Description
Table of Contents
Abstract
Chapter One: Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study
1.2 Statement of the Study
1.3 Aims and Objectives of the Study
1.4 Motivation of the Study
1.5 Scope of the Study
1.6 Limitation of the Project
1.7 Definition of Terms
Chapter Two: Review of Related Literature
- Introduction to billing
- Types of billing
- Classification of bills
- Online billing systems (Electronic bills)
- Short message service (SMS)
- Water meter
- Meter reading (MR)
- Review of some existing water billing systems
- Software tools
Chapter Three: Research Methodology Analysis and Design
3.0 Introduction
3.1 Research Methodology
3.2 System Design
3.2.1 Input Design
3.2.2 Output Design
3.2.3 Program Flowchart
Chapter Four: System Implementation and Documentation
4.0 Introduction
4.1 System Design Diagram
4.2 Choice of Programming Language
4.3 Analysis of Modules
4.3.1 Main Page
4.3.2 Password
4.3.3 Main Menu
4.3.4 Registration
4.3.5 Billing
4.3.6 Complaints and Repairs
4.3.7 End
4.4 Programming Environment
4.4.1 Hardware
4.4.2 Software
4.5 Implementation
Chapter Five: Summary, Conclusion, and Recommendation
5.0 Introduction
5.1 Constraints of the Study
5.2 Summary
5.3 Conclusion
5.4 Recommendations
References
Appendices
Appendix A: Main Page
Appendix B: Registration
Appendix C: Billing
Appendix D: Complaints and Repairs
ABSTRACT
The Nigerian water sector is confronted with inadequate, poor, un-organized water supply billing and consumer relations management. Water Tariff charges and collection has been a major challenge in some community in Nigeria. The procedure of installment and payment is cumbersome and distressing as water consumers need to proceed to banks to make payments and then take tellers to water control utility offices to affirm their water payment before they can energize their supply. The significant motivation of this research is to design and implement a convenient, cashless, automated and transparent water metering, billing and payment system. This research combines the power of the internet to make power meters communicate with SMS and E-mails network. This proposed system when fully implemented, will allow water consumers to remotely recharge and pay their water bills from their mobile phones and laptops seamlessly. The implementation of the Online water Payment and Metering System for Cross River State Nigeria will help improve accountability, organize and ease payment for water in Nigeria. The proposed system was developed using the HTML & CSS, and the PHP and mySQL programming language.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
- BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Water is one of the most essential natural resources which both plants and animals cannot do without in a day. Water, being used by human for various purposes like; commercial, agricultural, and domestic and etc.
In Nigeria, the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and the water boards in each state are responsible for ensuring that Nigerians have access to safe and clean water. The Board principally provides an adequate supply of water for domestic and industrial purposes and develop, maintain, and protect waterworks for this purpose. The Board may consider necessary for the purpose of providing sustainable potable water in order to meet the requirements of the general public at reasonable charges.
Water boards are key contributors to the water delivery value chain. Their main responsibility is to sanitize raw water supplied by the Water Trading Entity and supply the clean water to municipalities responsible for ensuring access to water services, also referred to as water service authorities.
The Nigerian water segment is confronted with inadequate, unorganized billing and consumer relations organization. Water supply Tariff billing and collection has been a major problem in Nigeria.
It is obvious that without technology there is no modernization, and modernization in turn brings about improvement in the quality of our lives. The invention of computer and some other related devices has no doubt brought improvement in the quality of life. With the introduction of computer many software were invented and has made those things, which seem not to be possible, a reality.
Online Based Water payment and metering Software is a special program designed to store and manages the records of all the billing activities of the Cross River State water board. It helps to save the record of consumers, cashiers and monthly bills. It also helps to send consumers monthly bills via SMS.
The major purpose of this work is to design and implement a convenient, cashless, computerized and transparent water metering, billing and payment of water bill without having to visit the banks with SMS and email integration to notify users when payments are made and their meter card energized.
A unique feature of this system is that, once a consumer is disconnected or his/her allocated water is exhausted, they can pay remotely from anywhere in the world through their mobile phones or Laptops, on confirmation of the payment, they are automatically reconnected, as this project works on internet network, the system can be accessed from any part of the country.
- STATEMENT OF THE STUDY
Proper record management is of very important to every organization or company. Most organizations have poor record management which leads them to having many problems during auditing. Water Board is an organization that deals with every day transaction. The record of bills is what is used to determine success or failure and is what will be used for further decision as to continue with the present pattern of business or change to a new style.
The manual record keeping and billing is very slow and is error prone. No proper security is usually provided to the record and so can be tempered with by any individual either intentional or accidental. Another problem with the manual system of record keeping and billing is the natural disaster. Disasters like fire outbreak etc can cause damages or even total vanish of all records. An online payment and metering system came to solve the above mentioned problems. The system was adapted to, among others, enhance revenue collection and eradicate illegal water usage by simplifying water supply services.
