Interoperability

& Standardization:
a Roadmap for Success

White Paper
 Interoperability & Standardization:
a Roadmap for Success pag. 1/12

Table of Contents
1. Introduction 2

2. Market Fragmentation and Interoperability 3

3. The role of Standardization and Compatibility in AMI 4

4. Interoperability and Standardization: Driving Efficiency in AMI 6

5. Elevating Interoperability; Data Exchange Security 7

6. The Impact of Interoperability & Interchangeability 7

7. Achieving Interoperability with DLMS UA Specifications

7.. 9

8. Conclusions 11

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 Interoperability & Standardization:
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Introduction a multitude of players and X-Tier

suppliers offering diverse products
and services, DSOs are advocating
for plug-and-play solutions. This push
aims to reduce the costs associated
In recent years, Advanced Metering
with the integration of multi-vendor
Infrastructure (AMI) has emerged as a
solutions and also to lower lifecycle
pivotal component for Distribution
cost by enabling interchangeability of
System Operators (DSOs) seeking to
devices in the field.
optimize their operations and bolster
network stability. The advent of AMI The need for interoperability is not
allows DSOs to create a resilient and limited to vertical integration (e.g.
scalable AMI grid while maintaining a smart meters, gas and heat meters
cost-effective approach. Achieving and management systems), but also
this goal depends on the DSO’s extends to horizontal integration (e.g.
capacity to integrate systems and multi-vendor smart meters).
devices from different vendors. This Consequently, interoperability
ability enables DSOs to merge became the prominent solution to
devices, systems, and services from meet DSOs’ expectations on the
different vendors and will not only aforementioned topics.
enhance operational efficiency but
also increase the flexibility of the From the perspective of
supply chain. manufacturers and suppliers,
interoperability may be seen as
For DSOs the Low Voltage (LV) grid is double-edged sword. On one hand, a
becoming a complex asset to tackle potential opportunity to reach a
and monitor. The growing complexity broader customer base, on the other,
of the grid with the integration of a constant risk that could undermine
Electric Vehicles (EVs), the rising competitive advantage through a
number of power chargers, and the perceived lack of differentiation.
inclusion of Distributed Energy
Resources (DERs) represents a For manufacturers, interoperability
challenge for DSOs worldwide. offers the prospect of enhancing
Moreover, with the increasing operational efficiency, typically
pressure from regulatory entities to achieved through standardization.
digitalize the LV grid and focus on Notably, DLMS/COSEM (as commonly
sustainability, DSOs now find referred to as DLMS specifications) is
themselves compelled to accelerate one of the most promising standards
their roll-out activities in a complex for Smart Metering, enabling
socio-economic landscape. In this suppliers to standardize their designs
fast-evolving environment, with and production lines, thus

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 Interoperability & Standardization:
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reducing manufacturing costs. The Data Management Complexity

strength of standardization and
interoperability encourages their One of the most critical challenges
ability not to limit manufacturers from with this type of deployment is the
differentiation but to serve as a complexity associated with managing
foundation for incorporating new and data collected from various sensors,
unique features. in this case smart electricity meters,
gas meters, heat meters and other LV
In fact, interoperability for utilities devices. Moreover, the presence of
encourages innovation from diverse presentation and application
manufacturers rather than limiting standards from each vendor results in
their differential factors. data structured in different ways. This
disparity drives integration costs and
introduces complex technical
Market Fragmentation challenges when creating
management tools, generating
and the Need for reports or accessing data.
Interoperability Multiplicity of Communication
Technologies

Manufacturers frequently adopt

Within the modern landscape of AMI, multiple communication technologies
several factors are hindering the such as Meters&More, PRIME, Wi-SUN,
realization of effective G3 and others. This complicates the
interoperability. process of data collection from the
Vendor-Specific Ecosystems meters and leads to higher
infrastructure costs, primarily due to
Nowadays, each vendor has its own the lack of multi-protocol data
ecosystem including meters, IoT concentrators in the market. Hence,
devices gateways, Application having multiple communication
Programming Interfaces (APIs) and technologies (excluding point-to-
Head-End Systems (HES). This leads point cellular technologies) in the
to several clear disadvantages such same LV grid domain means having
as: increased operation costs due to multiple devices to aggregate each
the existence of multiple tools, protocol. The challenges outlined
increased maintenance complexity as above often force DSOs to embrace a
support is needed for the different vendor-lock framework to navigate
tools, and increased deployment these complexities.
costs.
Vendor-lock is defined as the inability

