BigPatents India

A system is provided for the supply of a reticulated service (2), typically electricity, but optionally gas or water, in which multiple consumer installations (3) are each connected by way of a point of delivery meter (1) (optionally associated with a prepayment controller (4) to the reticulated service. The point of delivery meters each have a data retention unit (14) associated therewith that not only maintains consumption data corresponding to consumption passed through the point of delivery meter, but also data selected from one or more of applicable tariff; events such as replacement of point of delivery meter or replacement of prepayment controller; occasions of communication with the data retention unit; locator data in respect of premises, consumer installation, point of delivery meter, or separate prepayment controller; and real-time of events logged by the data retention unit. The data retention unit may also have a microprocessor function providing profiles as outputs. The system includes communications stations, typically mobile stations, that are capable of communicating by short-range communication means, typically wireless, with the data retention unit to extract data maintained therein.