Itron has expanded its distributed intelligence (DI) platform with an edge gateway to help utilities achieve sustainability goals.

The edge gateway should expand the capabilities of utilities to achieve decarbonisation and sustainability goals and manage critical infrastructure as the broad-based adoption of distributed energy resources (DERs) continues.

It also accelerates utility and city digitalisation by rapidly adding DI capability to any device or sensor without hardware integration. The platform enables use cases across distribution automation, distributed energy resource management and smart cities.

The secure, edge-computing platform enables intelligent industrial IoT connectivity leveraging LTE, private LTE, 5G cellular and Itron’s Gen5 mesh communication technology between fielded distributed energy resource devices and back-office systems or cloud services.

The product will leverage a common back-office application infrastructure with Itron’s Riva meter and previously announced DI network interface card to manage deployed applications.

The gateway features computing infrastructure that can host third-party applications and connect, monitor and manage new and existing devices or sensors using various interfaces including Ethernet, serial, wifi, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and USB. Utilities will be able to unlock the power of real-time data processing and analytics, enabling faster, automated decision-making through machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI).

Built with security features, including full disc encryption, secure boot and key storage, encrypted communications and secure containers, the platform safeguards from potential cyber threats, ensuring data integrity.

Use cases include intelligent connectivity for distribution automation devices such as capacitor banks, reclosers and switches, supporting grid automation capabilities. It can also be used for remote substation monitoring connecting multiple devices via a range of legacy protocols and providing DNP3 concentration of assets.

Active transformer load management helps preserve a transformer’s lifetime and reduce unplanned outages. Augmented voltage monitoring capabilities monitor, manage and optimise grid operations at the edge.

Other uses include renewables monitoring and control, and active load shedding to disconnect non-critical customers while keeping the power on for those who need it the most such as emergency responders and hospitals.

There are also various smart city applications such as acoustic gunshot detection, traffic and noise monitoring, and digital signage.

“Building upon Itron’s advancements in DI and intelligent connectivity, utilities and cities now can utilise the Itron edge gateway to bring even more intelligence to the network’s edge,” said John Marcolini, senior vice president at Itron. “This empowers them to collect and manage data more efficiently while harnessing cutting-edge machine learning and AI technologies to make real-time decisions. From a utility IT perspective, these devices offer value with the opportunity for utilities and partners to test and incorporate them into a specific use case. Once deployed, this platform can be easily repurposed for numerous other applications, saving time and cost.”

Itron’s partner enablement programme provides a framework for third-party companies to develop applications for the edge gateway product line and join an ecosystem of partners. Partners can access developer tools and resources to optimise, improve and extend their service offering. The application development lifecycle is designed for streamlined development, test and trial, bringing applications to market faster.