Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) is an automated two-way communication network between smart meters and a utility company. AMI generally utilizes Radio Frequency (RF) Mesh technology to form a network of endpoints (or smart meters) and interconnecting devices (routers or collectors). The main purpose of this research work is to evaluate the performance of AMI networks by analyzing the optimal geometry of the interconnecting devices and the impact of this repositioning on the performance metrics. The performance of such a network is evaluated in terms of statistical measures such as end-to-end delay, packet hop counts and packet success rates. The analysis will assess the impact on the network performance by changing the geographical positions or the number of interconnecting devices using a common AMI test network. The focus is on interconnecting devices, mainly routers, as endpoints are assumed to be fixed by residential locations. Clustering algorithms such as MDAV and Lloyd’s help facilitate the positioning of interconnecting devices. The research work will also focus on a comparison study of a selection of AMI specific routing protocols for bi-directional packet delivery between endpoints and collectors situated in the network. The test network used in this research is based on the AMI network currently deployed by Barbados Power and Light Company (BLPC). Closer to the real-world scenario is obtained by using the actual latitude and longitude information from BLPC to place all AMI devices in the correct geographical locations. This will be used as the baseline case study. All the analyses and observations are done using OMNeT++ which has several modules and libraries that make it a good choice for simulation of large communication networks.
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