WO2000058738A1

WO2000058738A1 - Utility meter reading device and related method

Info

Publication number: WO2000058738A1
Application number: PCT/US2000/006407
Authority: WO
Inventors: James L. Combs
Original assignee: Infra-Read, Llc
Priority date: 1999-03-30
Filing date: 2000-03-13
Publication date: 2000-10-05
Also published as: AU4171000A

Abstract

A utility meter reading device for monitoring power consumption and transmitting the consumption information includes a ring shaped housing for slidably engaging a cover of a standard utility meter. A pair of hermetic seals protect the meter reading device from ambient environmental conditions and tampering. A sensor within the housing monitors the rotations of the meter disk and generates signals in response thereto. A processor within the housing receives the sensor signals and in turn generates a transmit signal or packet representative of the power consumption of the utility meter. The preferred processor includes a memory for storing the sensor signals and the transmit packet of information. The meter reading device may be connected to a standard telephone line for transmitting the transmit packet to a location external of the meter reading device. The related method of obtaining power consumption information includes the steps of installing the meter reading device by sliding the device onto the cover of the utility meter, monitoring the rotations of the utility meter disk, and storing the number of rotations of the disk in memory as power consumption information.

Description

UTILITY METER READING DEVICE AND RELATED METHOD

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a device and method of monitoring and reporting power consumption information, and more particularly, to a utility meter reading device.

Background of the Invention

Over the past several years, numerous devices and methods of monitoring and reporting power consumption information have been produced. The primary goal in the design of each of the devices is to reduce the overall costs and common errors associated with the manual reading of electric utility meters.

The costs involved are obvious and primarily center around manpower costs including employee wages and benefits, and insurance. It is estimated that the costs associated with reading a single electric utility meter is one dollar per meter per reading. Clearly, this multiplies into a substantial financial outlay on the part of a utility company simply to monitor the power consumption information from utility meters. Accordingly, most utility companies utilize estimated billings in order to reduce the number of actual readings on an annual basis. Although this approach is successful in reducing the associated costs, the remaining costs are still substantial and the propensity for errors still exists.

Accordingly, several meter reading devices have been designed which attempt to resolve these stated problems by automatically monitoring and reporting the power consumption information from utility meters. Each of these devices, however, suffer from a number of disadvantages. A representative device, as shown in U.S. Patent 4,327,362 to Hoss, requires a separate electric box for the electronic circuitry of the meter reading device connected to the meter by a conduit which houses fiber optic cables. In addition, the utility meter itself must be retrofitted with a bracket assembly in order to properly position the fiber optic cable ends in proximity for monitoring the meter disk.

Similarly, U.S. Patent 4,956,551 to Repschlager et al. requires the use of adhesives to place a sensor assembly on the front face of the meter which at least partially obstructs the meter readout. Further, a complicated adjusting mechanism is required to properly align the sensor once placed on the meter cover face.

Accordingly, while the use of remote utility meter monitoring devices is generally known in the art, to date no one has recognized and addressed the need of providing a utility meter reading device which is readily adapted to existing utility meters without modification or retrofit of the existing meter, and does not interfere with the normal visual reading of the meter. Thus, there is a need to provide such a utility meter reading device capable of accurately monitoring and reporting the meter power consumption information. Further, the meter reading device should also be reliable, easy to install, and cost effective to manufacture and operate.

Summary of the Invention

Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a device and related method for overcoming the limitations of the prior art, and to provide monitoring and reporting of power consumption information.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a ring shaped meter reading device which is readily adapted to existing utility meters while not interfering with the normal visual reading of the meters. A further object of the present invention is to provide a meter reading device which is reliable, easy to install, and cost effective to manufacture and operate.

It is still another object of the present invention is to provide a meter reading device of the type described, which is tamper resistant once installed on the utility meter.

