Energy metering IC delivers highest accuracy, protects smart meters against tampering

NORWOOD, USA: Supporting customers around the world who are designing smart meters and implementing smart grid systems, Analog Devices Inc. has introduced an energy metering IC that enables smart meters to provide stronger protection against electricity theft, improve customer billing accuracy and reduce operating costs for utility companies.

The ADE7953 energy metering IC is designed for single-phase meter configurations and can accommodate the electrical needs of homes ranging from small apartments to large residences in which many appliances and electronic devices are used. The new product measures active, reactive and apparent energy along with rms voltage and current. It also provides neutral current measurements that help designers develop tamper-proof smart meters. Download the ADE7953 data sheet or order samples.

“The ADE7953 improves customer billing accuracy, which in turn lowers utility operating costs, such as customer service,” said Ronn Kliger, Energy Group director, Analog Devices. “The neutral current measurement offered by the new device enables designers to develop more tamper-resistant smart meters, which are invaluable to utility companies that are estimated to lose billions of revenue dollars worldwide each year due to electricity theft.”

By achieving less than 0.1 percent error for both active and reactive energy calculations over a dynamic range of 3000:1, the ADE7953 provides the industry’s highest accuracy for single-phase metering applications worldwide.

For neutral current, the device offers less than 0.1 percent error active and reactive energy over a 1000:1 dynamic range. Neutral current measurements enable meter tamper detection and improved billing accuracy. The new device also measures apparent energy along with rms voltage and current. Additionally, it provides waveform sampling, instantaneous power readings and power quality indications that include voltage sag, peak voltage and peak current.

The ADE7953 incorporates three sigma-delta ADCs (analog-to-digital converters) with a high accuracy metrology engine. Each input channel supports independent and flexible gain stages, making the ADE7953 energy metering IC suitable for use with a variety of current sensors, such as low value shunt resistors and current transformers. Two on-chip integrators also facilitate the use of di/dt sensors for current inputs.