Power Meter Gives Accurate Measurement for Energy Consumption of Iot Devices

In the world of today’s technology, the Internet of Things is very popular. We see that most of the devices used to create the IoT (Internet of Things) function on small batteries or energy harvesting.

Power Meter Gives Accurate Measurement for Energy Consumption of Iot Devices

We find it quite hard measuring the amount of energy being consumed by these IoT devices due to the dynamic nature of the current consumption, with popular measurement methods like multimeter, and oscilloscope having drawbacks. One method developers use is to use multiple instruments and hand calculations to arrive at an estimate of the energy consumption, but this method could be tasking. However, a solution is at hand. Say hello to the ZS1100A. The ZS1100A functions by plotting the current consumption vs time very accurately and in great detail, which can be used along with the battery model to estimate the overall battery life.

Engineers need the new ZS1100A because power consumption of IoT devices follow a particular pattern which is difficult to measure using traditional equipment. The main reasons for this are:

  • High Dynamic Range: An IoT device usually consumes a few μA in sleep mode, and few hundred mA in its transmit mode, depending on the radio. Thus, the current waveform has a very high dynamic range spanning almost 6 decades.
  • High Bandwidth: The current drawn by an IoT device can fluctuate from few mA to hundreds of mA in couple of micro-seconds. Thus, the frequency content of these current waveforms is well over few 100 KHz.
  • Long Profile Times: IoT devices sometimes have a typical profile which can last for several tens of minutes to 1 hour. They could perform irregular wake-ups during this because of some misc activities, and hence these also need to be recorded. For accurate power analysis, complete capture of the profile is needed.

Here comes the ZS1100A to solve these challenges. The product Specifications are listed below:

  • Computer Interfacing: USB 2.0, Type-B connection
    • Free GUI with waveform analysis tools (Windows-only for now)
    • Battery emulation models for most popular batteries – selecting a model automatically sets output voltage, capacity, internal resistance, and max current
    • Data can be exported to sigrok/PulseView for UART, SPI, I²C protocol analysis
    • Data can be exported as ASCII in XML
    • Excellent data compression rates – 24 hours of data takes ~10 GB
  • I/O: Front-facing pins with standard (2.54 mm/.1″) pitch in a 2×5 configuration
    • 6 digital inputs
      • Function as a logic analyzer capturing at 1 MHz
      • Voltage range of 1.8 to 5 V
      • Input impedence of 10 pF || 100 kΩ
      • 4 have 100 kΩ pull-down resistors
      • 2 have 100 kΩ pull-up resistors to VCC
    • 2 GND pins (shorted with the power supply ground)
    • 1 VCC pin
    • 1 CLK output at 1 MHz, 3.3 V, driving a load of 30 pF || 100 kΩ
    • 8 jumper wires included with purchase
  • Indicator Screen: OLED – indicating voltage, current, status, etc.
  • Electromagnetic Shielding: Aluminum enclosure provides excellent noise reduction
  • ESD Protection: On all inputs and outputs
  • Thermal Protection: An internal temperature monitor will automatically shut the unit down in case over overheating
  • Environmental Tolerances:
    • Operating temperature of 15-40°C
    • Operating humidity < 90% RH
  • Power: Barrel jack, 2.1 mm ID, 5.5 mm OD, with a center-positive
    • Input voltage of 12-15 V DC
    • Input amperage of 5 A max
    • 15 V, 3 A power supply is included with purchase
    • Consumption of < 2 W
  • Dimensions: ~ 16 x 11 x 5 cm (~ 5.9 x 4.3 x 2 in)
  • Weight: ~420 g (.93 lbs)
  • Standard Conformance: CE, FCC, RoHS
ZS1100A IoT power profile measurement
ZS1100A IoT power profile measurement

ZSCircuits plans to manufacture in India or the United States, depending on production volume. The company says low-volume run would occur in India, while a high-volume run would occur in the United States. All fulfillment and logistics would be handled by CrowdSupply. ZSCircuits will ship the required quantity of products directly to the Crowd Supply warehouse in the USA, with backers getting their shipments from Crowd Supply directly. You can learn more about the Crowd Supply fulfillment service in this guide: Ordering, Paying, Shipping: The Details.

Funding will end on Jul 23, 2020 at 04:59 PM PDT (11:59 PM UTC). All support, including documentation, user guide, software, drivers, etc. are uploaded at anglercircuits.com . Documentation will also be made available in the project GitHub repository. More information can be found on Crowd Supply page

Source: Power Meter Gives Accurate Measurement for Energy Consumption of Iot Devices

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top