Traditional energy meters are mostly inline, meaning, the meter is in series with the circuit whose energy consumption it is monitoring. However, there is another type of energy meter that clamps onto the pipeline it must monitor, rather than break into the pipeline. This is an ultrasonic alternative and is specifically useful for energy management and billing applications that commercial, domestic, district, or shared cooling and heating systems use. Obviously, the clamp-on energy meter offers several advantages over its traditional in-line counterpart, the most significant of them being easier installation, cost savings, and maintenance benefits.
For the efficient operation of new or existing buildings, it is necessary to identify the waste, optimize the use, and accurately monitor for billing the use of energy and water. Optimizing the consumption of water and energy is essential and crucial for any type of building, whether it is a housing or accommodation, school, hospital, condo, office block, or shopping center, in the private or public sector. Mostly, energy monitoring applications associate automatic meter readings with a third-party cloud provider, thereby allowing for ease of use and seamless integration. These new type of meters are also suitable or retrofitting older and traditional energy meters in existing buildings that mostly have limited drawings and old pipework.
Managing fluid consumption requires finding out what is flowing where. The clamp-on energy meters accomplish this very easily, as there is no need to drain down the system, shut it down, or cut into the existing pipework. Therefore, using clamp-on energy meters saves a lot of time and money when retrofitting existing buildings.
There are several benefits to using clamp-on energy meters. It is possible to clamp them on a wide range of pipes, and they provide cross-correlation flow measurement systems for accuracy. These meters come with an optional RS485 serial interface and a Modbus RTU slave. They feature a 1-MHz transducer that is powerful enough to measure through poor or old thick wall pipes and larger pipes.
These new energy meters are a clamp-on and non-invasive alternative to traditional in-line meter installation. They are simple to install, simply connect power, enter the inside diameter of the pipe, adjust the sensors, and finally, clamp it on the pipe. No special tools or skills are necessary. The installation provides dry servicing, minimum downtime, and maximum availability.
The non-invasive energy meters require little or no maintenance since they have no moving parts or sensors to wear out or require calibration. Therefore, they have a longer service life with very few repair requirements. Being generally less expensive for installing and maintaining than invasive meters, the non-invasive meters do not require cutting into pipes or installing additional sensors. As it is not necessary to cut into the pipe, the risk of leaks is very much reduced. This is especially important in applications where the fluid in the pipe is expensive or hazardous. Overall, non-invasive clamp-on energy meters are a cost-effective and effective solution for measuring the energy flow in a surprisingly wide range of applications.
These meters are very useful in various types of buildings, including residential buildings, schools, hospitals, and offices.
