Field Performance Test Using Long-Range Communication Device for Smart Meter Communication Module in Indonesia

Backhaul communication between smart meters and data concentrator units (DCU) determines Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) performance from the end user side before data being sent to the data center. The selected radio frequency (RF) technology must be able to send data from a close to very far distance, has low power consumption, and could be able to work on free frequency bands to reduce the total operating costs. In this study, Long-Range (LR) Communication Device is proposed as backhaul communication technology. LR offers data communication with advantages in the form of data transmission capabilities with very long distances, low power consumption, and operates in Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) bands. LR field experiment has been done in this study. The successful rate, data rate test, and power consumption measurement have been conducted to find the requirement of AMI system and the utility standard.