Communication technologies for smart metering infrastructure

Major components of smart metering infrastructure are smart meter, communication network, meter data collection system and meter data management system. Smart meter measures energy usage at different time intervals and transmit measured data to utility through communications technology networks. This infrastructure shall provide a reliable, efficient and secure power supply to the consumers and reduce the cost of electricity. In this paper, we review smart metering infrastructure model, smart metering infrastructure communication network options and outline smart metering infrastructure challenges.