iPad, iPhone, Droid, Tablet, Video games, and Smart Meters – are signs of the times and can we live without them? WiFi and cellular technology may be the most devastating challenge to our health and that industry, government and consumers do not like to acknowledge. Should we have ‘Smart Schools’ or do we prefer “Safe Schools?”
And what about the infux of Smart Meters within our communities. Were California residents correct in their concerns about fires?
As defined by Citizen’s Utility Board, “a “Smart grid” is an umbrella term for Internet-based upgrades to our “power grid” — the lines, wires, and power stations that deliver electricity to our doorstep. Our current system consists of one-way communication, with electricity that was literally generated a second ago simply being thrown onto the grid for our consumption. A smart grid, however, is based on two-way communication, potentially allowing homes to automatically alert the utility of costly problems and consumers to adjust their power usage at key times to cut their costs. If done correctly, a smarter grid could save Illinois consumers billions of dollars by reducing power outages and cutting energy waste. But the jury’s still out on whether the benefits of a smart grid would outweigh the costs. The state and consumer advocates want to answer that question with a ComEd pilot project.”
What exactly is a smart meter? A typical, analog electric meter has tiny mechanical dials that someone—you or a utility worker—has to read each month (or bi-monthly) in order to report the home’s measured power usage. There are no dials on a Smart Meter. It has a digital face, and unlike analog meters, it can send—automatically and almost instantly—your power usage to the utility. Some digital meters are not “smart.” If its wireless, it will say “FCC ID” on the face of the meter.
The digital Smart Meter records electric usage data as often as every minute or as infrequently as every hour around the clock. Naperville (IL), in its search for a Smart Meter vendor, requested that some residential Smart Meters be able to read at 5 minute intervals and other residential meters read every 15 minutes. The Smart Meter transmits the data collected via a wireless radio frequency (RF) network back to the utility. According to documentation from a California utility (PG&E), a typical meter uses its wireless communications (for any one of multiple functions, including time synchronization, pings/wellness checks, and network “chatter”) every 6-8 seconds. Meters closer to a Gatekeeper can be communicating even more frequently. Non-residential buildings, such as businesses, churches, and SCHOOLS, will communicate at least as often. Visit www.ihfglobal.com – EMF to learn more!
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