An AMI system is a major building block of a Smart Grid system. AMI refers to an infrastructure that uses various networks to automatically measure, detect, collect, manage and analyze energy data. The major components of an AMI system include Smart Meters, Communication Network, and Head-end software.

Nuri's AiMiR AMI system uses various communication networks such as AiMiR Neighborhood Area Network (NAN), AiMiR Home Area Network (HAN) and Wide Area Network (WAN) to enable two-way flow of data to integrate the utility's AMI Head-end systems with Distribution, Smart meters, and in-home devices. The NAN connects smart meters in a network and aggregates HAN which connects in-home devices. The WAN connects distribution devices and aggregates NAN. The AMI system communicates data and other information back to the AMI Head-end servers at the utility which can monitor, and more efficiently control its power distribution based on daily and seasonal demand

Nuri Telecom’s AiMiR wireless mesh AMI technology is a mature, proven technology that is manageable, robust, capable of high performance, and secure. Most importantly, it provides scalable high bandwidth capacity that accommodates networks of thousands of devices. AiMiR AMI is field hardened and ready to meet the evolving needs of future smart grid applications.

Nuri Telecom provides utilities with the flexibility of choosing a NAN based on either wireless or BPL (Broadband over Power Line) technology, satisfying their existing infrastructure constraints, housing density serviced by a single transformer, rural vs urban deployment, budgets, and varying technical capabilities. In the US, 1-10 houses are served by a MV/LV transformer, in Japan the figure can be up to thirty while in Europe several hundred houses can be serviced by a single transformer

AiMiR Wireless Mesh NAN

Nuri’s AiMiR wireless mesh NAN is the industry’s first 100% ZigBee standard compliant, field hardened utility NAN. The network operates on a license-free 2.4GHz ISM band. AiMiR’s infrastructure’s 250 kbps data rate provides ample bandwidth to carry data payloads for a multitude of modern grid functions beyond advanced metering, with built-in flexibility to handle future needs as they arise.

AiMiR BPL Broadband over Power Line NAN

Nuri’s AiMiR Broadband over Power Lines (or BPL) uses the existing power grid infrastructure reaching all devices both overhead and underground that utilities want to monitor, collect data and control. By leveraging the existing infrastructure it also helps to overcome the economical barriers to deploying NAN in the urban high density housing serviced by a single transformer and rural areas.

Nuri Telecom uses IEEE standard 802.11a, operates in 5 GHz band, and uses a 52-subcarrier a fault tolerant OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) technology with a maximum data rate of 54 Mbit/s, to implement BPL’s physical layer. Since powerlines are not designed to piggybacking data, transmitting data on them presents itself with high attenuation and noise, requiring lot of error correction. Using OFDM allows Nuri to eliminate such problems.

Smart Grid’s DR (demand response) and dynamic pricing application requires a true two-way communication with the each meter providing opportunities for utilities to interact directly with their customers through the meter and in-home devices.

Nuri Telecom’s AiMiR HAN provides the most advanced, ZigBee standard compliant HAN infrastructure, allowing utilities to establish secure 2-way communication with consumers to implement demand response and dynamic pricing applications. Additionally it enables consumers to manage and control their home energy consumption through various energy control and management devices in a Local Area Network (LAN).

To the Utility the HAN provides almost real-time energy usage data and the ability through load control integration to manage power consumption by HVAC, swimming pools, appliances and other devices connected to the HAN. To the Consumer it provides real-time energy usage and the ability to influence and control their home’s energy management by offloading non-essential uses to off peak hours.

Nuri Telecom provides comprehensive, robust and highly scalable AMI head-end software for network operations, network management and collecting data from smart meters and other smart grid devices.

Realizing that Smart Grid applications continue to develop and evolve, it is possible that access to the head-end software may be needed to develop custom modules, or integrate at a low level with third party applications, Nuri AiMiR software provides industry standard configurable interfaces for ease of smart grid data integration with back office applications with The openness of the head-end software and the integration ease should also be reviewed.

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