Assets – Refers to physical components such as endpoints, gateways and handheld devices.
AMI/AMR (Advanced Metering Infrastructure/Automated Meter Reading) – State-of-the-art systems comprised of hardware, software and remote communications capabilities for measuring water consumption and gathering data to improve operational efficiency and help customers better understand their consumption habits.
API (Application Programming Interface) – A set of programming instructions used to automatically exchange or synchronize data between AquaCUE and other systems such as a CIS.
AquaCUE Starter Spreadsheet – A Data Exchange Specification-compliant spreadsheet file that contains a subset of data fields required to associate an endpoint with account data in AquaCUE.
AquaCUE Web Services API – A set of programming instructions used to automatically exchange or synchronize data between AquaCUE and other systems such as a CIS.
Backfill – The process of filling in missing data, typically meter reads that were skipped during an interval read for whatever reason.
Backflow – Backward water flow.
Backhaul – Telecommunications term that refers to the network connection used to carry data to and from servers, gateway and endpoints.
Badger Meter Endpoints
- ORION Fixed Network (SE) – Two-way endpoint for fixed network meter reading that support multiple network backhaul options including cellular, Wi-Fi and LAN. ORION SE endpoints continuously monitors the encoder circuit. At predetermined intervals, the endpoint broadcasts the totalized reading value along with other meter data to the network gateway transceivers or mobile collection devices.
- ORION Mobile (ME) – A two-way endpoint for mobile applications. Formerly referred to as ORION Migratable, these endpoints can be upgraded (migrated) to fixed network mode to support future utility capabilities. ORION ME endpoints continuously monitor the encoder, broadcasting the totalized reading value along with other meter data to mobile collection devices.
- ORION Classic (CE) – A one-way endpoint designed for mobile meter reading. ORION CE endpoints continuously monitor the encoder, broadcasting the totalized reading value along with other meter data to mobile collection devices.
- GALAXY – Endpoints designed to provide hourly consumption data for fixed network meter reading in indoor/outdoor remote installations and in pit/vault installations that are subject to flooding or submergence. Like ORION SE endpoints, GALAXY endpoints support multiple backhaul options including cellular, Wi-Fi and LAN.
Billing Reads – Water consumption data reported by a meter for a specific period of time used for billing purposes.
Billing Resolution – The smallest increment of water consumption measured for billing purposes.
Billing Unit Of Measure – Describes the measurement of water consumption that appears on a customer invoice. For example, CCF (Centum Cubic Feet or hundreds of cubic feet), 1000 GAL (KGAL or thousands of gallons), etc.
Cards (also referred to as Meter Cards) – User interface elements on the AquaCUE Monitor page that display crucial information about each meter in the system. Essential meter details, serial number, service location, reads and a summary of water consumption are among the details viewable via cards. Each Card can be expanded to reveal additional data such as detailed location information, information about meter reads and general endpoint health information. Cards also give users the ability to add notes, tag metadata and conditional alerts to any given meter in the system. Alert Thresholds can be set using the Alert button in each Card.
CDMA (Code-Division Multiple Access) – A cellular communications standard.
CIS (Customer Information System) – A repository of information used for billing, accounting, asset management and other purposes.
Class Code (also referred to as Service Point Class Code) – The billing category for a particular location where water service is provided. For example, FireService, Industrial, Irrigation, etc.
CNAME record (Short for Canonical Name record) – A type of record in the Domain Name System (DNS) used to specify an alias for another domain. In AquaCUE, CNAME records are used to rebrand AquaCUE Express services.
Compound Meter – A hardware asset with two elements that measure flow, one for high rate and another for low rate. Some compound meters incorporate a third measuring element for medium or “mid” flow. Adding the values registered by the high, mid and low elements measures total water consumption.
Configured Importer – An importer for bringing Badger Meter Read Center Format C data files into AquaCUE.
Continuous Flow – Indicates locations that the facility has tagged as places where water runs continuously on purpose. For example, manufacturing facilities and cooling towers.
CSV (Comma-Separated Values) – A common file type used to enable data stored in incompatible or proprietary form to be passed between programs. In AquaCUE, Badger Meter Data Exchange files use the CSV format to transfer data as plain text including unicode characters from one database to another. The data consists of records that are divided into fields separated by delimiters: commas, tabs, semicolons, colons, pipes or tildes.
Data Exchange file – A file that conforms to the Data Exchange Specification. Each row of data in an Data Exchange file corresponds to a single encoder register, its location and the endpoint associated with the account. Compound meters require a separate row for each register.
Data Exchange Specification – Guidelines that define the columns and rows of required to import, synchronize and update data in AquaCUE. The Data Exchange Specification spells out precise column names, maximum character counts and required formatting. See Data Exchange>Terminology for more details.
