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Sterling : innovative and durable flow sensing at low cost

Sterling – truly smart water metering

The best platform for smart water metering. Durable, low power, high accuracy across all flow rates, down to the smallest drip.

A cost effective solution for all smart metering applications.

Managing water resources has never been more important and real time, accurate metering of water usage is a key process for an efficient water network. Sterling provides a platform for smart water meters that can support a full range of ‘smart’ benefits including:-

market leading performance in accuracy, even at low flow rates
longevity - battery lifetime of 15 years,
automatic reads,
status alerts,
usage information for consumers and suppliers
very low cost for installation and operation
supports the valuable applications of today, and is upgradeable to support the new functions of tomorrow.

Sterling provides a flexible platform for all metering applications from residential up to light industrial. It provides superior performance in applications such as:-

leak detection,
low flow management,
anti tamper monitoring,
influencing consumer behaviour

Unlike other smart water meters, Sterling, which is based on proprietary technology, is highly robust and easy to install, and its high performance throughout its life cycle is matched by minmal energy requirement, meaning no battery replacement should be needed for a 15 year life. Its robustness is matched by exceptional accuracy at low and high flows, which is maintained across meter lifecycles.

Sterling technology can be provided as a core sensor technology for a bespoke meter design, giving meter manufacturers a low cost, flexible platform to provide a range of meters within a short design cycle or in a metering product manufactured by third party suppliers.

High performance today and tomorrow

Investing in Sterling gives manufacturers the opportunity to produce superior meters more rapidly and at lower cost. Meters built around Sterling have low technical risk and will combine all of the performance features of an exceptional sensing technology with the benefits of a properly integrated smart meter:

High accuracy over a wide range of flows
Long battery life
No wear over lifespan
Tolerant of particulates and air
Low headloss
Low component count and minimal signal processing for a low cost meter build
Easy integration with any AMI system
Easy integration of firmware for a wide variety of applications

Compete effectively in smart water metering

As a well established, modular solution to solid state water flow measurement, Sterling offers meter manufacturers and utilities an opportunity to produce a superior design more rapidly and at a lower cost, and to do so across a range of products, suitable for a wide variety of applications in potable and non potable water systems:

Residential revenue meters
Consumption profiling
Leak detection (household and network)
Tamper detection and avoidance
Irrigation metering
Water quality

How it works

Sterling is an electromagnetic flow meter, which works by applying a magnetic field to water as it passes through the flow tube and measuring the potential difference, which is directly proportional to the speed of the fluid. Understanding the speed of the fluid through a cross section of known dimensions allows the calculation of flow.

In a typical magnetic flow meter, the field levels generated are extremely small and recovered from background noise by regularly reversing the direction of the magnetic field and observing the change in emf when the field is reversed. However, unless periodic sampling is used, this is a power hungry process.

Sterling avoids this problem by magnetising a small piece of material which will hold its field until the magnetisation is reversed. As a result, Sterling can measure continuously at low power for a full 15 year lifespan. The power budget and accuracy are further extended by the use of specialist low noise electrodes and continuous sigma-delta sampling.

Commercial proposition

Meters based on Sterling technology are now available in the North American market with developments in process for Australasia. The technology is protected by patents in all significant markets

To enjoy the benefits of the technology, manufacturers and utilities can either buy complete sensors from Sentec Ltd, or obtain a licence to use the sensor technology for their specific products and territories. For water metering applications, Sterling is now only available outside of North America. Please contact Sentec for more specific details on the rights and territories that are still available.

Sentec’s world-class product development team is also available to work with licensees or sensor customers on all aspects of the product development, including mechanical design, firmware, electronics, integration with existing systems, design for manufacture/test, tooling, contract manufacture support, manufacturing systems and databases, compliance, calibration and testing.