Objective:
As part of an ongoing evolution of their methods for retrieving data from their metering equipment, Itron partnered with IntelliTect to create a software development kit (SDK) that can interact with their Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 2030.5 Smart Energy Profile metering equipment. Smart Energy is the world’s leading standard for interoperable products that monitor, control, inform, and automate energy, gas, and water delivery and usage.
Itron’s goal of opening opportunities for data gathering through their Smart Energy metering equipment and increasing avenues for consumer service was limited before their partnership with IntelliTect. With their SDK, Itron aims to provide a low barrier to developing Smart Energy solutions, abstracting much of the specialized portions of the IEEE 2030.5 Smart Energy standard in a way familiar to modern application developers.
Methods:
IntelliTect’s team of expert developers provided software architecture and technical leadership using modern agile methodologies to address the constraints of the IEEE 2030.5 standard’s security protocols and allow for integration with a modern app development framework.
The date was fixed with a very tight timeline. Work needed to be accomplished with various milestones and had to meet revenue expectations. Interaction with Xcel, Itron, and our partners was continual over a four-month period. The results were a huge success.
Vice President Solutions Delivery, Itron
The IntelliTect team’s passion for solving complex problems and their natural agile development style matched Itron’s desire to deliver robust solutions under tight deadlines.
Solution:
Itron selected IntelliTect to create a software development kit for creating modern apps compatible with Itron’s IEEE 2030.5 metering equipment. The SDK architected by IntelliTect’s team provides user-friendly solutions to security and other high-level tools to develop and test cross-platform IEEE 2030.5 compliant applications.
Additionally, the SDK includes a mobile demonstration app that streams real-time and historical metering data from Itron meters, a library of tools for 2030.5 security and communication, and a meter simulator that allows developers to easily perform integration testing.
Microsoft’s cross-platform app framework Xamarin.Forms was chosen to create the mobile app, which allowed the use of open-source C# libraries, reducing development time.
The meter simulator is an ASP.NET app that is easily expandable to support the simulation of any desired metering features.
Benefits:
IntelliTect successfully designed and developed the SDK for Itron, allowing the tech mogul to demonstrate the possibilities of their new equipment and provide their client, Xcel, the resources to jump-start creating apps for their customers.
Collaboration and support from the IntelliTect team allowed Itron to improve their client app, stay on budget for the SDK deliverables, create extensive documentation about the products, and exceed Xcel’s high expectations for the project.
We had very challenging timeframes to fulfill commitments and had to identify ways to advance the technology forward. I wanted to recognize and celebrate our commitment and partnership throughout this journey.
Xcel Energy
IntelliTect’s team continues to support Itron through SDK workshops and additional architectural guidance and module development, ensuring the stability and long-term efficiency of the updated IEEE 2030.5 system.
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