Yet another and related object of the present invention is to provide a method of obtaining power consumption information from a utility meter having a transparent cover and a rotatable disk, wherein the method includes installing a meter reading device by sliding the device onto the cover of the meter, monitoring the rotations of the disk, storing the number of rotations in a memory, and transmitting the number of rotations of the disk to a location external of the meter reading device. Additional objects, advantages and other novel features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description that follows and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned with the practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

To achieve the foregoing and other objects, and in accordance with the purposes of the present invention as described herein, an improved utility meter reading device is provided, and is contemplated to be utilized to provide monitoring and reporting of power consumption information via telephone lines, radio based communications or the like, to a utility company. The meter reading device includes a housing for slidably engaging a transparent cover extending from a box of a standard public utility meter while not interfering with normal visual reading of the meter. More specifically, a seal attached to the housing of the meter reading device slidably engages the cover of the meter during installation. The seal prevents removal of the meter reading device without damaging the housing and alerting the utility company. Within the broadest aspects of the present invention, the housing provides for easy installation of the meter reading device on existing utility meters without modifying or retrofitting the meters, while the seal guards against tampering after installation.

In accordance with an important aspect of the present invention, the seal preferably includes a pair of hermetic seals designed in part to protect the meter reading device from environmental conditions. A first seal of the seal pair engages the cover adjacent the meter box and a second seal is positioned outwardly from the first seal a distance sufficient to allow unobstructed monitoring of the meter by a sensor.

The sensor is mounted within the housing and monitors the rotations of a utility meter disk. Preferably, the sensor includes an optical transmitter for transmitting an optical signal toward the rotatable disk, and an optical receiver for receiving at least a portion of the transmitted signal. In addition, the preferred optical signal is modulated to reduce or eliminate any possible transient effects of sunlight or the like. Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention contemplates sensing a portion of the optical signal passing through an aperture in the disk, other methods of sensing the rotations of the disk are well within the teachings of the present invention. For example, the sensor may include a combined optical transmitter and receiver to monitor the passing of a specific marking on the disk. Upon receipt of the optical signal portion, the sensor generates a signal indicative of the disk rotation.

The operation of the sensor, and more specifically the transmitting and receiving of optical signals, is controlled by a processor mounted within the housing. Advantageously, the preferred processor is selected to accommodate several tasks associated with the monitoring and reporting of power consumption information. These additional tasks may include, for example, receiving and processing the sensor signals, generating a transmit packet of information representative of the power consumption of the utility meter, transmitting the packet of information to a host system, receiving and processing a reply packet of information from the host system, and monitoring the time interval between reports. The preferred processor also includes a memory for storing control code, sensor signals, and additional information received during communications with the host system. In the related method, the first step in obtaining the power consumption information from a standard utility meter is installing the meter reading device onto the transparent cover of the utility meter. Preferably, the pair of hermetic seals slidably engage the cover providing an easy one step installation of the meter reading device. The seals further inhibit the removal of the device. Preferably, any attempt to remove the meter reading device will cause detectable damage to the housing. The installing step further includes connecting the meter reading device to a power source and to a telephone line, a radio based communications device or the like. Advantageously, it is contemplated that the entire installation process takes less than fifteen minutes to complete including the recordation of the present meter information.

Next, the meter reading device, and more specifically the sensor within the device, monitors the rotations of the utility meter disk and generates signals indicative of the disk rotations. The processor receives the sensor signals and in turn generates a power consumption information signal for periodically transmitting to a location external of the meter reading device.

Still other objects of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description wherein there is shown and described a preferred embodiment of this invention, simply by way of illustration of one of the modes best suited to carry out the invention. As it will be realized, the invention is capable of other different embodiments and its several details are capable of modification in various, obvious aspects all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description will be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The accompanying drawings incorporated in and forming a part of the specification, illustrate several aspects of the present invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings: Figure 1 is a front elevational view of the meter reading device installed on a utility meter showing a preferred optical transmitter, the optical signal including a portion of the signal passing through an aperture in the meter disk, and a preferred optical receiver;

