Support Communications To & From Head-End Systems

The SecureMesh Collector serves as an access point for SecureMesh-enabled meters and devices. Each Collector defines a subnetwork of the SecureMesh Neighborhood Area Network (NAN), supporting communications to and from the head-end for the SecureMesh NAN nodes with which it communicates. For those nodes, the Collector establishes network time synchronization and coordinates overall operation of the wireless mesh network. Additionally, the Collector provides local data storage as a form of data redundancy.

The SecureMesh Collector provides the integration between the NAN and the WAN.  The Collector is designed for outdoor mounting and has integrated battery backup to enable positive outage and restoration notification.

Wide Range of Backhaul Options

The SecureMesh Collector communicates to the network head-end over TCP/IP and supports a wide variety of backhaul options to and from the network head-end over Wide Area Network (WAN) facilities:

• Integrated 10/100Base-T Ethernet: Each Collector is equipped with an Ethernet port to allow connection to coaxial cable or to an external broadband modem. Backhaul can then be supported over the SecureMesh WAN, optical fiber, twisted pair (DSL), coaxial cable, broadband over power line (BPL), or wireless links supported by such technologies as WiMAX, Canopy, or others.

• Integrated 1xRTT, GPRS, or iDEN cellular data modem: As an option, the Collector can be ordered with an integrated cellular data modem, supporting either GSM-based GPRS, CDMA-based 1xRTT, or iDEN cellular data services with a wide range of carriers.

Network Time Synchronization

The SecureMesh Collector is generally configured to use its WAN backhaul to automatically obtain time synchronization from Network Time Protocol (NTP) servers such as those hosted by NIST in the United States or the NRC in Canada. The SecureMesh Collector can also be configured to have knowledge of Daylight Savings Time and any local time zone offsets.

Once the Collector is time-synchronized, network synchronization is propagated to all NAN devices through the mesh network, with each device adjusting its clock to the Collector’s.

Data Concentration & Storage

Each SecureMesh Collector provides a data buffer to aggregate and store the reports it receives from its associated devices. To provide data redundancy, each Collector is capable of storing on the order of 60,000 reports, typically representing 30 days or more of SecureMesh NAN activity. To minimize WAN backhaul requirements, all data is then compressed by the Collector.

Real-Time Reporting

Certain events reported to the Collector by NAN devices are communicated to the network head-end immediately, without any data aggregation. In particular, notifications of power outage and restoration are relayed as quickly as possible to the head-end by the Collector.