EMPIR project presents successful resolution for erroneous smart meters

New standards & inference-immune meters will provide more accurate measurements of electricity consumption

The project

Digital smart meters can provide users with real-time, highly accurate measurements of electricity consumption. As such, 200 million smart meters have so far been rolled out across Europe.

However, some of these meters have been found to be erroneous and the main cause behind recent incorrect customer billings - despite passing inspections under the EU Measuring Instrument Directive. There is clearly a need to improve meter test methods and update existing standards.

EMPIR project ‘Electromagnetic Interference on Static Electricity Meters’ (17NRM02, MeterEMI) has developed new ways to test smart meter accuracy for electrical consumption, and project researchers have also employed interference-immune meter designs for on-site inspections to settle billing disputes. Project results aim to restore overall consumer confidence in smart meter readings.

The workshop

In April 2021, an online webinar was held to present the results of the ‘MeterEMI’ project as it approached the end of its programme. The webinar showcased the issues associated with static electricity meters, caused by conducted inference, as well as the resolution for these problems.

The meeting was attended by over 100 industry and standardisation experts from across Europe, resulting in interesting and involved discussions. Most importantly, the webinar highlighted the need to update international standards to ensure that electricity smart meters are immune to interference caused by connection to nearby chargers and other power electronic equipment – all of which can affect the readings given by certain meter designs.

The project provided recommendations for future international standards, and further discussions are still on-going with various working groups of key standardisation bodies such as the IEC, CENELEC, WELMEC and OIML, to determine the actions required for future standardisation.

To learn more about the project, you can see the workshop presentations here >>

This EMPIR project is co-funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme and the EMPIR Participating States

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