Figure 2 is a side cross sectional view showing the meter reading device, and specifically the preferred seal, installed on the utility meter; and Figure 3 is a schematic block diagram of the system for monitoring metered power consumption including the meter reading device, the utility meter, and the host system. Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiment of the invention, an example of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment Reference is now made to Figure 1 of the drawings showing a utility meter reading device 10 in accordance with the present invention. As indicated above and best shown in Figure 2, the particular preferred embodiment chosen to illustrate the invention includes a ring shaped housing 12 for slidably engaging a transparent cover C extending from a box B of a standard utility meter M. Advantageously, the shape of the meter reading device 10 allows for normal visual reading of the meter M. More specifically, a seal 14 attached to the housing 12 of the meter reading device 10 slidably engages the cover C of the meter M during installation. In accordance with an important aspect of the present invention, the seal 14 is further designed to prevent the meter reading device 10 from being removed from the meter M, and more specifically the cover C, without damaging the housing 12 and alerting the utility company.

As further shown in Figure 2, the seal 14 preferably includes a pair of hermetic seals 16, 18 designed in part to protect the meter reading device 10 from various environmental conditions such as rain and snow which might otherwise infiltrate the device 10 damaging the components. The seals 16, 18 also prevent debris from lodging between the housing 12 and the cover C preventing accurate monitoring of the meter M. The first seal 16 of the seal pair engages the cover C adjacent the meter box B and the second seal 18 is positioned outwardly from the first seal 16 a distance sufficient to allow unobstructed monitoring of the meter M by a sensor 20. As further shown in Figure 2 and in accordance with the broadest aspects of the present invention, the distance between the first and second seals 16, 18 may vary and need only be sufficient to allow an optical signal SI to pass therebetween.

The sensor 20 is mounted within the housing 12 and monitors the rotations of the meter disk D. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the sensor 20 includes an optical infra-red or visible spectrum transmitter 26 and receiver 28 positioned on opposing sides of the rotatable disk D. The transmitter 26 and receiver 28 are preferably mounted on a pair of circuit boards 23, 25. As one possible alternative, it is contemplated that a single semi-circular circuit board could be utilized, if desired. During operation, the optical transmitter 26 generates and transmits the optical signal SI toward the rotatable disk D. Preferably, the optical signal S 1 is modulated to reduce the transient effect of sunlight or light from other optical signal sources. The optical receiver 28 is positioned to receive portions S2 of the transmitted optical signal SI passing through an aperture A in the rotating meter disk D (shown by action arrow F in Figure 2). Upon receipt of each optical signal portion S2, the optical receiver 28 generates a signal indicative of each disk rotation. Each of such signals is communicated to a processor 34 also mounted on one of the circuit boards 23, 25 within the housing 12. Operating power is provided to the meter reading device 10 in the present preferred embodiment through a power lead 29 extending from the bottom of the housing 12 and connected to a low voltage transformer T positioned within the meter box B. It is further contemplated that the meter reading device 10 may alternatively operate on solar power or power available through a telephone line.

Control of the sensor 20, and more specifically control of the transmitting and receiving of optical signals SI and S2, is provided by the processor 34 in accordance with source code stored in flash memory 36. In the preferred embodiment, the processor 34 is a single chip Atmel AT90S2313 series microprocessor. The preferred processor contains reset logic, 2K bytes of flash ROM for storing the source code, 32 bytes of register storage, 128 bytes of non-volatile EEPROM for storage of data during a power loss, and a 16 bit timer. It should be understood, however, that other processors, memory devices, and timers known in the art may be combined in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. Advantageously, the preferred processor 34 is selected to accommodate several tasks associated with the monitoring and reporting of the power consumption information.

For example, the processor 34 generates and controls the periodic transmission of a power consumption signal to a location external of the housing 12. In the present preferred embodiment, for example, information representative of the number of rotations of the meter disk D is transmitted to a utility company in the form of a transmit packet of information. The preferred transmit packet includes a total of 14 bytes of information. As defined in Table 1 below, the transmit packet includes an eight byte meter reading device identification number, a four byte meter count indicating the number of rotations of the meter disk D, and a one byte error code and check sum.

