Power Line Communication for Low-Bandwidth Control and Sensing

Technology

Spreading a signal impulse over a range of frequencies reduces the peak amplitude at any given frequency, reducing the generation of stray electromagnetic signals for a given signal power and decreasing the chance of the signal being highly attenuated by unpredictable frequency absorptions that may arise in the system. This technology constitutes a strategy for sending and receiving such frequency-spread signals as “chirps,” pulses of signal that either rise in frequency over their duration (“up chirps”) or fall (“down chirps”). These pulses are relatively easy to detect through the noise of the system and do not require either especially complex receiver circuitry or synchronization between transmitters and receivers. Sequences of up and down pulses can serve as a robust and versatile means for entities on a local grid to communicate information amongst one another.

Problem Addressed

Power lines were not designed with communication applications in mind, but there has long been interest in exploiting power lines as convenient signal paths for low data requirement purposes such as simple messages, remote monitoring, and control of equipment. Early attempts at such usage date back to the 1920s. Historically, such efforts have suffered from attenuation of signals over the lines, unpredictable load-based changes to the signal transmission properties of the system, and regulatory constraints concerned with the emission of high strength signals from power lines. PLC systems that are both reliable and unobtrusive have thus remained elusive. By utilizing “chirps,” this signal transmission method enables PLC systems over local networks that are robust and compliant with regulations.

Advantages

• Reliable PLC building communication  

• High tolerance for system noise and changes to impedance 

Publications

Aderibole, et al. "Power Line Communication for Low-Bandwidth Control and Sensing." IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, 2021.