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Theory

Time allocation: 10 min.

Measuring energy consumption​

Today there is a strong drive to cut the consumption of electricity, gas and water as far as possible. With IoT, energy consumption can be monitored and regulated online.

Measuring electricity consumption​

Electric current can be measured in two basic ways:

  1. Direct measurement: with an ammeter, which measures the electric current flowing in a circuit.
  2. Indirect measurement: instead of the current itself, another physical quantity is measured, and the current and consumption are calculated from it.

Ways to measure electric current indirectly:​

Pulse monitoring​

Another way to monitor consumption online is to connect to electricity, gas or water meters and transmit the number of pulses these meters generate as the medium is consumed.

The sensors most often used for pulse monitoring:​

  • LED sensor: picks up the pulses of the LED on the meter, which blinks to show consumption
  • Magnetic sensor: picks up the pulses created each time a magnet on the meter's units dial turns
Pulse sensor probe on a long grey cable ending in bare wires with a terminal connector