Legacy water meter optical reading
Mechanical water meters with rolling number registers are accurate, sealed and installed everywhere. A camera on a mounting plate photographs the register, and the cloud AI model reads the digits into a consumption record.
THE PROBLEM
Good meters, manual readings
Factories, campuses, hotels and residential blocks often sub-meter water with mechanical meters that have no pulse output. Reading them means opening meter chambers and cupboards once a month, and the numbers are typed into a spreadsheet by hand.
Monthly readings hide what matters. A leak running at night, a cooling tower overflowing or a toilet cistern stuck open looks like ordinary consumption when you see it once a month. Daily readings make those patterns visible.
Replacing the meter means cutting the pipe, isolating supply and, for billing meters, involving the utility or a verification body. A camera reading avoids all of that because the meter stays sealed and in place.
HOW WE SET IT UP
Reading the register you already have
Meter format check
We confirm the register type from photos: rolling odometer digits, the red litre wheels and any small dials. The model is set up for the format your meters use.
Fixed over the register
A mounting plate holds the camera square to the meter face. Meter chambers are dark, so we design the lighting into the mount.
Half-rolled digits handled
Odometer digits are often caught between two numbers. The model reads the register as a whole and flags any reading it is unsure of for review.
Readings turned into consumption
RIOD Live turns successive register values into daily and hourly consumption, and alerts you to night flow or sudden jumps.
AT A GLANCE
Water meter reading in brief
- What is measured
- Meter register reading, converted into consumption over time
- Meter types
- Odometer-style mechanical registers, confirmed per meter format
- Hardware
- Vision AI optical meter reader on a mounting plate
- Power
- Battery, target at least one year at one reading a day
- Data
- MQTT over TLS 1.2 to RIOD Live or your own server, exports to PDF and Excel
- Quality control
- Low-confidence readings flagged with the image attached
- Validation
- Meter format and reading accuracy validated during the pilot
FAQ
Questions buyers ask us
Can I make an old water meter smart without replacing it?
Yes. A camera reader mounted over the existing register photographs it on a schedule, and a cloud AI model reads the digits. The meter stays sealed and in place.
Which water meters can it read?
Mechanical meters with odometer-style registers are the main fit. We check your meter format from photos and validate readings during a pilot before a wider rollout.
Can it detect leaks?
Yes, with several readings a day. The platform shows consumption at times when the site should be quiet, such as overnight. A steady night flow is a strong sign of a leak or an overflowing tank.
Is the reading suitable for tenant billing?
Many sites use the readings for internal cost allocation, with the image kept as evidence for each value. Whether they can be used for formal billing depends on your local rules, which we discuss during the project.
Still reading water meters by hand?
Send us a photo of one of your meters and tell us how many there are. We will confirm the fit and plan a pilot.