpose, the electricity meter 102, the gas meter 104, and the water meter 106 wirelessly measure the measured values. Must be capable of transmitting. For example, the electricity meter used in the present invention, as shown in Figure 2, the total electricity meter 202 for detecting the amount of electricity, the sensing unit 204 for detecting the metered value of the electricity meter, the power supply unit 206, wireless A transmitter 208, a control unit 210, a storage unit 212, an oscillator 214, a reset unit 216, and a display unit 218 are provided to detect power consumption and store the data in digital data. Upon receiving the request signal from the mobile station, it transmits the read data and unique number wirelessly. These meters are fixed in each user's home or company.

Handy terminal 110 is a device for measuring the amount of usage while the meter is carried by the user, conventionally the user reads the input value of the meter with the eye, but the hand terminal 110 according to the present invention wirelessly transmits the measurement data of the meter Take it and save it automatically. The data stored in this way is returned to the meter reading point is placed on the cradle 120 and transferred to the PC 130, and transmitted to the remote meter reading host system 150 through the network 140.

Cradle 120 and the docking unit 122 is a device that can put the handy terminal 110, charges a removable battery in the handy terminal 110, as well as the data stored in the handy terminal 110 PC ( 130 provides a communication path for transmission. In particular, the docking unit 122 is the same as the cradle 120, but expands the capacity to accommodate a number of handy terminals at once.

The PC 130 performs an application program for meter reading and processes the data collected by the meter reader through the handy terminal 110 and processes the data on its own, and the meter reading data is remotely read through the network 140 through the host. To the system 150. The remote meter reading host system 150 collects the entire remote meter reading data, calculates a fee according to the meter reading amount for each user, and manages the entire system.

FIG. 2 is an example of a meter for wirelessly transmitting a meter value in the remote meter reading system of FIG. 1 as an example of a meter for measuring the amount of power consumed by a user. Referring to FIG. 2, the meter detects the amount of power measured by the watt-hour meter 202 and provides a digital value, the sensing unit 204, the power supply unit 206, the wireless transmission device 208, the control unit 210, and storage. The unit 212, the oscillator 214, the reset unit 216, and the display unit 218 are configured. When the wireless transmission device 208 receives the radio signal requesting the measurement value from the handy terminal 110, it transmits the control signal to the control unit 210, and receives the measurement value from the control unit 210 and transmits it wirelessly, the control unit 210 Provides the data input through the sensing unit 204 to the wireless transmission device 208 according to a predetermined communication format and controls the overall operation.

3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a handy terminal according to the present invention, the handy terminal 110 is a RF module 302 and serial port 304, LCD module 306, DRAM 308, flash memory ( 310), BIOS ROM 312, second coprocessor (PIC2: 314), real time clock (RTC: 316), keyboard 318, serial I / O 322, first coprocessor (PIC1: 324), It is composed of a power supply 326, a battery pack 330. In general, the battery pack 330 is configured to be separated from the main body of the handy terminal 110 and provides a communication path with the handy terminal 110 when placed on the cradle 120 in a mounted state.

Referring to FIG. 3, the RF module 302 wirelessly transmits / receives commands for requesting weighing by wirelessly transmitting and receiving with the meters 102, 104, and 106, and receives and demodulates and decodes the measured values from the meter. Forward to 320. That is, the RF module 302 modulates the data of the MCU 320 and transmits it wirelessly, demodulates the received radio signal and provides the decoded data to the MCU 320.

The serial port 304 is an external communication port for the RF module 302, the DRAM 308 is a memory for temporarily storing data or a program during operation according to the present invention, the flash memory 310 is an application program It is a nonvolatile memory for storing a main program such as, and the BIOS ROM 312 stores an input and output program for the DOS operating system. The second coprocessor (PIC2) 314 is a kind of auxiliary CPU that performs an operation related to a reset on the handy terminal latch, and the RTC 316 generates and provides an accurate time and clock.