Device Health Module – Provides facilities with an at a glance snapshot of the number and percentage of devices–endpoints, encoders and meters–reporting with and without issues or exceptions.
DN (diametre nominal) – European designation for pipe diameters measured in millimeters, per ISO 6708.
DNS (Domain Name System) – A standardized system used to catalog numeric web addresses in more descriptive, human-readable terms.
Encoder Error – Indicates that an anomaly was encountered during an interval read of an encoder. Possible causes include but are not limited to mechanical or electronic problems in reading the value of the encoder totalizer.
Encoder Register – A hardware asset used to display water consumption in a manner similar to a car odometer. Some registers use mechanical dials. Others employ LCDs to display consumption data. In AMI/AMR systems, encoder registers produce electronic signals that can be transmitted over cellular networks, network gateways or via radio signals that can be read manually using handheld devices.
Endpoint – A hardware asset that communicates with encoders that are attached to meters, capturing reads and meter status information.
Endpoint Status – Terms used to describe and catalog endpoints based on their lifecycle.
- Available endpoints are ready to be installed.
- Pre-provisioned endpoints are active endpoints that have successfully communicated with AquaCUE but have not yet been associated with account data.
- Archived endpoints are endpoints that are no longer in use but their data has been stored for reference.
- Offline endpoints are still connected to meters in the field but are not actively communicating with the system by choice.
- Decommissioned endpoints are endpoints that are no longer in use and were returned to Badger Meter.
- Unassociated endpoints are not linked to account data in AquaCUE.
Exceptions – Conditions that trigger various alerts. For example, endpoint tampers and encoder errors are exceptions.
AquaCUE Express – A web app enabled by AquaCUE that gives facilities direct access to their water consumption data and provides tools to help them manage their water use.
AquaCUE Express eSummary – The electronic information service that delivers leak alerts and usage trends to customers through email or as SMS text messages.
Filter – A user-interface element used to quickly sort vital information on the AquaCUE Monitor page.
Flow Health Module – Provides an overview of any flow issues in the water system. Select all the meters in the system or select a user specific group to view.
Format C (short for Format Connect) – A file format originally used to receive and send data between billing systems and Badger Meter Read Center (RC) software. Format C files use 256 characters per line and are supported by both the AquaCUE Configured Importer and the Assets>System Sync>Import module.
Format D – The 512-character successor to Format C (see above) that uses delimiters such as commas (,) or semi-colons (;) to arrange data into columns and rows. AquaCUE support of Format C files encompasses support for Format D files.
Hybrid – A thing made by combining two different elements. In AquaCUE, the Meter>Endpoint Type>Hybrid filter on the Monitor page selects compound meters whose high and low flow sides are connected to different endpoint types. For example, an ORION Cellular LTE endpoint connected to the low-flow side and an ORION Cellular endpoint connected to the high-flow side would fall under the Meter>Endpoint Type>Hybrid filter.
Gateway – A network component used to connect one network with another. In AMI/AMR systems, gateways use radio frequencies to transmit data to and from fixed network endpoints.
GSM (Global System for Mobile communication) – One of two cellular communications standards.
Index – A data structure technique used to optimize database performance. In AquaCUE, indexed databases are used throughout the system. In addition, Data Exchange file types such as Accounts and Assets files, ID Update files, Account Transaction files, etc. are indexed. Such indexed files can be referred to as an index, indexes or indices.
JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) – An open-standard format used in the AquaCUE Web Services API to transmit data between a server (a facility CIS) and a web application (AquaCUE).
Load Balancer – A device that distributes network or application traffic across a number of servers to increase capacity to support more concurrent users.
Leak – At locations where water flow is typically intermittent—for example, in hotel rooms—flow reported every hour in a 24-hour period is considered a “leak.”
Leak Alert – An alarm triggered when flow that exceeds a threshold has been detected every hour in a 24-hour period.
Leak Rate – The minimum hourly volume of water flow reported at locations where flow has been detected every hour in a 24-hour period.
Location – A term used to identify a premise or place where the facility company supplies services.
Module (also widget) – User interface element used to access and display a variety of data such as billing reads, device health, gateway health, weekly water usage and so on.
Normalized Class Code – Pre-defined term used to describe the category of a location where service is provided. In AquaCUE, the normalized class codes are: Commercial, FireService, Industrial, Irrigation, SingleFamilyResidential and MultiFamilyResidential.
NPS (Nominal Pipe Size) – North American designation for pipe diameters measured in inches, per ISO 6708.
Pairing – A term used for configuring a handheld device to open communication with AquaCUE.
Portfolio – Term that describes a facility’s resources in AquaCUE. A portfolio encompasses a facility’s hardware assets (endpoints, encoders, meters, mobile reading technology, etc), customers and account holders, users with access to AquaCUE, etc. Badger Meter personnel create portfolios for facilities.
