hellow,

I want to do a project on Power Theft Detection/Indication for which I've searched web much but I haven't found anything interesting and the circuits that I've got are also not a perfect one. Please help me in this aspect and the project may also include Micro controller.

thank you in advance.

sravan

 

power theft detection for....?
Are you thinking from the perspective of the utility company or yourself?
What I mean is, are you trying to detect your neighbors stealing power from your own meter, or are you thinking of a way for the utility company to detect how many, and where, people throughout a city are stealing power?

 

Sir,

My aim is to do a small project that explains the power theft detection/identification in the distribution side (if possible in transmission to distribution too). I mean I must be able to say that how much of power is being theft and if possible where it is being theft. It's going to be my undergraduate project for fulfillment of my graduation degree.

And to be clear I consider a 230v power line and then it is fed to load and there will be some theft being done in the middle. And now my aim is to detect how much power is being theft and where it theft.And this applies from transmission to distribution too.

thank you.

 

It isn't hard. P=V*I

If the power you are sending does not match the power being received, then you look at losses, which are very consistent and do not vary. If there is more than that there is theft.

 

thank you Mr.Bill,

And I've a small doubt regarding your answer and it is as you said that just if the power does n't match at both the ends then we can conclude that there is a power theft. now what my question is if there are any faults in middle of the system such that there changes the readings in the meters then how we can conclude that the power has theft rather than fault occured. And I also have another doubt that what are the meter that are going to be used at both ends?

please do reply.
thank you.

 

Faults get repaired, as they cost money. A power company can detect a 100W light bulb inductively tapped from a high tension line. It is tried occasionally by some yahoo who has power lines crossing their property, and usually gets shut down quickly and the yahoo charged with theft of service (a real charge in this country).

You underestimate how predictable and precision the measurements are. This is not art, it is science. The instrumentation is very precise, even to a hobbiest. How many DVMs have you used? They are cheap and easy, now imagine what equipment where real money is spent is like.

 

If you want to find WHERE theft happens, you will need meters placed at intervals on the power line, where the thieves don't know about them or can't find them.

I would not be surprised if soon the residential meters are placed on the power poles and the billing information sent by radio or internet connection.

 

I would not be surprised if soon the residential meters are placed on the power poles and the billing information sent by radio or internet connection.

Have you not heard of smart meters? or did you mean "I would not be surprised if soon the residential meters are placed on the power poles and the billing information sent by radio or internet connection IN INDIA"?

 

I've heard of smart meters but I've never seen one. I wouldn't be surprised if soon they were actually being used, whether in U.S.A or India.

 

I had one on my last house and one on the house I live in now. In my area, they are now promoting pre-paid electric, no credit check, no contract. This is enabled by the smart meters which are sweeping the area.

 

I guess Houston (or Texas in general) is getting meters that we aren't getting in Florida (or India).

 

I guess Houston (or Texas in general) is getting meters that we aren't getting in Florida (or India).

I was looking for a map with little dots to give an indication of where smart meters are, showing hotspots. I didn't find that, but I found this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_meter#United_States

Centerpoint Energy in Houston, Texas, is currently in the deployment stage of installing smart meters to more than 2 million electricity customers in the Houston-Metro and Galveston service locations. Current estimated completion of CenterPoint Energy's smart meter deployment is 2012.[34] In October 2009, the U.S. Department of Energy awarded a $200 million dollar grant for use in deployment of Centerpoint Energy's smart meter network.[35]

...

Florida-based Florida Power & Light began installing smart meters in 2009 in the Miami-Dade area for residential customers. All customers are expected to be completed by 2013.[42] Individual counties are considering "opt-out" options, however, and to date, customers are being allowed to register on an "opt-out" registry in counties that have not been begun.

 

The Oncor Advanced Metering System (AMS) currently supports 15-minute-interval data, remote disconnects, and a Home Area Network (HAN) using ZigBee Smart Energy Protocol 1.0. The AMS supports text messages, pricing signals, and load control to home users...

Do you want to bet about whether the electric companies will put these control functions on a hackable network?
and I'll bet that the disconnect fees will not be reduced when nobody has to climb a ladder to shut off your service.

 

T
The Oncor Advanced Metering System (AMS) currently supports 15-minute-interval data, remote disconnects, and a Home Area Network (HAN) using ZigBee Smart Energy Protocol 1.0. The AMS supports text messages, pricing signals, and load control to home users...

Do you want to bet about whether the electric companies will put these control functions on a hackable network?
and I'll bet that the disconnect fees will not be reduced when nobody has to climb a ladder to shut off your service.

That's wierd. When I moved out of the old house with the smart meter, they were not able to turn off power remotely. They had to send a guy out. I know that they actually did send a guy out because I was there when he showed up.

with regards to the system being hackable: Right now, anybody with a pair of insulated cable cutters could come and perform an unauthorized disconnect. I've thought about doing it to my neighbors before when they were blaring Tejano music at 140dB while I try to rest up for the night shift.

 

With several million hackable meters in place, one person could switch off half a city.

 

With several million hackable meters in place, one person could switch off half a city.

DOH! oh yeah, that completely slipped my mind. LOL

 

thank you Mr.strantor

 

thank you Mr.12

 

thank you Mr.strantor

sure.... no problem. Did I say something particularly helpful? Was the keyword "smartmeter" enough?

 

Apparently we were discussing exactly what he needed.