DESIGN, IMPLEMENTATION AND SIMULATION OF PREPAID METER, THEFT MONITORING SYSTEM WITH SMS ALERT

1.1 Introduction

An electricity meter, electric meter, electrical meter, or energy meter is a device that measures the amount of electric energy consumed by a residence, a business, or an electrically powered device. A Prepaid energy meter is an instrument used to measure electrical supply consumption of electrical appliances in private homes or business areas. Energy meters are rated in kilowatt-hour (kWh). The kilowatt-hour is the amount of electricity energy consumed by a heap of one kilowatt over a time of 60 minutes. Energy meter fundamentally comprises of voltage coils and current loops. The voltage loop measures the instantaneous voltage (volts) while the present coils measure the instantaneous current (amperes) and the result of the instantaneous voltage, system. This electrical system enables both electricity consumers and the utility company to remotely screen their electricity utilization and consumption. It additionally permits the client to remotely pay or recharge their meter.

As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Limitation of the study and Definition of technical terms.

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1.2 Background of Study

Nowadays, the energy consumption and energy distribution has become a big subject for discussion because of huge energy theft. Theft in this case refers to a deliberate attempt to steal considerable amount of energy by ensuring no/low energy recording in the measuring device. Hence, there is the need to think in this line and a solution has to be proffered. According to Sule (2010), Power System is described as a network that provides regions, Industries and homes with electrical energy. He also stated that electricity generation, transmission and distribution are three stages of delivering electricity to consumers. This power system is known as the grid and can be broadly divided into the generators that supply the power, the transmission system that carries the power from the generating centers to the load centers and the distribution system that feeds the power to nearby homes and industries (Sule, 2010).

The distribution system is a part of power systems which is dedicated to delivering electrical energy to the end user. The planning and the design of electrical supply system are everyday task for engineers in the electric utilities companies. The goal of power distribution planning is to satisfy the growing and changing load demand within operational constraints and with minimal costs Sharma, et al., (2008). It is necessary for Power Distribution Company to update their customer’s information that corresponds to their electrical attributes. The database contains useful information that shows linkages with the distribution transformers, feeder and substation. It is also important to design a system that monitor the accuracy of consumption at the customer end. The design of smart system improves system reliability, hence encourages investments to the industry.

Electrical distribution improvement has many approaches ranging from feeder optimization, phase balancing and costing model for distribution planning. All these are ideas and efforts by many scholars in the field of electronics to improve distribution. In Nigeria, the power distribution has constituted seventy percent of electrical utility problem Titus, et al., (2013). Due to inadequacies in planning and use of wrong solution for an identified problem, it is obvious to note that the major problem of electricity utility comes from distribution of bulk power that have been transmitted over a long distance and the reason for this is that distribution demands are not known and well managed. Against the back drop that consumers of electricity are not identified based on their location, it is impossible to estimate the accurate demand of electricity for customers in such area. Another major problem is identified as commercial losses that reduces revenue, hence discourages investment into the system (Damian et al., 2015).

The use of estimated load has also reduced the system reliability. This is a problem that cannot be solved overnight. However, with the right approach, solution is certain. The SMS (short message service) alert can provide the solution in the management of utility by way of detecting commercial loss which is a function of electrical theft.

The system is efficient and effective against corruption since the energy consumptions can be estimated remotely by the electricity company and be cross-checked with revenue earned over the period of time. This research combines the power electronic meter with a communication network which in this case is a SMS network and email network. The Remote electricity billing is a unique concept, in which the Prepaid Meter, Theft Monitoring System with SMS Alert will help improve accountability, organize and ease payment for electricity in Nigeria; this will help the electricity management board collect the consumed units’ data from energy consumers to help improve how electricity is shared. Since each consumer is provided with a unique energy meter, which is having a GSM modem, microcontroller unit and a display unit. Energy subscriber can easily pay on the online electricity system without having to queue in banks, and this system will allow consumers to pay for what they can consume or afford.

The expansion in power consumption and the cost ramifications in per kWh have brought about the use of efficient energy appliances and monitoring. Consequently, metering is defined as a method for estimating and monitoring energy consumption and utilization. The Nigerian power segment is confronted with inadequate, unorganized billing and consumer relations organization. Energy Tariff billing and collection has been a major problem in Nigeria even with the introduction of prepaid meters. The procedure of payment is cumbersome and stressful as electricity buyers have to go and pay in banks and then take bank tellers to power control utility office to confirm their capacity payment before they can recharge their meter cards.

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1.3 Statement of Problem

Investigation revealed that electricity consumers are often faced with the problems of queuing in banks and finding it difficult to pay their prepaid electricity bills, even after successfully payments, they have to take their payment receipts to Power control offices to get their prepaid meter recharged; this causes delay and is a drawback in our communities. Also companies using electricity for production purposes, have a large amount of loss when their electricity is disconnected, when the allocated energy is being exhausted.

Current electrical distribution system in Nigeria requires intensive approach in order to deliver quality energy to the customer. Energy losses are the major factors hindering the delivering of electrical energy. The losses are categorized as technical and commercial losses. High technical distribution losses in the system are primarily due to inadequate investments over the years for system improvement works, which has elements like transformers and conductors, and lack of adequate reactive power support (Thakur, 2004).

The commercial losses are mainly due to metering efficiency, power theft, pilferages under billing and sharp practices of distribution staffs. Therefore, it is important to have an effective and efficient online system for such purposes via internet platform with consideration to seamless payments of prepaid electricity fees. This research presents the design and functional significance of a computerized application with online capability called the Prepaid Meter, Theft Monitoring System with SMS Alert.

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1.4 Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of the study is to design, implement and simulate Prepaid Meter, Theft Monitoring System with SMS Alert. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows to design and develop an application software that will:

• Send energy consumption information to the power utility office;
• Reduce the pilferage of energy to a considerable extent;
• Prevent the illegal usage of electrical power;
• Detect the theft of electrical energy; and
• Provide a vivid understanding of the microcontroller as well as it’s interfacing to other components

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1.5 Significance of Study

Electricity is a very essential form of energy in today’s world. Humans cannot imagine living without electricity. It is used for various essential purposed like home appliance, production of things we use for our daily living, industrial purposes, irrigation purposes and so on. But electricity is exhaustible source of energy.

Due to the prevalence of meter tampering and energy theft cases, the need to reason in this line and come up with solutions arose. Presently, in the country, there are no measures in place to curtail this problem. Hence the microcontroller based power theft identifier was invented. This system, once implemented will drastically reduce if not totally eliminate the problem of energy theft in the country.

This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.

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1.6 Scope of Study

The scope of this research is focused on the Design, Implementation and Simulation of Prepaid Meter, Theft Monitoring System with SMS Alert.

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1.7 Limitations of the Study

During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:

1. Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
2. Poor Electricity Supply: As the system requires electricity to function, the absence of power supply will hinder its operation. This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
3. Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet).

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1.8 Definition of Terms

Electricity:

Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge.

Electricity Meter:

An electricity meter, electric meter, electrical meter, or energy meter is a device that measures the amount of electric energy consumed by a residence, a business, or an electrically powered device.

Payment:

The action or process of paying someone or something or of being paid.

Energy:

Power derived from the utilization of physical or chemical resources, especially to provide light and heat or to work machines.

SMS (Short Message Service):

SMS is a text messaging service component of most telephone, Internet, and mobile device systems.

Email:

Messages distributed by electronic means from one computer user to one or more recipients via a network.