Itron PETRC User Manual
Installation Guide
Submetering System
Palladium Building Project
Seattle, WA
October 7, 1999
Submetering Installation Guide
Table of Contents
1.1 Overview
1.2 FCC Regulatory Information
1.3 Purpose
1.4 Scope
1.5 Basic Components
1.5.1 Pet Modules
1.5.2 Network PETRC Units
1.6 Trouble Shooting the System Components
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Submetering Installation Guide
1.1 Overview
This document is intended to guide the user through the initial set-up of a Water
Gas and Electric Submetering System. The system is made up of usually one or
more PETRC units and up to 600 PET modules.
PETRC units are a receiving device that collects information from the PET
modules via Radio Frequencies in the 902 to 928 MHz band and stores this
information for later retrival by various “head end” software. The device is
powered by 110 Volts AC and incorporates a 3dBd gain antenna.
The PET module is a transmit only device that transmits its consumption
information once each 10 to 15 minutes. The consumption information is
gathered continuously from any pulse output device including Water, Gas and
Electric. The device is for indoor use in a non-condensing environment. The unit
has a battery life of greater than 4 years.
This document is intended to guide the user through the initial set-up of a Water
Gas and Electric Submetering System. The system is made up of usually one or
more PETRC units and up to 600 PET modules.
PETRC units are a receiving device that collects information from the PET
modules via Radio Frequencies in the 902 to 928 MHz band and stores this
information for later retrival by various “head end” software. The device is
powered by 110 Volts AC and incorporates a 3dBd gain antenna.
The PET module is a transmit only device that transmits its consumption
information once each 10 to 15 minutes. The consumption information is
gathered continuously from any pulse output device including Water, Gas and
Electric. The device is for indoor use in a non-condensing environment. The unit
has a battery life of greater than 4 years.Overview
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Submetering Installation Guide
1.2 FCC Regulatory Information
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B
digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed
to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential
installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency
energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may
cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no
guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this
equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which
can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged
to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
• Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
• Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which
the receiver is connected.
• Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions:
1. This device may not cause harmful interference, and
2. This device must accept any interference received, including interference
that may cause undesired operation.
Service Requirements
The PET modules and PETRC units have no user serviceable parts.
In the event of equipment malfunction, all repairs should be performed by Itron. It
is the responsibility of users requiring service to report the need for service to our
company. For service call 1-800-635-5461 and ask for the Customer Service
Department.
Caution changes or modifications not expressly approved by Itron, Inc. could void
the user’s authority to operate this equipment.
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Submetering Installation Guide
1.3 Purpose
This document is intended to aid installation personnel involved in the installation
and operation of the SubMetering network’s PETRC unit and PET module and
become familiar with the details of the de sign. This document describes how the
units operates as a system and does not detail the specified limits or the
performance.
1.4 Scope
This document covers the Revision 1 of system hardware. Functional blocks are
broken down into component or group of components and explanations of how
they operate with each other, their inputs and outputs are given.
1.5 Basic Components of Itron’s Submetering Network
1.5.1 PET Modules
Itron’s Meter End Point RF Devices or PET modules encode consumption and
tamper information, then transmit this data and other information via RF to the
network PETRC units. The PET modules for Electric meters are normally
installed under the glass of standard meters and do not require battery power;
the Devices for Gas and Water meters are self-contained low-power units,
powered by long-life batteries. PET modules can be installed by the meter
manufacturer during the manufacturing process or easily retrofitted into most
existing meters.
1.5.2 Network PETRC Units
The network PETRC unit receives Water, Electric and Gas usage data via RF
from the PET modules, and transmits the data to the head-end MV-RS meter
reading software via telephone or cellular telephone. Two types of PETRC units
are utilized in the network: the base PETRC unit and relay PETRC units. The
base PETRC unit is similar to all other PETRC units except it is equipped with a
telephone connection. The telephone connection can be either a standard line or
a cellular type.
An optional cellular phone interconnect can be utilized on either a temporary or
permanent basis depending on the application. As a temporary option, the
varying lead time of telephone installation can be circumvented by utilizing the
cellular phone interconnect option until a cost-effective solution can be installed.
In large scale roll-outs, often in areas large enough to span multiple telephone
companies’ service territories, a single contact within one telephone company is
often not available, which inevitably results in delays. With the cellular telephone
option, these delays can be eliminated. Additionally, the cellular telephone
option can be migrated from new installation to new installation as hard-wired
telephone services are eventually installed at each site.
The base PETRC unit is generally mounted at a central point in a apartment
complex where ease of interconnection to power and telephone lines are
available. This base unit can monitor and retain data on up to 600 Water,
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