Water Meters - Remote I/O Possibility

[Corsair]

The Scadametrics people have a module that interfaces water meters to PLC protocols. It's called an Ethermeter. It can count pulses and has some I/O on it. We completed a project a few years ago that used an Ethermeter as a remote I/O thing on a well pump to control it from another location. It worked very well.

Now we are proposing an Ethermeter for a project counting pulses from a natural gas meter. It can be an alternative to using a small PLC in some cases.

It talks a variety of protocols including 2 versions of the officially non-existent Modbus UDP.

It requires some attention to detail to make sure it is right for the application but it may be another answer to fighting the chip shortage.

I do not sell Scadametrics equipment and I do not have any affiliation with the company.

 

[Old Man]

They is a BIG difference in "WATER and GAS", you would have to make sure the unit is "Class 1 Div 1" / "Explosion Proof" rated or it should not be use with GAS.

 

[Corsair]

The gas application is remotely located from the meter on the other side of intrinsic safety barriers.

 

[cardosocea]

They is a BIG difference in "WATER and GAS", you would have to make sure the unit is "Class 1 Div 1" / "Explosion Proof" rated or it should not be use with GAS.

There is also a big difference in assuming things without a risk assessment. Do you buy Class 1 Div1 kitchen appliances too?

 

[Old Man]

I did not assume anything! I made a "Safety" point that everyone should be aware of!

I work in Oil & Gas, and I see this everyday, people buy a device that is not rated for GAS use and put it behind a barrier, all that does is make the signal "Class 1 / Div 2".

That's why there is a BIG difference in price for a unit that is Class 1 / Div 1 rated and one that is NOT.

Maybe the assumtion is on the wrong end?

 

[OkiePC]

+1 for the Ethermeter. We used one on a site that had an existing meter using Sensus protocol when we upgraded all the other sites to Micrologix 1400 telemetry RTUs. This Ethermeter looks and acts like a Micrologix on the Ethernet radio network and is able to read the meter total and calculate flow rate.

On another job with a serial radio network, the state started requiring them to record flow rates and totals at water wells. The Ethermeter came through again and let us easily get Sensus or Neptune protocol or pulse count flow rate and totals over to Modbus or DF1 protocol for your control system.

 

[cardosocea]

I did not assume anything! I made a "Safety" point that everyone should be aware of!

I work in Oil & Gas, and I see this everyday, people buy a device that is not rated for GAS use and put it behind a barrier, all that does is make the signal "Class 1 / Div 2".

That's why there is a BIG difference in price for a unit that is Class 1 / Div 1 rated and one that is NOT.

Maybe the assumtion is on the wrong end?

I see we have similar backgrounds... my remark is that just buying kit without an assessment is precisely where safety fails. You drive through a zone 1 (unless you drive electric) once a week or so to fill up your car. Is your car rated for Zone 1?



Is the area where the instrument to be installed ventilated?



What kind of flowmeter is it? Because if simple apparatus, it is indeed just a case of putting a barrier to make it safe.



This being said, putting any device behind a barrier doesn't make it safe or meet any area certification. But I'm sure you know this.