Patent ID: 8107491

Claim:
An intelligent electronic metering device for simultaneously communicating to a plurality of devices over a network via a plurality of open channels, the device comprising: an interface to couple the electronic metering device to the network and to receive a message in a protocol of the network from at least one of the plurality of devices over at least one open channel, the message including a request formatted in at least one metering communication protocol, wherein the interface formats the request in a serial protocol of the electronic metering device by stripping a network protocol header and footer from the message in the protocol of the network and builds a serial header and footer of the serial protocol around the request without changing the request, the protocol of the network being different than the serial protocol; a serial channel coupling the interface to a processor; and the processor to receive the request from the interface through the serial channel after the interface formats the request in the serial protocol, generate a response to the request and transmit the response to the interface via the serial protocol of the electronic metering device, wherein the interface formats the response in the protocol of the network by building a network protocol header and footer around the response without changing the response and transmits the response with the network protocol header and footer over the network via at least one open channel to the at least one of the plurality of devices.