Four students of UGM successfully developed an innovative digital multi features electric meter (KWH Meter). These findings allow the State Owned Electricity Company (PLN) to terminate the electric current automatically from a certain distance using a remote control.
The innovation was developed by three diploma students of Electrical Engineering department, Fadjri Andika Permadi, M. Arif Wicaksono, Yusuf Irfani, and a student of Physic Engineering, Kiki Rahmat Syair. The device sent the four of them to get two gold medals (presentations and posters category) in the National Student Scientific Week (PIMNAS) in Bali last July through the Student Creativity Program Technology Division. In this activity, the students of Ma’un Budiyanto, ST, MT, submitted a work entitled Innovation of Microcontroller-Based Digital Multi features KWh Meter.
The team leader, Fadjri Andika Permadi, mentioned that the digital electric meter minimizes the obstacles encountered by the PLN officers in conducting electrical current termination as experienced in analog electric meter sealing. "The difficulties encountered by PLN officers when conducting work such as sealing high walls, being scolded by the owner of the house, and others could be minimized. With this digital KWH meter, PLN can terminate the electricity current without having to visit the customer’s home. Just simply press the remote button," he explained at Fortakgama UGM, Wednesday (18/8).
Digital electric meter that is developed by Fadjri and his friends have some features that are not included in analog power meter. This device is equipped with wireless electric circuit breaker technology. These technologies enable PLN to perform termination of electrical current within a range of 70 meters with coverage of 255 kwh.
Fadjri said that the device displays the data on the LCD in the form of electric power consumption per month in KWh units in real time. This value is converted to a nominal value in Rupiah. "With this nominal guide, the customers can conduct their own savings in the use of electric power," explained Fadjri who graduated last May. Yusuf Irfani added that this tool also features a menu to display the monthly total cost of electric power consumption, both for electricity costs for the current month and previous month.
"We also added a reminder alarm that is set off every 19th day, the day before the due date of payment of electricity bills. We hope it could serve as alarm reminder for bill payments so customers will not experience a sealing for forgetting to pay the bills," this student of 2008 class explained.
Yusuf conveyed that for the development of a digital electric meter, we could use an existing analogue electric meter. "To make it a digital power meter, simply add the sensor, the LCD and integrated circuit 16 (IC) on the analog power meter," he explained.