Table 1: Transmit Packet Definition

Each byte of the transmit packet is preferably transmitted by the meter reading device 10 as frequency shift keyed (FSK) tones. In the present preferred embodiment, the FSK tones are generated by the processor 34 and transmitted over a standard non-designated telephone line. More specifically, four cycles of a 1200 Hertz tone are used for a logic 0 and 8 cycles of a 2400 Hertz tone are used for a logic 1. Each tone burst is 3.28 milliseconds in length followed by 3.72 milliseconds of silence. Accordingly, a complete bit is transmitted in 7 milliseconds which results in a bit rate of 140 bits per second or 17.5 bytes per second. A complete byte is sent using 8 tones transmitting the least significant bit (0) first.

The preferred processor 34 also monitors the period of time between successive transmissions of transmit packets. Preferably, this is accomplished utilizing the 16 bit timer and an internal count-down subroutine capable of accurately monitoring months, days, hours, minutes and seconds. As shown in Figure 3, the ability to monitor time allows a host system 40, described in detail below, to systematically receive transmit packets from any number of meter reading devices 10, - 10_n at predetermined times.

Additionally, the preferred processor 34 is capable of accessing the telephone line at the predetermined time. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the processor 34 electronically takes the telephone off hook and listens for a dial tone over a period of three seconds. If no dial tone is present, the processor 34 electronically places the telephone on hook and waits another predetermined period of time (e.g., 10 minutes) before repeating these steps. Importantly, the process of electronically taking the telephone off hook and listening does not interfere with normal use of the telephone. Therefore, the meter reading device 10 to host system 40 communication process is not noticed by telephone users. Once access to the telephone line is established, the processor 34 dials a designated telephone number and connects to the host system 40 through an interface unit 42. Preferably, the interface unit 42 answers the phone on the first ring. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that such communications can also be accomplished utilizing industry standard dual tone multiple frequency DTMF or modem based telephony methods.

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the host system 40 consists of the interface unit 42 and a standard computer 44, such as a personal computer. The preferred computer 44 will utilize a windows based operating system (e.g., WINDOWS 98 or WINDOWS 2000) running a host software package. The preferred interface unit 42 and its source code are of a type generally known in the art to provide connectivity to one or more telephone lines. The preferred interface unit 42 has, for example, four telephone line connection ports PI - P4 (e.g., RJ-11) and a single serial communications port P5 for communicating with the host computer 44. A typical host computer 44 can receive power consumption information from at least 3,600 meter reading devices per hour. Telephone calls to the host system 40 for reporting the power consumption information are normally scheduled to occur only between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. This 8 hour period allows the host system 40 to receive power consumption information from up to 28,800 meter reading devices. Accordingly, a single host computer 44 can receive data from up to 806,400 meter reading devices in a 28 day month. Clearly, the ability to receive power consumption information of the present preferred host system 40 can be expanded to accommodate any number of meter reading devices. This is accomplished by either expanding the period of time during which calls are received, by adding additional interface unit and computer combinations (not shown for clarity) as needed, or by utilizing improving interface unit and/or computer technology.

Once connected to the host system 40, the processor 34 transmits the transmit packet, described in detail above, to the interface unit 42. In the present preferred embodiment, each transmit packet is received by the interface unit 42 and the one byte checksum is verified to insure the integrity of the transmission. Once the integrity of the transmit packet is verified, the interface unit 42 acknowledges a correct or incorrect checksum indicating a good or bad transmission by transmitting a verification message to the processor 34 of the meter reading device 10. In the event that the transmit packet is somehow corrupted, resulting in an incorrect checksum, the processor 34 resends the transmit packet. This transmission process will continue until a good transmission occurs or, in the present embodiment, until ten attempts have been made. Following the tenth unsuccessful attempt, the meter reading device 10 ends the communication session by hanging up and resetting the internal count to 1 day, 0 hours, 0 minutes, 0 seconds. This period of time is preferred to allow the host system 40 to log unsuccessful attempts for analysis by a host operator. If the host operator is unable to detect and correct a particular system problem preventing proper transmission of the power consumption information, the meter reading device 10 may ultimately need to be replaced. Necessarily, at the time of replacement of a device 10, the present power consumption information will be manually noted and reported by the technician.

