User's Guide

IL42-4036B May 2011
4
Placing the A3 ALPHA meter with Wireless WIC into service
WARNING
!
Use authorized utility procedures when placing the standard A3 ALPHA meter or the A3 ALPHA meter with EA_Gatekeeper
module into service. Equipment damage, personal injury, or death can result if authorized utility procedures are not
followed.
See IL42-4001Q or later for the A3 ALPHA meter installation instructions. When planning the meter installation, consider the
following additional guidelines:
■ Since the Wireless WIC and EA_LAN (if present) are high frequency communication devices, site the meter so that
the front of the meter has the best possible view of the surrounding terrain.
■ Do not place metal structures (other than the meter socket and related cabling) within 20 cm of the meter.
After the Wireless WIC external antenna is installed (if supplied) and the A3 ALPHA meter is installed and powered as
instructed in IL42-4001Q or later, the installation is complete. To verify operation of the Wireless WIC on-site, the following
steps may be taken:
1. After installing and powering the A3 ALPHA meter, wait approximately 5 minutes for the Wireless WIC to connect to
the cellular network and initialize.
2. Using Metercat and an optical probe connection, perform a diagnostic read. For information on using Metercat
and performing diagnostic reads, see the Metercat software documentation or online Help.
3. Once the diagnostic read is performed, select the Special Option Board section. Several operational parameters
are provided, including the following:
Item Expected status
WAN Wireless Status
Status "Connected" means the Wireless WIC is registered to the cellular network
Received Signal Strength
Indication (RSSI)
The RSSI may vary between 0 and 31, with 31 indicating the best possible signal
strength. An RSSI value of 99 indicates an unknown or non-detectable signal.
WAN IP address The IP address provided by the cellular network.