Effect of the sampling interval on the measurement accuracy of electronic water meters under real consumption conditions

Abstract

The share of electronic water meters installed in households has increased sharply in recent years. However, the current regulations are in large parts still tailored to traditional mechanical water meters. Electronic meters have already been included in the common standards, but reviews and various adaptions are still missing. An important point to be reviewed is the impact of the sampling interval of the electronic water meters on the measurement accuracy of the captured water volume. In this study, the error caused by the sampling interval is investigated by using measured data sets and stochastic water consumption data. It is shown that the error caused by sampling depends on the starting point of the sampling and the observation period. The studies show that for a billing period of one year, which is common in Germany, the sampling interval should be 14 s or less to always ensure a sampling-related error of less than 0.5%. Based on the results, input for further regulations is derived. HIGHLIGHTS What influence does the type of interpolation in electronic water meters have on the accuracy of measurement?; Is there a type of interpolation that provides always the smallest measurement error?; What influence does the starting point of the sampling have on the measuring accuracy of a water meter?; What influence does the observation period have on the measurement accuracy of an electronic water meter?;

Keywords

• drinking water consumption
• electronic water meter
• measurement error
• regulations
• sampling interval