Experimental study and design of smart energy meter for the smart grid

The demand for energy is increasing as a result of the growth in both population and industrial development. To improve the energy efficiency, consumers need to be more aware of their energy consumption. In recent years, utilities have started developing new electric energy meters which are known as smart meters. A smart meter is a digital energy meter that measures the consumption of electrical energy and provides other additional information as compared to the traditional energy meter. The aim is to provide the consumer and supplier an easy way to monitor the energy. Smart meters are considered a key component of the smart grid as these will allow more interactivity between the consumers and the provider. Smart meters will enable two-way and real-time communication between the consumers and the provider. Considering the increase of electricity demand in Saudi Arabia, smart meters can decrease the overall energy consumption. This paper presents the development of a GSM and ZigBee based smart meter. This meter can measure the energy and send the information to the service provider, who can store this information and notify the consumer through SMS messages or through the internet.