Smart meter
utility meter that is digitally connected to a central backend
A smart meter is an electronic device that records information—such as consumption of electric energy, voltage levels, current, and power factor—and communicates the information to the consumer and electricity suppliers. Advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) differs from automatic meter reading (AMR) in that it enables two-way communication between the meter and the supplier.
Description
The term smart meter often refers to an electricity meter, but it also may mean a device measuring natural gas, water or district heating consumption. More generally, a smart meter is an electronic device that records information such as consumption of electric energy, voltage levels, current, and power factor. Smart meters communicate the information to the consumer for greater clarity of consumption behavior, and electricity suppliers for system monitoring and customer billing. Smart meters typically record energy near real-time, and report regularly, in short intervals throughout the day. Smart meters enable two-way communication between the meter and the central system. Smart meters may be part of a smart grid, but do not themselves constitute a smart grid.
Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) differs from Automated Meter Reading (AMR) in that it enables two-way communication between the meter and the supplier. Communications from the meter to the network may be wireless, or via fixed wired connections such as power-line communication (PLC).
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Smart meter” as utility meter that is digitally connected to a central backend. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as utility meter that is digitally connected to a central backend. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 28, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1630602. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Smart meter” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.