Power Line Communications PLC Muhammad Salman Yousuf Department

Outline Introduction A bit of history Modern applications and prospects Issues / Problems Layers,

Introduction Power Lines, originally devised to transmit electricity from a some sources to many

PLC has a bit of history… PLC has been around for quite some time

Modern Applications & Prospects Radio Broadcasting Used widely in Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Russia… Radio

Modern Applications and Prospects (Cont’d) Home Automation (X 10 Standard, 1975) Home Networking and

Modern Applications and Prospects (Cont’d) Last mile and Last inch access… Last-mile access 10

Modern Applications and Prospects (Cont’d) PLC has been used for specific problems as well

Issues / Problems Design Varying Channel Model High dependence of location of transceivers Reflection

Issues / Problems (Cont’d) Noise Not Gaussian Sources: Brush motors, bulbs and lamps, switching

Layers, Access Methods and Protocols Communications in PLs can be divided into The Physical

The Physical Layer Defines Modulation Techniques FSK – Frequency Shift Keying CDMA – Code

The Medium Access Control (MAC) Layer Specifies access and resource sharing protocols MAC has

Various Standards Many standards available, but none is very strong X 10 was the

Home. Plug Powerline Alliance Trade group consisting of over 65 companies Founded in March

Home. Plug 1. 0 Standard Developed in 2000 Main features in the Physical Layer

Home. Plug 1. 0 Standard Main Features of the MAC Layer 24 Modeled to

Home. Plug 1. 0 Standard 25 09 September 2021

Home. Plug AV Standard Next generation technology Aims to provide high quality, multi-stream, entertainment

Home. Plug AV Standard Main Features of Physical Layer 2 – 28 MHz frequency

Home. Plug AV Standard Main Features of MAC Protocols 28 Connection oriented Contention free

IEEE Standards (or lack of them…) IEEE P 1675 "Standard for Broadband over Power

More Topics Qo. S (Quality of Service) Features Guaranteed bandwidth Fixed Latency Quasi-Error free

PLC in Saudi Arabia Electro. Net with SEC since 2005 on a Pilot Project

Conclusions Rapidly growing technology Has tremendous potential to provide quality services at low cost

Questions and Answers Dear friends, Point to note: I am the first and you

Slides: 36

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Power Line Communications (PLC) Muhammad Salman Yousuf, Department of Electrical Engineering, KFUPM. 1 09 September 2021

Outline Introduction A bit of history Modern applications and prospects Issues / Problems Layers, Access Methods and Protocols Various Standards Home. Plug Powerline Alliance Standards IEEE Standards More topics PLC usage in Saudi Arabia 2 09 September 2021

Introduction Power Lines, originally devised to transmit electricity from a some sources to many sinks Operation frequency: 50 -60 Hz Power cables, lines and towers are some of the most robust structures Power Lines can be used for communication as well Data is modulated on a carrier frequency and sent over Can use existing infrastructure for data traffic Can also provide many other benefits Involves a lot of technicalities and expertise 4 09 September 2021

PLC has a bit of history… PLC has been around for quite some time Initially, data over PLs was used for protection Telemetry purposes (1922) (15 – 500 k. Hz carrier frequency) Consumer products like baby alarms (1940) Automated meter reading (1970 s) All these were low bit rate applications But now due to advancements in VLSI and DSP, PLC has received renewed attention… 6 09 September 2021

Modern Applications & Prospects Radio Broadcasting Used widely in Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Russia… Radio program fed by special transformers into lines Filters installed in substations and line branches Automotive 8 Digital Transmission of data over DC power lines inside the car Advanced digital communications techniques used One power line can be used for multiple separate networks Protocols used: CAN-bus, LIN-bus, DC-bus Applications: Climate control, Multimedia, Instrumentation, Mechatronics 09 September 2021

Modern Applications and Prospects (Cont’d) Home Automation (X 10 Standard, 1975) Home Networking and Internet (BPL) 9 Last mile access – to the home Last inch access – to the devices inside the home In-home networking could transform all power outlets in our homes into broadband connections for PCs, phones and many other ‘enable’ electrical appliances BPL can also be used as backhaul for wireless communications and Wi. MAX networks BPL as backup No universal standard, although Home. Plug is popular 09 September 2021

Modern Applications and Prospects (Cont’d) Last mile and Last inch access… Last-mile access 10 Last-inch access 09 September 2021

Modern Applications and Prospects (Cont’d) PLC has been used for specific problems as well Practical Intelligent homes Remote detection of illegal electricity usage Quality monitoring of power systems and power 11 09 September 2021

Issues / Problems Design Varying Channel Model High dependence of location of transceivers Reflection Varying Impedance Noise Impedance No Line of sight Echoes Multipath Fading Attenuation 13 09 September 2021

Issues / Problems (Cont’d) Noise Not Gaussian Sources: Brush motors, bulbs and lamps, switching power supplies, dimmers, power tools etc. Power lines can catch radio and ISM band signals Mainly four types of noise are present Generalized Model 14 09 September 2021

Layers, Access Methods and Protocols Communications in PLs can be divided into The Physical Layer The Medium Access Control Layer 16 Defines modulation techniques FSK, CDMA, OFDM Specifies resource sharing strategy Specifies protocols 09 September 2021

