Hi, I realise this is not really an electronics site however I thought being an ATA member I would make this post for anyone interested. I have a 1.5Kw PV system and of course as I export to the grid I have a Smart Meter installed. I thought I would do some work to see if I could satisfactory devise a reliable way to read the "pulsing" LED that most Smart Meters have. My model is a EM1210 installed by my supply company in Victoria. One important criteria was that I did not want to make an connections or mount anything on to the meter is any way as this would guaranteed to be frowned on by the authorities.
One of the major problems, especially as the "detector" would not be in close proximity to the pulsing LED (by design) was to ensure I could get detect a strong enough signal under all ambient light conditions. One fortunate aspect of all electricity boxes in Australia in recent years is that they use a standard metal box which allowed me to mount the detector on the inside of the door and align it nicely pointing at the flashing LED. The detector used in the end was the photocell from a cheap miniature garden light with the plastic top from a sauce bottle to direct the light from the LED and minimise ambient light. The electronics uses a Picaxe micro controller and the data is transmitted via a Xbee RF module. For the full project please visit my web page at
http://codenquilts.com.au/?page_id=97
Mike