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 Interoperability & Standardization:
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to integrate devices from other these technologies serve as the

companies into the current conduits for the exchange of
infrastructure due to proprietary information between IoT devices, but
protocols or multiple data structures. they all have their own
Vendor-lock is one of the most characteristics that make them
appropriate for certain scenarios.
unfavorable scenarios for any
Their functionality can be
company as it severely restricts
categorized within the OSI (Open
negotiating power, often narrowing Systems Interconnection) model
down the offering of products and layers:
services to only a few suppliers. Thus,
this increases the risks associated Lower OSI Layers (1-4)
with the supply chain, including The lower layers define how data is
delays, price reviews and volume managed throughout the network,
constraints. To mitigate the risk of from the transmission medium (PLC
vendor-lock and alleviate the costs or RF) to frame routing and
associated with technology diversity, management (including
interoperability and standardization segmentation, error checking and
emerge as key factors to address the flow control).
aforementioned challenges.
Upper OSI Layers (5-7)

These upper layers focus on

structured data, emphasizing
The Role of application-specific aspects. They
encompass data models, encryption,
Standardization and and connection management.

Compatibility in AMI To summarize, lower layers focus on

bits, frames and how these are
transmitted in a network, while upper
layers focus on the meaning of the
In the realm of AMI, an abundance of
data for the end applications.
communication technologies are
available for connecting IoT devices to
networks. Three main categories of
IoT networking technologies are widely
used for smart metering applications
– Power Line Communication (PLC),
Cellular (from 3GPP) and various Radio
Frequency (RF) technologies. Each of

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 Interoperability & Standardization:
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7. Application layer
Human-computer interaction layer, where
applications can access the network services On the other hand, upper layers rely
on data and security protocols such
6. Presentation layer
Ensures that data is in a usable format and
is where data encryptions occurs
as DLMS specifications, which
standardizes the data model for
5. Session layer
Maintains connections and is responsible for energy smart meters.
controlling ports and sessions

In general, there are two levels of

4. Transport layer
Transmits data using transmission protocols
including TCP and UDP standardization: one at lower layers
and another at upper layers. These
3. Network layer Decides which physical path the data will take levels can operate independently of
each other, allowing for diverse
2. Data link layer Decides the format of data on the network combinations of technology. This also
means that a device may adhere to a
1. Physical layer
Transmits raw bit streams over the physical standard for lower layers, such as
medium
IEEE 802.15.4, while implementing a
custom data model.

Each layer within this framework can Some associations advocate a full
use several protocols and standards stack of protocols for all layers,
depending on the environment and such as Hybrid G3-PLC, PRIME,
the application. For instance, Wi-SUN, Meters&More, and others.
standardization efforts such as Although each stack uses different
IEEE802.15.4 at the physical and data protocols and standards, the most
link layers govern open recent releases (PRIME and Hybrid
communication standards for G3-PLC) share a common thread in
low-power RF communications, while utilizing DLMS specifications for
G3-PLC serves as a PLC protocol for upper layers.
layer 1.

Enabling new services by driving the evolution of the Open Standards

Data modeling COSEM COSEM

Application
Meters
and More
Presentation DLMS DLMS

Session

Transport UDP

Network IPv6
Meters
PRIME
and More
Data link
G3-PLC
PHY

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 Interoperability & Standardization:
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Interoperability and DLMS UA Generic Companion Profiles

(GCP’s) are a precise selection of
Standardization: features and functionalities specified
Driving Efficiency in in the DLMS UA Core Specifications,
AMI tailored to meet the requirements of
various use cases. By aggregating
multiple use cases and
parameterizing and configuring the
Interoperability is the ability of core functionalities, a specific
different devices to communicate and application can be developed for
it can occur at both network and devices or services within a particular
data model level. industry, Smart Metering for instance.
These generic companion profiles
The lack of interoperability at the serve as standardized guidelines and
network level can lead to higher specifications, allowing devices from
hardware costs due to the lack of different manufacturers to
multi-protocoliconcentrators..However, communicate and behave in the
the lack of interoperability at the same way independently of their
data level will result in much higher origin. By implementing these profiles,
integration and operation costs. utilities and device implementers can
ensure smooth integration and
DLMS specifications define the enhanced functionality, ultimately
transport and application layer with a benefiting end-users.
set of standard object-oriented
messages. These specifications are The release of core specifications
maintained by the DLMS User alongside companion profiles
Association and are communication underscores the importance of
media independent so they can work organizations like DLMS UA, that play
over different lower layers a key role in promoting
specifications (RF, PLC). interoperability, and also providing
certification services to validate
However, the use of DLMS compliance and compatibility to the
specifications do not automatically specifications.
guarantee interoperability with other
devices implementing the DLMS
specifications. This led the DLMS UA
to developed Generic Companion
Profiles which ensure the highest level
of interoperability and compatibility.

