The SMARTY BZ will be available in various product versions: the "Basic Meter SLP" serves as a regular electronic household meter, while the "Basic Meter RLM" is eligible for the industrial sector. It is possible to remotely install firmware updates via the SMGw onto the meter (Firmware Over The Air). In addition, so-called grid functions can be activated remotely by a license purchase. Grid functions enable accessing network-operation-relevant information, such as frequency or voltage. Moreover, the "Basic Meter SLP" can be upgraded with RLM functions remotely. The device presented at the E-world is the "Basic Meter SLP" variant. From the second quarter of 2018, samples of the "Basic Meter SLP will be available for the German market.
“We are very proud of the development of our new product”, reports Martin Zangl, product manager for „Basic Meters“ at Sagemcom Dr. Neuhaus GmbH, “ With the development of the basic meter, we can now provide our customers with the entire infrastructure for smart metering systems: the SMARTY BZ 3-phase meter, the BSI-compliant SMARTY IQ smart meter gateway, a BSI-compliant control box SMARTY IQ-IO, and also a proven gateway admin solution.“
A smart metering system (iMSys) consists of a digital meter, a so-called modern metering device, and a smart meter gateway (SMGw), which serves as a communication unit in the iMSys. The SMARTY BZ meters power consumption electronically. Connected to the SMGw, the generated values can be transmitted securely to authorised market participants, such as the metering point operator. Even end consumers can use an interface in the SMGw to visualise their own power consumption, for example, through apps. The aim of an iMSys is to promote the digitisation of the energy transition and, hence, the idea of a smart grid, by intelligently linking energy generation and consumption within the distribution network.