For each transmit packet, the interface unit 42 in the present preferred embodiment creates a host transmit packet, defined in Table 2 below. Specifically, the interface unit 42 adds a byte count, a line identification number, and a good/bad transmission indicator to the front end of each transmit packet. The composite host transmit packet is then sent to the host computer 44.

Table 2: Host Transmit Packet

In the present preferred embodiment, the host computer 44 processes the host transmit packet extracting the power consumption information and creates a host response packet for transmission back to the interface unit 42 and meter reading device 10. As defined in Table 3 below, a byte count and a line identification number corresponding to those provided with the host transmit packet are attached to meter reading device reset information to form the host response packet. The line identification number is used by the interface unit 42 to identify the appropriate meter reading device 10, - 10_n to contact.

TABLE 3: Host Response Packet

Upon receipt of the host response packet, the interface unit 42 sends the reset information to the selected meter reading device 10. Advantageously, the reset information allows the host computer 44 to continuously control and update the meter reading device 10. Specifically, the host response packet controls when the meter reading device 10 is to report the next transmit packet of information to the host system 40 and to which telephone number the next contact will be made. This provides a simplistic manner in which to control and update each meter reading device 10 with any changes in the host system 40. These changes may include the host system telephone number or the addition of a new additional interface unit 42_n and/or host computer (not shown).

Upon receipt of the host response packet by the meter reading device 10, the checksum is verified to insure the integrity of the transmission. Once the integrity of the response packet is verified, the meter reading device 10 acknowledges a correct or incorrect checksum indicating a good or bad transmission by transmitting a verification signal to the interface unit 42.

The interface unit 42 then further acknowledges the success or failure of the transmission of the response packet to the meter reading device 10 by sending an acknowledgment (ACK/NAK) packet to the host computer 40. The acknowledgment packet will be one of two four byte packets depending on the checksum verification signal as defined in Tables 4 and 5 below.

Table 4: Successful Transmit Reply (ACK)

Table 5: Unsuccessful Transmit Reply (NAK)

In the event of corruption of the response packet resulting in an incorrect checksum, the interface unit 42 will resend the response packet. In addition, the interface unit 42 sends a NAK acknowledgment packet to the host computer 44. Following three unsuccessful transmission attempts, the meter reading device 10 will hang up and reset its internal count down timer to 1 day, 0 hours, 0 minutes, 0 seconds.

Alternatively, if the checksum is correct verifying a good transmission of the host response packet, the communication session is complete and the meter reading device 10 and the interface unit 42 each disconnect. This terminates the communication session between the host system 40 and the meter reading device 10. Advantageously, the entire session takes less than 4 seconds which includes processing time by the host computer 44 between transmit and response packets, ring time, and connection time. All interface unit 42 to host computer 44 communications are preferably performed using standard asynchronous serial communications at 19,200 baud using no parity, 8 data bits, and one stop bit (N-8-1). As briefly mentioned above, additional interface units 42_n may be connected to a second communications port of the host computer 44 (e.g., COM2 port) or to additional host computers for increased operational capacity. Communication between the host computer 44 to the electric utility main computer (not shown) will be accommodated on a one-to-one basis depending on the needs of the individual electric utility company.

In accordance with the preferred method of the present invention, the first step in obtaining the power consumption information from a standard public utility meter is installing the meter reading device 10 onto the transparent cover C of the utility meter M. Specifically, the seal 14 which preferably includes a pair of hermetic seals 16, 18 slidably engages the cover C in an easy one step installation. In the preferred embodiment wherein an aperture in the meter disk D is relied upon, the optical sensor 20 including transmitter 26 and receiver 28 should be positioned within +/-5 degrees of a plane substantially perpendicular to the plane of the meter disk D for the best results. Of course, alternate embodiments (e.g., monitoring a mark on the meter disk D) may require a different optical sensor 20 and different placement and orientation of the meter reading device 10. Advantageously, the installed device 10 does not interfere with the visual reading of the meter.