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 Interoperability & Standardization:
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Elevating DLMS UA has already taken

significant strides in fortifying data
Interoperability; Data security and is now focusing on
Exchange Security standardizing the commissioning and
decommissioning processes in device
data exchange. This holistic
approach ensures not only the
In the broader context of
security but also the standardization
interoperability, data security
of data exchange, contributing to the
emerges as an essential component.
establishment of a resilient and
The quest for interoperability typically efficient ecosystem for
encompasses two distinct layers of interconnected devices.
data security: securing
communication protocols and
reinforcing data exchange processes,
especially during critical
The Impact of
processes such as device Interoperability &
commissioning and decommissioning. Interchangeability
It is not merely about enabling
devices to connect to specific
networks since it extends to A DSO responsible for replacing a
safeguarding the entire lifecycle of defective meter in the field due to the
data exchange. expiration of the previous supply
contract and the introduction of a
As we progress towards a more more innovative product faces
interconnected future, where devices several critical considerations:
communicate and interact, a holistic
approach to interoperability must CommunicationoTechnology
consider not only the Compatibility
interchangeability of devices but also
the robustness of data security Ensure that the new meter aligns with
mechanisms. the communication technology
supported by the IoT platform,
Acknowledging this imperative, considering factors like PLC & RF
organizations like DLMS UA are taking compatibility. For example, if there
proactive measures to secure data are only devices within the network
exchange, demonstrating a steadfast that support PLC, meters that
commitment in the promotion of communicate via the same
interoperability. technology are required.

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 Interoperability & Standardization:
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Upper OSI Layer Compatibility environment, achieving perfect

(Layers 5-7) integration and uniformity among
meter solutions is a challenging
Verify that the data exchange format endeavor for DSOs. In practice, many
matches the existing infrastructure. DSOs resort to the vendor-lock
The main standard for energy framework mentioned earlier or opt
metering is DLMS that defines the to integrate new meters into entirely
transport and application layer with a new infrastructures to avoid
set of standard object-oriented communication compatibility issues
messages, and that is adopted by the with existing infrastructure.
IEC in the 62056 series of standards.
Frequently, the resulting
Lower OSI Layer Compatibility (Layers configuration resembles the one
1-4) illustrated in FIGURE 1.
Confirm that the information In this configuration, each meter has
exchanged adheres to a protocol its own data concentrator and
recognizable by the communication management system. Additionally,
platform, considering protocols like other systems or applications may
Hybrid G3-PLC and Wi-SUN. rely on the data collected by these
meters. This complexity requires the
If these criteria are met, the DSO can
implementation of an expensive
efficiently replace the malfunctioning
integration layer to facilitate
meter. By ensuring the new meter uses
communication between the different
the same communication media and
systems, applications, and
integrating the protocols and
databases. Moreover, despite having
standards from the previous meter,
the same lower OSI layers, as each
the transition occurs smoothly.
meter has its own orders, every time a
However, in practice, achieving
new type of meter is integrated, an
complete interchangeability is not
integration step with the central
always straightforward.
systems is required, further
Interchangeability is the ability to escalating costs.
physically swap one device for
While this approach entails several
another while maintaining the same
limitations at the device level,
functionality without altering existing
requiring careful consideration of
systems. It plays a key role in
hardware compatibility with different
real-world scenarios which are more
IT infrastructures, it does provide
intricate than this idealized
DSOs with greater flexibility in
interoperability model suggests.
managing existing situations,
Even in a fully interoperable including those resulting from
acquisitions.

