Patent ID: 8667060

Claim:
A data aggregator for use in an advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), comprising: a processor coupled to a memory; a communication system, executed by a processor, for communicating with a plurality of communication modules resident in a plurality of associated utility meters, wherein each communication module includes a group manager for determining a communications behavior profile based upon a group membership with a set of utility meters in a defined group, wherein the group membership determines how outbound messages are generated and how directives embedded in inbound messages are implemented; a data collection system, executed by the processor, for collecting messages from the plurality of communication modules; an aggregation system, executed by the processor, for managing messages as aggregated data in an addressable memory space, wherein the aggregation system includes: a system for grouping controllable data points such that commanding a change to a single controllable data point affects the set of utility meters in the defined group; a back haul interface, executed by the processor, for communicating via a back haul to a head end system; and a data presentation system, executed by the processor, for transmitting aggregated data to a head end system via the back haul such that the head end system is synchronously updated with changes in data from the data aggregator.