Once the meter reading device 10 is installed onto the meter cover C, the device 10, and more specifically the sensor 20 within the device, senses the number of rotations of the utility meter disk D. The processor 34 receives a signal generated by the sensor 20 and indicative of each disk rotation or power consumption information, and stores the information in memory. Last, a power consumption signal is periodically transmitted to a location external of the meter reading device 10.

The installing step further includes connecting a pair of leads 29 and 31 which extend from the meter reading device 10 to a low power transformer T and a telephone interface box (not shown), respectively. The low power transformer T is preferably placed within the meter box B and connected directly to the main residential service line in order to provide the desired voltage to the meter reading device. Conveniently, the residential telephone interface box is typically located near the utility meter M at most residential and commercial buildings. Advantageously, it is contemplated that the entire installation takes less than fifteen minutes to complete including the recordation of the pertinent information about the meter M, such as the current meter reading and serial number.

The present preferred sensor 20, mounted within the housing 12, includes an optical infra-red or visible spectrum transmitter 26 and receiver 28 positioned on opposing sides of the rotatable disk D for monitoring the rotations. During the monitoring step, the optical transmitter 26 generates and transmits the optical signal SI toward the rotatable disk D. The optical receiver 28 is positioned to intermittently receive portions of the transmitted optical signal S2 passing through aperture A of the disk D. Upon receipt of each intermittent signal portion S2, the optical receiver 28 generates a signal indicative of each disk rotation.

The processor 34 receives the sensor signals and in accordance with another step of the present inventive method stores the number of disk D rotations in memory. At a predetermined time, the processor 34 accesses the telephone line and transmits the power consumption signal as a transmit packet (see Table 1) to the interface unit 42 of the host system 40. Upon verifying the check sum, the interface unit 42 acknowledges a good or bad transmission by further transmitting a verification message to the processor 34. For each transmit packet, the interface unit 42 creates a host transmit packet (see Table 2) for forwarding to the host computer 44. The host computer 44 processes the host transmit packet and creates a host response packet (see Table 3) including reset and update information. The host response packet is forwarded to the interface unit 42 and, in turn, to the specified meter reading device 10 thus alerting the processor 34 to the desired time of the next transmission, and updating the telephone number of the host interface 42.

In summary, the results and advantages of the present invention can now be fully understood. The meter reading device 10 includes a ring shaped housing 12 for slidably engaging a transparent cover C extending from a box B of a utility meter M. Advantageously, the shape of the meter reading device 10 provides for easy installation/retrofitting on existing utility meters while not interfering with the normal visual reading of the meter M. More specifically, a seal 14 attached to the housing 12 slidably engages the cover C of the meter M during installation. The seal 14 guards against weather conditions and, at the same time, prevents tampering with the meter reading device 10 without damaging the housing 12 and alerting the utility company. Additionally, in the present preferred embodiment, the meter reading device 10 communicates with the host system 40 of the utility company through processor 34 over standard telephone lines. As a result, the overall cost of manufacturing and operating the meter reading device is very efficient and minimized.

The foregoing description of a preferred embodiment of the invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiment was chosen and described to provide the best illustration of the principles of the invention and its practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as is suited to the particular use contemplated. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly, legally, and equitably entitled.

Claims

1. An electric meter reading device for installation on a standard

public utility meter having an extending cover and a rotatable disk for

monitoring power consumption and transmitting the consumption via telephone

lines comprising:

a ring shaped housing supported by and slidably engaging the

transparent cover of the utility meter;

a sensor mounted within said housing for monitoring the

rotations of the disk indicative of power consumption and for generating

signals in response thereto; a processor mounted within said housing for receiving the sensor

signals and generating a power consumption signal for transmission; and

a telephone interface in communication with said processor for

connecting to a telephone line for transmitting the power consumption signal to

a location external of said housing.