The keyboard 318 is a key input unit for operating a handy terminal and includes a numeric key, a function key, a hot key, and the like. (320). In addition, the battery pack 330 may be mounted on or detached from the handy terminal body, and connected to the RS232C method and the I ² C method to provide a communication path with the cradle 120. The power supply 326 receives power from the battery pack 330 or the cradle 120 and provides stable power to each of the handy terminals.

The main processor (MCU) 320 performs the procedures shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 to store the meter data received from the RF module 302 in the memory 308 and from the PC 130 through the RS-232C line. The meter-related data is downloaded and the meter file is transmitted to the PC 130.

4 is a flowchart illustrating an operating procedure of a handy terminal according to the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a remote meter reading procedure of a handy terminal according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, when the power of the handy terminal is turned on, the portable terminal number and password are inputted to initialize the handy terminal and check the meter. Next, as shown in Table 1, an initial screen for selecting work contents is displayed (403).

Choose what you want 1. Meter reading 2. Start communication 3. Settings 4. Exit to DOS

When the user selects "reading meter" on the initial screen, at least one meter reading name is displayed, and when one of the meter reading name is selected, the basic screen shown in Table 2 is displayed (404, 405, 406).

number Contents number Contents One Customer number 11 Monthly instructions 2 Expected meter reading 12 Power usage 3 Reading order 13 Last month's meter reading code 4 name 14 With current month guidance 5 Households / TVs 15 Instructions digits 6 Contract type 16 Current month usage 7 Contract power 17 Current meter reading code 8 Business name or address 18 Customer Status 9 Instrument number, drain 19 Reading direction 10 Direct debit indication 20 Instrument location

Referring to Table 2, the basic screen shows the customer's detailed information including the customer number and the previous month's weighing value such as the previous month's usage amount, the current month's weighing value, the meter position, and the like.

Subsequently, when the meter reader reads the instructions of the electricity meter and inputs the guide value, if there is an error after checking the input value, the meter provides a message for checking the meter value, and when the meter ends, it moves to the next customer (407 ~ 410).

When the user selects "communication start", the user connects to the PC 130 and processes data loading and meter file transfer (411 to 413). If the user selects "Setting", a screen for changing the date / time and the communication speed is provided (414,415). If the user selects "Exit to DOS," the DOS mode is provided (416, 417).

Referring to FIG. 5, when "remote meter reading" is pressed on the keyboard 318 of the handy terminal near the meter for wireless meter reading, the handy terminal 110 requests the meter data transmission through a wireless signal, and thus the wattmeter To date, the meter data is wirelessly transmitted to the handy terminal 110 (501 to 503). When the handy terminal 110 receives the metering data from the electricity meter, it determines whether the metering data is correct and sends an error message requesting confirmation if there is an error and displays it on the LCD to reread the meter, and if there is no error, stores and displays the metering data. (504-508).

As described above, the handy terminal according to the present invention receives metering data from a meter having a wireless function and stores it in a memory to read the meter even when the meter is separated from the meter. This can reduce the manpower and time required for meter reading.

Claims (3)

In a remote meter reading system having a wireless meter capable of transmitting the weighing value wirelessly, a cradle having a charging function and a computer connected to the cradle by a communication line, Wireless transmission and reception means for communicating with the wireless meter wirelessly to input a meter reading value; Serial communication means for communicating with the computer via the cradle; A battery pack for being detachable and for supplying power to each part; Memory; Display means; Key input means; And Perform a predetermined program according to the key operation of the key input means to display a menu and status for operation on the display means, download data for meter reading from a computer through the serial communication means, and transmit and receive the wireless transmission and reception means. And a main processor for dividing the meter reading file received by the customer into the memory and transmitting the meter reading file to the serial communication unit after the meter reading is completed. According to claim 1, The wireless handy terminal for the remote meter reading, And a first coprocessor for communicating with the battery pack. According to claim 1, The wireless handy terminal for the remote meter reading, And a second coprocessor for resetting the main processor.