What makes a smart meter "smart"?

What makes a smart meter "smart"?

Traditional water meters are mechanical. They don't provide users with real-time data on how much water they use, nor do they identify leaks in pipes. Spotting and fixing leaks in time is crucial, as a leaky faucet produces 4,000 drops of water, the equivalent of about a litre of water. In the larger context, thousands of gallons of water could be wasted. Smart water meters are powered by the Internet of Things (IoT). Smart water meters measure water withdrawals, record water flow, analyze and share consumption patterns with users through an app. These meters can also receive instructions from water suppliers and customers. Smart meters available on the market can be electromechanical, electromagnetic or ultrasonic, and ultrasonic meters are becoming popular because they do not consume as much power as electromechanical meters and are not invasive. In any smart water meter, the wireless sensor network in the device collects data and sends it to the gateway, which then uploads it to the cloud. The analysis happens here. Machine learning algorithms are trained to identify leaks, waste, overuse, and even predict water consumption. The analyzed data reaches the user interface, which can be used on mobile devices. The technology allows customers to set water limits. When this value is exceeded, the application sends them an alert. The app can also alert people to leaks. Suppose the smart meter says the water flow is 1,000 liters in one hour and 10 liters in the next. The difference suggests that water is leaking somewhere, possibly because of a pipe break. Then the user can solve the problem in time. These features make the technology "smart".