2. The electric meter reading device of Claim 1, wherein is further provided a seal attached to said housing and slidably engaging the cover during installation, said seal preventing removal of said housing from said cover after installation.

3. The electric meter reading device of Claim 2, wherein said seal includes first and second seals, said first seal engaging the cover adjacent the meter box and said second seal positioned outwardly from said first seal such that said sensor monitors the rotations of the disk between said seals.

4. The electric meter reading device of Claim 1, wherein the rotatable disk includes an aperture; and

said sensor includes an optical transmitter for transmitting an optical signal toward the rotatable disk and the aperture and an optical receiver for receiving a portion of the optical signal transmitted by said optical transmitter and passing through the aperture of the disk.

5. The electric meter reading device of Claim 4, wherein said optical signal is an infra-red optical signal.

6. An electric meter reading device for installation on a standard public utility meter having a cover and a rotatable disk for monitoring power consumption and transmitting the consumption comprising:

a ring shaped housing supported by and slidably engaging the cover of the utility meter;

a sensor mounted within said housing for monitoring the rotations of the disk and for generating signals in response thereto; and

a processor mounted within said housing for receiving the sensor signals and generating a power consumption signal for transmission to a location external of said housing.

7. The electric meter reading device of Claim 6, further comprising a means for transmitting the power consumption signal to the location external of said housing.

8. The electric meter reading device of Claim 7, wherein is further provided a seal attached to said housing and slidably engaging the cover during installation, said seal preventing removal of said housing from said cover after installation.

9. The electric meter reading device of Claim 8, wherein said seal includes first and second seals, said first seal engaging the cover adjacent the meter box and said second seal positioned outwardly from said first seal such that said sensor monitors the rotations of the disk between said seals.

10. The electric meter reading device of Claim 7, wherein said transmitting means is a radio transmitter.

11. The electric meter reading device of Claim 7, wherein said transmitting means is an optical transmitter.

12. The electric meter reading device of Claim 7, wherein the power consumption signal includes a meter reading device identification number and a meter count indicative of the number of disk rotations.

13. A method for obtaining power consumption information from a standard public utility meter having a cover and a rotatable disk comprising the steps of:

installing a ring-shaped meter reading device onto the cover of the utility meter;

monitoring the rotations of the utility meter disk;

storing the monitored number of rotations of the disk in a memory as power consumption information;

periodically transmitting the power consumption information to a location external of said meter reading device.

14. The method for obtaining power consumption information of Claim 13, wherein the step of installing the ring-shaped meter reading device includes the steps of connecting the meter reading device to a power source; and

connecting the meter reading device to a telephone line.

15. The method for obtaining power consumption information of Claim 14, further including the step of monitoring the period of time between successive transmitting steps.

16. The method for obtaining power consumption information of Claim 15, further including the step of generating a transmit packet of information indicative of the power consumption information as a series of frequency shifted keyed tones.

17. The method for obtaining power consumption information of Claim 13, further including the steps of receiving a response packet of information from a host system at the location external of the meter reading device; and

resetting the period of time between successive transmitting steps in accordance with the response packet of information.

18. A system for monitoring metered power consumption in a power network comprising:

at least one electric meter reading device slidably engaging at least one standard public utility meter having a cover and a rotatable disk for monitoring power consumption and transmitting the consumption; and

a host system including at least one host computer located at a location external of said at least one electric meter reading device.

19. The monitoring system of Claim 18, wherein said at least one electric meter reading device includes a ring-shaped housing for slidably engaging said cover, a sensor mounted within said housing for monitoring the rotations of the disk indicative of power consumption and for generating signals in response thereto, and a means for transmitting the power consumption signals to said at least one host computer.

20. The monitoring system of Claim 19, wherein said transmitting means includes a telephone interface in communication with said meter reading device for connecting to a telephone line for transmitting the power consumption signals; and

said host system includes at least one interface unit in communication with said at least one host computer for receiving the power consumption signals, verifying the integrity of the signals, and transmitting the signals to said at least one host computer.