The Physical Layer Defines Modulation Techniques FSK – Frequency Shift Keying CDMA – Code Division Multiple Access Low cost, low data-rate applications Like protection and telemetry Data rates up to 1 Mbps OFDM – Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing 17 Data rates above 1 Mbps Broadband 09 September 2021

The Medium Access Control (MAC) Layer Specifies access and resource sharing protocols MAC has two categories of access schemes Fixed Access Dynamic Access 18 Assigns each user fixed channels Doesn’t care if the user needs it or not Not suitable for traffic in bursts, like internet, data etc. All users can use the channel when they need it if it is free Contention based protocols – collisions occur Arbitration based protocols – collisions avoided / collision free Examples of MAC protocols are: Polling, Aloha, Token schemes, CSMA/CA/CD Home. Plug standard uses CSMA/CA 09 September 2021

Various Standards Many standards available, but none is very strong X 10 was the default standards up till now but has limited applications OPERA – Open PLC European Research Alliance POWERNET – European Commission UPA – Universal Powerline Association * CEPCA – Consumer Electronics Powerline Communications Alliance (Sony, Mitsubishi & Panasonic) ETSI PLT Home. Plug Powerline Alliance * IEEE *Strong standards 20 09 September 2021

Home. Plug Powerline Alliance Trade group consisting of over 65 companies Founded in March 2000 Mission: To enable and promote rapid availability, adoption and implementation of cost-effective, interoperable and standards-based home power line networks and products. Big players: Earthlink, General Electric, Intel, Linksys, Motorola, Radio Shack, Samsung, Sony, Sharp etc. Contributions from multiple companies = Best of class performance Defined the following standards 22 Home. Plug 1. 0 – connects devices in homes Home. Plug AV – transmits HDTV and Vo. IP in home Home. Plug BPL – still a working group for last-mile broadband Home. Plug CC – Command Control to complement others 09 September 2021

Home. Plug 1. 0 Standard Developed in 2000 Main features in the Physical Layer OFDM 23 OFDM is well known in literature Used in DSL, IEEE 802. 11 a/g, TV transmission Specially tailored for Home. Plug Has 84 equally spaced subcarriers between 1 -4. 5 MHz DBPSK and DQPSK completely eliminate equalization need FEC and Data Interleaving Uses turbo codes Adaptive approach Uses innovative modulation mechanism 09 September 2021

Home. Plug 1. 0 Standard Main Features of the MAC Layer 24 Modeled to work with the IEEE 802. 3 frame formats Appends Ethernet frames with encryption and management data May use segmentation and reassembly Two basic frame formats Uses CSMA/CA Allows up to four different priority levels Uses a backoff algorithm to provide high network utilization even under heavy loads 09 September 2021

Home. Plug 1. 0 Standard 25 09 September 2021

Home. Plug AV Standard Next generation technology Aims to provide high quality, multi-stream, entertainment oriented networking over existing AC wiring Interoperable with Home. Plug 1. 0 Standard Supports up to 200 Mbps channel rate and 150 Mbps information rate Robust and successful in high noise environments 26 09 September 2021

Home. Plug AV Standard Main Features of Physical Layer 2 – 28 MHz frequency range 200 Mbps channel and 150 Mbps information rates Windowed OFDM Uses power Turbo Convolutional Codes (TCC) Modulation varies from BPSK (1 bit / carrier / symbol) to 1024 QAM (10 bits / carrier / symbol) – highly adaptive to varying channel characteristics between Tx and Rx Separate inputs for data, control and HP 1. 0 signals More details in Q&A session if you are interested… 27 09 September 2021

Home. Plug AV Standard Main Features of MAC Protocols 28 Connection oriented Contention free Supports both TDMA and CSMA/CA for efficiency Four different priority levels Has a central manager called CCo 09 September 2021

IEEE Standards (or lack of them…) IEEE P 1675 "Standard for Broadband over Power Line Hardware" working group working on hardware installation and safety issues. IEEE P 1775 "Powerline Communication Equipment Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) Requirements Testing and Measurement Methods“ working group focused on IEEE P 1901 "IEEE P 1901 Draft Standard for Broadband over Power Line Networks: Medium Access Control and Physical Layer Specifications" PLC equipment electromagnetic compatibility requirements testing and measurement methods working group for delivering broadband over power lines. Delivery expected by 2008 30 09 September 2021

More Topics Qo. S (Quality of Service) Features Guaranteed bandwidth Fixed Latency Quasi-Error free service Jitter Performance Security Issues Home. Plug Deployment Field Tests Home. Plug Service Providers Regulations (like FCC in North America) and Compliance Politics – Opposing groups, supporting groups & FCC 32 09 September 2021

PLC in Saudi Arabia Electro. Net with SEC since 2005 on a Pilot Project Uses BPL over Medium Voltage Cables and linking into a Low Voltage distribution within a shopping mall. Also integrates Automatic Meter Readers SACMAC (Saudi Arabian Computer Management Consultants) 34 Signed a deal to become an official system Integrator and Distributor for Mitsubishi PLC. Aims to end the monopoly of STC in providing broadband internet 09 September 2021

Conclusions Rapidly growing technology Has tremendous potential to provide quality services at low cost Has fueled research and advancement of technology and communications in general 35 09 September 2021

Questions and Answers Dear friends, Point to note: I am the first and you all are left!!! 36 09 September 2021