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FIGURE 1 - Non-Interoperable Achieving

Scenario
Interoperability with
DLMS UA
Specifications

In contrast, an alternative approach

becomes feasible when all devices are
certified to be DLMS compliant and
compatible and assume the same
lower OSI layers. This interoperable
approach, as illustrated in FIGURE 2,
substantially reduces costs.

Since all the meters have the same

DLMS commands, no additional
development is necessary for the
central systems. In this configuration,
the central system often adopts an
all-in-one design, capable of
managing any DLMS-compatible
device, without additional
customization.

However, a light integration step may

be required to configure the central
system according to the available
DLMS commands on the new meter.

It is worth noting that not all the

DLMS-compatible meters have the
same commands. These will vary
based on the manufacturer’s
specification, requirements and any
additional differentiating features.

Additionally, in this interoperable

approach, applications, and related

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systems [S0,S1,...,SN] can work While there is a perceived risk that

independently from the central standardization could impose limits
system. If designed correctly, these on innovation, it is crucial to
systems integrate easily with the recognize that standards do not
structure of DLMS messages. prohibit manufacturers from
Furthermore, this approach also enhancing their products with
enables future use cases such as additional features to foster
multi-utility integration, where heat, innovation and differentiation.
water and gas meters use the same
DLMS specifications. A simple Therefore, manufacturers are
addition of a new Sk system or encouraged to proactively leverage
application facilitates data standards as a basis and then
management from each sub-meter incorporate new functionalities and
category. address emerging use cases.

This approach not only aligns with

FIGURE 2 - Interoperable Scenario the evolving needs of DSOs but also
opens doors to innovation and
market differentiation.

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 Interoperability & Standardization:
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Conclusions

In conclusion, the dynamic landscape of Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI)

presents both opportunities and challenges for Distribution System Operators
(DSOs). As DSOs strive to optimize their operations, enhance network stability,
and adapt to the complexities of the Low Voltage (LV) grid, the importance of
interoperability and standardization has never been more evident.

The proliferation of technologies, vendors, and standards within the Smart

Metering market has brought forth operational complexities, vendor-specific
ecosystems, and data management challenges. While the growing diversity of
communication technologies has introduced opportunities, it has also given rise
to higher infrastructure costs and hindered continuous data exchange. In
response to these challenges, DSOs have at times found themselves locked into
proprietary frameworks, limiting their flexibility, and negotiating power.

To navigate this intricate landscape, interoperability and standardization have

emerged as key strategies. Standardization and compatibility across
communication technologies and data models play a pivotal role in ensuring the
smooth operation of AMI systems. This not only minimizes costs but also
maximizes efficiency, positioning DSOs to meet evolving regulatory
requirements and industry best practices.

As DSOs chart their course in this ever-evolving ecosystem, it is crucial to

consider factors such as device certification, future-proofing strategies, vendor
collaboration, and robust data security and privacy measures. These elements
collectively contribute to the successful implementation and operation of AMI
solutions. In practice, DSOs often find themselves striking a balance between
standardized approaches and the need to adapt to specific situations and
evolving technologies. Flexibility and adaptability remain key assets in
optimizing utility costs and processes throughout the entire AMI lifecycle. By
embracing interoperability and standardization, DSOs can not only meet
current challenges but also position themselves to thrive in the exciting and
rapidly evolving world of smart metering and grid management.
The journey toward an optimized, resilient, and sustainable LV grid continues,
and interoperability and standardization are the guiding lights illuminating the
path forward.

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 Interoperability & Standardization:
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Embrace interoperability and

standardization for a thriving grid

Gridspertise

Gridspertise offers grid intelligent combining intelligent and automated

devices, end-to-end cloud-edge grid central level as well as on the
platform solutions, and services to edge. The company was set-up in
accelerate the digital transformation 2021 as a carve-out of Enel’s
of electricity distribution grids across twenty-year-long experience in
three main areas: metering and grid developing, testing, and scaling up
edge digitalization, network digital technologies to transform
infrastructure digitalization, field legacy distribution networks into
operation digitalization. smart grids.

The Company’s portfolio is designed Gridspertise is today jointly

as an open ecosystem, easy to controlled by the Enel Group and the
integrate with Distribution System leading global alternative investment
Operators' existing infrastructure, manager CVC Capital Partners.

Authors
Toufann Chaudhuri
Technical Director, DLMS
User Association

Àlex Ferré Janer

Product Manager Metering
& Field Solutions, Gridspertise

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