Household Water Meters

I. Definition and Functional Positioning

II. Core Types and Technical Features

1. Mechanical Water Meter

• Principle: Water flow drives an impeller to rotate, with gear transmission driving a counter to display readings. Typical types include turbine (small diameter) and propeller (large diameter).
• Features:
  • Low cost, simple structure, easy maintenance;
  • Accuracy class Class 2 (±2%), turndown ratio typically 30:1–50:1;
  • No intelligent functions, requiring manual reading; long-term accuracy affected by mechanical wear.

2. Intelligent IC Card Water Meter

• Principle: Mechanical metering integrated with an IC card prepayment module. Users recharge to open the valve via card swiping, with automatic shutoff when balance is low.
• Features:
  • Supports prepayment management to reduce arrears disputes;
  • Battery-powered (3–5 years lifespan), protection class IP65;
  • Some models support data storage but have limited remote communication capabilities.

3. Remote Reading Water Meter

• Principle: Mechanical metering with an electronic collection module, transmitting data via wired (RS485, M-Bus) or wireless (NB-IoT, LoRa, ZigBee) channels.
• Features:
  • Enables automatic reading with >99% success rate;
  • Can be paired with valve control (remote on/off) for tiered water pricing;
  • Typical accuracy Class 1.0, supports bidirectional flow monitoring (some models).

4. Ultrasonic Household Water Meter

• Principle: Non-mechanical, using ultrasonic time-difference method for flow metering, integrated with smart chips and communication modules.
• Features:
  • High accuracy (±0.5%–1%), turndown ratio up to 500:1, suitable for low-flow metering;
  • Service life ≥10 years, maintenance-free;
  • Supports remote management and data traceability, but higher cost