Abstract: Safety in an electricity metering environment is improved by providing an additional level of safety interlocking to disconnect switches and other control relays in electricity meters.

Abstract: A wireless mesh network, method, and processor-readable storage medium for operating a network that has a control node that communicates with a plurality of communication nodes are disclosed. When the control node receives a broadcast message, the control node broadcasts a “clear” message that causes other communication nodes to clear their copies of the broadcast message from their message queues. By clearing redundant copies of the original broadcast message, the network can conserve bandwidth for other network traffic.

Abstract: A wireless mesh network, method, and processor-readable storage medium for maintaining both a primary communication path and an alternative communication path for a communication node are disclosed herein. A control node determines an alternative communication path for each node in communication with the control node and stores, for each node, primary communication path information and alternative communication path information. By maintaining both primary and alternative communication path information, the control node can switch from the primary path to the alternative path when a failure in the primary path is detected. Because the control node determines and stores information relating to the alternative path before the failure occurs, switching from the primary path to the alternative path involves little, if any, delay.

Abstract: A method, wireless mesh network and processor-readable storage medium for providing interoperability between devices that are capable of communicating at different data rates are disclosed herein. A start-of-frame delimiter token value in a synchronization header is used to indicate a data rate at which a device is capable of communicating. In certain embodiments, samples are collected around a bit transition and are used to adjust a bit timing of a receiving device to match a bit timing of a transmitting device using a coarse adjustment process and, in some embodiments, a fine adjustment process. In this way, compatibility can be maintained between new devices that can communicate at a relatively fast data rate and legacy devices that communicate at a lower data rate.

Abstract: A wireless mesh network, method, and processor-readable storage medium for operating a network that has a control node that communicates with a plurality of communication nodes are disclosed herein. The control node schedules time-limited sample windows and only collects data that is designated as having a priority, such as voltage data, during those scheduled sample windows. Because the sample window has a defined end point time, the reading software that executes at the head end and that reads data from the collector can follow a known schedule because, by definition, the collector will already be finished collecting priority data when the sample window expires.

Abstract: A primary key may be used for a first attempt by a remote node to decrypt incoming messages from a master. In the event the decrypt attempt fails at the remote node, a secondary key may then be used to attempt to decrypt the message. Initially, the primary and secondary keys may be the same. A field tool, such as a hand-held programming unit operated by a technician at a remote node location, may change the secondary key, but may not cause any change to the primary key. The secondary key may remain so changed until a new primary key is verified and/or authenticated and the secondary key is overwritten with the new primary key. The primary key may only be changed/set by the master via an encrypted request. A technician may not use a field tool to change a primary key.

Abstract: An antenna isolation circuit, meter reading device, and method of manufacturing an antenna isolation circuit are disclosed herein. A multilayer planar structure antenna isolation circuit uses distributed elements to provide high voltage isolation and RF coupling functions. The distributed elements may be implemented, for example, as multilayer distributed capacitors. In other embodiments, the distributed elements may be implemented as a distributed transformer.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for routing DNP (or other) protocol messages over a network of an advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) system that employs a different communications protocol.