Provisioning (also Provisioning Process) – The process of associating endpoints with facility customer account information in AquaCUE. Once provisioned, the system uses data collected from the encoder for billing and facility management purposes to improve customer service, increase operational efficiency and help users understand their facility consumption.
Provision – The act of associating an endpoint with an account in AquaCUE.
Provisioned – Describes an endpoint that has been associated with an account in AquaCUE.
Pre-Provisioned – Describes endpoints that are active and communicating with AquaCUE, but have not been provisioned (associated with an account in the system). Pre-provisioned endpoints that are connected to an encoder produce raw read data. Pre-provisioned endpoints that are not connected to an encoder produce no reads.
Un-Provision – The act of decoupling or dis-associating an endpoint with an account in AquaCUE.
Facility Read – Current or historic reads that are brought into AquaCUE using a Data Exchange file instead of being supplied by an endpoint or manually read meter.
Reindex – The act of refreshing or restoring database content. In AquaCUE, reindexing takes place in the background so your work can go uninterrupted.
Service – A specific location where the facility supplies facility services.
Service Point – Physically, a service point is where a water pipe or power line connects to a meter and if applicable an encoder register and an endpoint.
Reads – Consumption data reported by a meter, typically associated with a date and time.
Read Resolution (also Register Resolution) – Determines where the decimal goes in a encoder read. Getting the correct resolution–and recording it in AquaCUE–is essential for accurate customer billing. Read/Register Resolution is based on a combination of factors: meter model and size, encoder type, unit of measure (gallon, cubic foot or cubic meter) and the type of endpoint that is attached to the encoder.
For more information on determining the read resolution of ORION and GALAXY endpoints connected to Badger Meter Recordall® Series meters, Badger Meter ADE® encoders and Badger Meter E-Series® with High-Resolution Protocol encoders, see the following application briefs on BadgerMeter.com:
- Test Circle Codes HR-E Encoders (ENC-AS-00300-EN)
- Test Circle Codes HR-E LCD Encoder (LCD-AS-00462-EN)
- Test Circle Codes ADE (RDC-A-02)
- Test Circle Codes RTR (RDC-A-01)
To obtain the read resolution of encoders made by third parties, consult with their manufacturers.
Register (also Encoder Register) – A hardware device used to display water consumption in a manner similar to a car odometer. Some registers use mechanical dials. Others employ LCDs to display consumption data. In AMR, pulse or encoder registers produce electronic signals that can be transmitted over cellular networks, network gateways or via radio signals that can be read manually using handheld devices.
REST (Representational State Transfer) – A programming architecture style for networked hypermedia applications used to build web services that are lightweight, maintainable and scalable. A service based on REST is called a RESTful service. REST is not dependent on any protocol, but almost every RESTful service uses HTTP as its underlying protocol. AquaCUE Web Services APIs are RESTful services.
Rollover – Term that describes when a meter or an encoder register reaches its maximum reading and reverts to zero, for example, when 99999 advances to 00000.
RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) – A receiver designed to pick up radio frequency (RF) signals and generate an output equivalent to the signal strength.
RTR – The Badger Meter Recordall® Transmitter Register (RTR) is used in conjunction with Recordall disc, turbo, compound and fire series water meters to measure totalized flow through the meter and output a signal to Badger Meter meter reading products.
SAML–Secure Assertion Markup Language, used to provide single-sign on (SSO) access to AquaCUE and related systems, such as a billing system, CIS, SCADA, CRM, etc.
SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Aquisition)– A system for remote monitoring and control of industrial automation systems, infrastructure processes and facility processes.
Service Point – A specific location where the facility supplies water or other services.
Tamper – Exceptions that indicate different conditions based on the type of endpoint:
- For ORION Cellular endpoints, a tamper is triggered by any break in communication. Causes range from broken or cut wires to insufficient cellular signal strength or signal disruption and endpoint damage.
- For ORION SE and GALAXY Fixed Network endpoints, a tamper is triggered when network communication is disrupted. Possible causes include but are not limited to electrical interference caused by close proximity to high-voltage power lines, a faulty network interface card (NIC), worn or damaged network cabling or other network-related condition.
Tolerance – Another term for resolution, typically used when describing the interval between reads. For example, 72 hours, 48 hours, 24 hours and so on.
Totalizer – A device or meter that records a count total.
Trimble Ranger 3 – A flexible, easy-to-use handheld computer that can be used with various meter reading technologies.
Truncation Codes – Short keys or number combinations used in billing systems to interpret read resolution. For example, a truncation code might tell the billing system to interpret a reading of “1” as 1,000 gallons.
Unique Identifier – A combination of numbers and characters that can be used to distinguish one thing (account, location, meter, service point) from another thing (account, location, meter, service point) in a facility CIS, SCADA or other database.
