Port Information - P1 vs RJ12 and HAN vs RJ45
The customer port on the electricity meter where Elveta real-time dongle is connected comes in two different variants. It can be the smaller RJ12 connector or the wider RJ45 connector. Unfortunately, the naming of these connectors is not clear, as the names P1, H1, and HAN may be used interchangeably for the same connector.
The connector of type RJ12 is often called a P1 port, but sometimes it can also be called a HAN port or H1 port.
The connector of type RJ45 is almost always called a HAN port, but other names may occur.
The connector type varies between different countries. Norway has almost exclusively RJ45, Finland has almost exclusively RJ12 and Sweden has a mix of RJ12 and RJ45.
To find out which port you have, make sure to look at the width of the connector and not the name of the port. If you have a network cable, you can try plugging it in (without connecting the other end). If it fits, your meter has an RJ45 connector. If it does not fit, your meter probably has an RJ12 connector. If it is difficult to see, please feel free to send us an email with a picture of the electricity meter and we will try to help you.
RJ45 connector with 8 pins. Also used for network equipment (but with a different cable).
RJ12 connector with 6 pins. Previously used for landline telephone sockets.
Kamstrup OMNIPOWER® has an internal connector behind a plastic cover.
But Which Port Is Fastest, RJ12 or RJ45? (for nerds)
Here we need to distinguish between data speed and data frequency, as well as which data is delivered in each message. Elveta real-time dongle supports all data speeds and data frequencies.
Data speed
The RJ12 port is clearly the fastest at sending data from the electricity meter after the energy data has been sampled. The data speed is almost 50 times higher than for the RJ45 port.
Data frequency
Data frequency is about how often the electricity meter sends data. RJ12 ports send data at least every 10 seconds but can send as often as every second. For example, Ellevio in Stockholm sends every second. However, the most common interval is every 10 seconds.
The RJ45 port also sends data at least every 10 seconds. In Sweden almost never more often, but in Norway it is most common for it to send more often, for example every 2.5 seconds.
Data content
Regarding the content of each message, RJ12 works so that all parameters are sent in each message, meaning every 10 seconds or more often. The RJ45 port in Sweden also sends all parameters in each message every 10 seconds, but not more often. The RJ45 port in Norway, on the other hand, only sends parts of the data parameters in each message, which makes certain types of analysis more limited. A complete message with all information from the electricity meter is only sent once per hour on the RJ45 port in Norway.
Would you like to know more? See how to connect Elveta to different electricity meters under Connecting to Electricity Meters, or contact us.