Patent ID: 7362236

Claim:
A mobile utility data collection system for automatically or semi-automatically collecting data regarding consumption of a public utility, the system comprising: a remote reading component configured to facilitate communications from one or more endpoints, including receiving meter information from the one or more endpoints that relates to consumption of a gas, water, and/or electric utility; an automatic meter reading component configured to collect and manage information received by the remote meter reading component; a speech synthesis component coupled to the automatic meter reading component and configured to provide audio output to an operator of the mobile data collection system, wherein the audio output includes audible signals corresponding to prerecorded human speech or artificial human speech, and wherein the prerecorded human speech or artificial human speech includes statements for informing an operator about collection of utility data or about a current state of the mobile utility data collection system; and a voice recognition component coupled to the automatic meter reading component and configured to process incoming human speech commands, wherein the voice recognition component is configured for use in generating computer-readable instructions for controlling at least some operations of the mobile utility data collection system.