Can prepayment be set for smart meters in apartment renovation?

The smart meter for apartment renovation can be equipped with a prepaid function, which has significant advantages in technical implementation, management optimization, and user experience. It has become the core solution for power management in scenarios such as apartments and rental houses. The following is an explanation from three dimensions: technical implementation, functional advantages, and application cases:

1、 Technical implementation: underlying support for prepaid functionality

Smart meters are connected to cloud management systems through integrated IoT communication modules (such as NB IoT, LoRa, 4G/5G) to achieve real-time data exchange. The core logic of its prepaid function is as follows:

1. Remote recharging and deduction: Users can recharge online through mobile APP, applet or property platform, and the system automatically updates the balance of the meter. It supports WeChat, Alipay and other payment methods to avoid the inconvenience of offline payment.

2. Balance monitoring and warning: The electricity meter monitors the remaining power in real time. When the balance is below the set threshold (such as 10% or 20%), users are reminded to recharge through SMS or APP push notifications; If the balance is exhausted, the electricity meter will automatically shut down and power will be restored after recharging.

3. Time of use electricity pricing and tiered billing: The system can set different peak and valley electricity prices according to local electricity pricing policies, or divide tiered electricity prices based on electricity consumption to guide users to use electricity reasonably.

4. Data statistics and analysis: The cloud platform records electricity consumption data, generates daily/monthly/annual reports, helps property management analyze electricity trends, and optimizes energy management.

2、 Functional advantage: Addressing the pain points of traditional electricity meters

1. Reduce the risk of arrears:

Traditional electricity meters rely on manual meter reading and offline charging, which can easily lead to issues of arrears and evasion. Prepaid electricity meters use the "pay first, use electricity later" model to ensure timely collection of electricity bills and reduce financial pressure on property management. For example, after the renovation of Zhejiang Jianxin Jiayuan Apartment, a prepaid system was adopted, and the electricity fee collection rate increased to over 98%.

2. Improve management efficiency:

Remote meter reading and automatic power-off/power restoration function reduce manual inspection costs. Property management can operate electricity meters in batches through the platform (such as recharging, power outages, and setting electricity prices), reducing the time required for a single operation from minutes to seconds.

3. Optimize user experience:

Users can check their balance and electricity usage details at any time to avoid the trouble of sudden power outages. Some electricity meters support the "overdraft limit" function, allowing users to use electricity briefly when their balance is insufficient, and automatically deduct fees when recharging later, improving flexibility.

4. Promote energy conservation and emission reduction:

Time of use electricity pricing and visualization of electricity consumption data help users adjust their electricity consumption habits, such as scheduling high energy consuming equipment (such as air conditioners and washing machines) for use during off peak periods to reduce overall electricity costs.

3、 Implementation suggestion: Key steps for apartment renovation

1. Equipment selection:

Choose smart meters that support prepaid functionality and stable communication (such as NB IoT meters) to ensure reliable data transmission.

2. System integration:

Build a cloud management platform to achieve data exchange among electricity meters, users, and property management. The platform needs to have functions such as recharging, fee deduction, warning, and data analysis.

3. User training:

Popularize tenants on the use of prepaid electricity meters, such as recharge process, balance inquiry, power outage recovery, etc., to avoid disputes caused by improper operation.

4. Policy Compliance:

Ensure that the electricity meter complies with national measurement standards (such as GB/T 17215 series), the prepaid mode complies with local power management policies, and avoids legal risks.