Power Quality Measurement Capabilities of “Smart” Energy Meters

Power quality measurement integrated in energy meters are presented as a potential benefit by some manufacturers. The Norwegian regulator has considered making minimum requirements for energy meters to include registration of interruptions. SINTEF Energy Research has performed tests on energy meters with power quality measurement capabilities. These tests include the ability to detect interruptions, supply voltage variations, voltage dips, among others. Results presented in this paper show large differences in capabilities for power quality measurement of ‘smart’ energy meters. The results also show that the power quality measurements are not according to international standards for such measurements like EN50160 [1], IEC 61000-4-30 [2] and others.