What Do the Peaks, Tip, Flats, and Valleys in Smart Meters Mean?(1)
Ten years ago, the electric energy meters were still mechanical meters, which could only display the value of active electric energy. The current electric energy meters are both local cost-control smart meters and remote cost-control smart meters. Its function is not only to measure the active value. It can display values such as forward active power, reactive power, reverse active power, and remaining electricity charges, so what do these numbers mean?
Electric energy meters have high-voltage and low-voltage meters. For high-voltage meters, they are used by high-voltage users such as some factories. This type of energy meter has more value and is not used in our daily life, so I will not explain it here.
Here we mainly explain the low-voltage smart energy meters commonly used in our lives.
* The time-sharing period of the electric energy meter
In order to encourage electricity customers to reasonably arrange electricity consumption time and improve the utilization efficiency of electricity resources, the 24-hour day is divided into four periods: peak, tip, flat and valley. Therefore, in order to apply to the calculation of electricity and electricity charges in different time periods, the time period is set in the smart energy meter according to regulations.
The time-of-use electricity price for low-voltage users includes the residential peak-valley time-of-use electricity price, the general industrial and commercial electricity price, and the recently implemented clean energy heating peak-valley time-of-use electricity price. The clean energy heating peaks and valleys and the time-sharing of residents’ lives are only implemented in the peaks and valleys (peak from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm, and valleys from 8:00 pm to 8:00 am), and the electricity price is different for each period.
* Various indications of electric energy meter
The smart meter can check the time, total active power, total positive active power indication, indication in four periods of peaks and valleys, reverse active power indication, remaining amount, maximum demand, reactive power indication, voltage, current and other values.
Here only to explain the indications that we must know when calculating electricity bills.
a) Active total
Active power is the effective work we actually do with electricity, so this value is the most important.
Active total power = positive total active power + reverse active power When calculating the electricity, we need to copy the bottom of the meter before the electricity is used and the bottom of the meter after the electricity is used.
b) Forward active power total and reverse active power total
Generally, we only have forward active power in our lives, and some photovoltaic power generation users will measure reverse active power.
Therefore, we will find that in general, total active power = total positive active power.
Forward active and reverse active will be divided into four periods: tip, peak, flat, and valley. Their power relationship is:
total forward active power = forward active tip section power + forward active peak section power + forward active flat section power + forward active valley section power.
The reverse active power is also divided into four periods.
c) Electricity prices and electricity charges
One of the functions of smart meters is that they can download electricity price parameters. It can calculate the electricity usage fee and settle the actual remaining electricity fee according to the electricity price parameters and your electricity consumption.
But there is a situation that can cause the remaining amount displayed on the meter to be inaccurate:
Residents' living electricity is stepped electricity, which is divided into three grades. The electricity price of the third gear is different and the electricity price on the electricity meter is the same. Therefore, when the second or third gear is used, the remaining amount on the meter will be more than the amount on the actual account.
