  In this paper we introduce a lowest density MDS array code which is applied
to a Smart Meter network to introduce reliability. By treating the network as
distributed storage with multiple sources, information can be exchanged between
the nodes in the network allowing each node to store parity symbols relating to
data from other nodes. A lowest density MDS array code is then applied to make
the network robust against outages, ensuring low overhead and data transfers.
We show the minimum amount of overhead required to be able to recover from r
node erasures in an n node network and explicitly design an optimal array code
with lowest density. In contrast to existing codes, this one has no
restrictions on the number of nodes or erasures it can correct. Furthermore we
consider incomplete networks where all nodes are not connected to each other.
This limits the exchange of data for purposes of redundancy and we derive
conditions on the minimum node degree that allow lowest density MDS codes to
exist. We also present an explicit code design for incomplete networks that is
capable of correcting two node failures.
