System and method for providing power to a power meter connected to a power line

1. A meter for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site, the meter comprising:

a meter module connected to a power feed associated with the power transmission system to provide readings relating to the power;

a connection to a household alternating current (AC) power supply providing power to the meter;

a rectifier circuit connected to the household AC power supply to generate a direct current (DC) power signal;

a capacitive circuit connected to an output of the rectifier circuit, the capacitive circuit including a capacitor for storing a voltage for temporarily providing replacement power for the rectifier circuit;

a switching regulator circuit connected to the output of the rectifier circuit and the capacitive circuit, the switching regulator converting the DC voltage signal to a stepped down voltage signal for the meter module;

a voltage detection circuit connected to the capacitive circuit to detect a low voltage condition where an output from the capacitive circuit drops below an operational threshold for the meter and to generate a low voltage signal upon detection of the drop; and

a message generation module for receiving the low voltage signal and for generation a power loss message for transmission from the meter and carried on a message carrier having a carrier frequency between approximately 2 MHz and 30 MHz to bridge a discontinuity in the power transmission system.

2. The meter for monitoring usage of power as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:

when the household AC power supply fails, the capacitive circuit provides a voltage to the switching regulator through the capacitor and a resistor network to provide power for the switching regulator.

3. The meter for monitoring usage of power as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:

the meter module maintains an internal clock for synchronization with a clock maintained by a head end.

4. The meter for monitoring usage of power as claimed in claim 3 , wherein:

the meter module adjusts the internal clock with the clock maintained by the head end when a discrepancy between the internal clock and the clock maintained by the head end is detected.

5. The meter for monitoring usage of power as claimed in claim 1 , wherein upon detection of the low voltage condition, the meter module:

tracks an unsynchronized time for the meter, the unsynchronized time beginning at a time associated with detection of the low voltage condition.

6. The meter for monitoring usage of power as claimed in claim 5 , wherein upon a re-boot of the meter, the meter module:

compares the unsynchronized time with a clock maintained by a head end.

7. The meter for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:

a disconnect manager module that controls the connection to the household AC power supply to connect and disconnect the meter from the household AC power supply based on a control action signal received by the disconnect manager module.

8. The meter for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site as claimed in claim 7 , wherein:

the disconnect manager module controls the connection to disconnect the meter from the household AC power supply when either an over-voltage or an over-current situation is detected on the household AC power supply.

9. The meter for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site as claimed in claim 1 , wherein:

the disconnect manager module also controls the connection to disconnect the meter from the household AC power supply when a total power reading for the meter for a period of time exceeds a threshold.

10. The meter for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:

a schedule manager module that schedules for the meter, meter readings, power rate switching and synchronization of an internal clock with a clock maintained by a head end.

11. A method for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site at a meter, the method comprising:

charging a capacitive circuit located between a rectifier circuit connected to a household alternating current (AC) power supply for the meter that generates a direct current (DC) power signal for the meter and a switching regulator circuit connected to the output of the rectifier circuit, the switching regulator converting the DC voltage signal to a stepped down voltage signal for the meter module;

when the household AC power supply fails, discharging the capacitive circuit to provide a voltage to the switching regulator;

detecting a low voltage condition where an output from the capacitive circuit drops below an operational threshold for the meter; and

generating and sending a power loss message upon detection of the low voltage condition to the power transmission system from the meter carried on a message carrier having a carrier frequency between approximately 2 MHz and 30 MHz to bridge a discontinuity in the power transmission system.

12. The method for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site at a meter as claimed in claim 11 , further comprising:

maintaining an internal clock in the meter for synchronization with a clock maintained by a head end; and

adjusting the internal clock with the clock maintained by the head end when a discrepancy between the internal clock and the clock maintained by the head end is detected.

13. The method for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site at a meter as claimed in claim 11 , further comprising:

controlling the connection to the household AC power supply to connect and disconnect the meter from the household AC power supply based on a control action signal.

14. The method for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site at a meter as claimed in claim 13 , wherein:

the meter is disconnected from the household AC power supply when either an over-voltage or an over-current situation is detected on the household AC power supply.

15. The method for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site at a meter as claimed in claim 14 , further comprising:

disconnecting the meter from the household AC power supply when a total power reading for the meter for a period of time exceeds a threshold.

16. The method for monitoring usage of power provided by a power transmission system to a site at a meter as claimed in claim 11 , further comprising:

scheduling for the meter, meter readings, power rate switching and synchronization of an internal clock with a clock maintained by a head end.