- AIMS AND OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
The main aim of this research to Design and Implement an online payment and metering system of water board in Cross River State Nigeria that will allow water users across the state recharge their water seamlessly. The objectives of the study are to:
- Enable Payment for water consumed through the internet with SMS and email notification.
- Automatically crediting consumers and allocating water supply immediately after payment.
- Sending SMS and email alerts after payments or when credit is running low.
- Sending water consumption information to the water utility office.
- Protection of payment & billing transactions.
- Increasing accountability in the water sector in Nigeria.
- To evaluate the tools, techniques and methods used to design and implement the propose system.
- To conduct a literature review on online based Water Billing and metering System
- MOTIVATION OF THE STUDY
Water is considered a fundamental human need, as it is essential for survival and plays a vital role in numerous bodily functions, including regulating body temperature, transporting nutrients, flushing out waste, and maintaining the health of cells and organs; without adequate water intake, humans can suffer from dehydration, which can lead to serious health complications. This has led to the development the Online water Payment and Metering System, to enable water payment very simple and easy when exhausted.
This project work is of benefit to the management of Cross River State Water Board for simplicity of their work and to help improve their activities more efficiently. The research also served as academic bedrock upon which student and researchers would build their research on similar or other academic work of their choice.
1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The scope of this work is focused on implementing an online payment and metering system of water board in Cross River State
1.6 LIMITATION OF THE PROJECT
This project is developed to cover the payment challenges water consumers face in areas handled by Cross River Water board, but it can be used and implemented by other water distribution company across Nigeria, this can be achieved by merely adjusting the input design of the program and user interface.
- DEFINITION OF TERMS
Internet
It is a “network of networks” that consists of millions of smaller domestic, academic, business, and government networks, etc. which together carry various information and services, such as electronic mail, online chat, file transfer, and the interlinked web pages and other resources of the World Wide Web (www).
Web
The World Wide Web (commonly shortened to the Web) is a system of interlinked hypertext document accessed via the internet.
Web browser
A web browser is a software application which enables a user to display and interact with text, images, video, music and other information typically located on a Web page at a website on the World Wide Web or a local area network.
Website
A website (alternatively, web site ) is a collection of web pages, images, video or other digital assists that is hosted on one or more web servers, usually accessible via the internet.
Web page
A web page or webpage is a resource of information that is suitable for the World Wide Web and can be accessed through a web browser. This information is usually in HTML or XHTML format, and may provide navigation to other web pages via hypertext links.
Local host
Local host is a software program that facilitates access to peer-to-peer virtual file system via Bit Torrent protocol.
Default name describing the local computer address also known as the loopback address. For example, typing: ping localhost would ping the local IP address of 127.0.0.1 (the loopback address). When setting up a web server or software on a web server, 127.0.0.1 is used to point the software to the local machine.
This IP address is the local IP address and is not the IP address used by your computer to communicate with other computers on your network or the Internet.
Web server
A web server is essentially a computer program which is responsible for handling HTTP requests. A browser request to view a page the server then accepts the request and displays the page. From a general point of view, we consider web servers as the storage area for files which are available on the web. So in order for any page to be viewable on the web it must be loaded on to the web server. A web server is usually a dedicated piece of hardware and software used to allow a website to be displayed on the net.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, AND RECCOMENDATION
5.0 Introduction
This chapter studied the summary, conclusion, and recommendation of this research.
5.1 Constraints of the Study
The following factors intended to hinder the progress of this research;
- Lack of funds to carry out the research and create the system required
- Limited time given for the completion of the project coupled with normal academic activities
- Unavailability of materials in the school library that is related to the topic of research
- Virus attack on the computer system used in the typing the work
- Low response of Cross River State water board officials during interviews.
5.2 Summary
Monitoring the distribution of water in Cross River State water board entails a great deal of precaution and specification. It is required that for every customer that accumulates a bill within a particular period that the bills are paid off before the next period or their water is being disconnected. Computing and storing this information requires less error occurrences or there will be misrepresentations. Computerized power monitoring system is a computer-based system that aids the control of these information and stores the in a logically designed system. The system is used to compute the bills of customers and to also collect their complain over the use of the power being discharged in their area. The new system intend to replace the old manual system that consist of different errors.
5.3 Conclusion
Using an automated system should be the pursuit of any standard firm that intends to manage information in their company. An automated system constitutes different advantage that makes business today turn to its method of operation. Managing the distribution of water is only but one of the areas where Information technology is useful, numerous others abound. It is therefore for good that any firm should adopt this measure.
5.4 Recommendations
The following are the recommendations made for the use of the new system:
- The staff of Cross River State water board should be trained on the use of the new by a professional.
- The programmer of the system or a reliable professional should be employed to maintain the system from time and to also update the system.
- A reliable network should be built that will ensure even distribution of the software suit to different offices in the firm.
- More computer devices should be purchased and placed in the offices.
- Customer should be educated on new changes that may have occurred due to the implementation of the new system.
- Backup systems should be created for the database of the system to avoid unnecessary loses of important information.
