November 4, 2012

Power Line Communications

Lecture 1: Introduction and Historical Overview of Power Line Communications (PLC)

Dr. Osama M. H. Amin
Electrical Engineering Department Assiut University

November 4, 2012

What is this Lecture about?

Course Objectives Course Information Introduction Historical Overview PLC Bands PLC Infrastructure PLC Characteristics (Noise and Channel) PLC Advantages and Disadvantages PLC Applications PLC Challenges PLC Studies and Standards

November 4, 2012

Course Objectives
Present a wide-ranging introduction to PLC technology Identify the potential benefits of PLC for the future and existing

communication systems Describe technical issues related to PLC Study the PLC channel characterization, communications on the physical layer and electromagnetic interference, through protocols, networks, standards, and up to systems and implementations. Identify areas for further development of the technology that would enhance the communication services.

November 4, 2012

Course Information
Instructor: Dr. Osama M. H. Amin u Email: [email protected] Course Syllabus: see the attached sheet References 1. Power line communications: Theory and applications for narrowband and broadband communications over power lines, H. C. Ferreira, L. Lampe, J. Newbury and T. G. Swart, 2011, Wiley publisher. 2. Broadband Power Line Communication Systems: Theory and Applications, J. Anatory, and N. Theethayi, 2010. 3. Broadband powerline communications: network design, H. Hrasnica, A. Haidine and R. Lehnert, 2004, John Wiley & Sons. Grading: To be discussed: u Exam(s), Project, Final, Attendance

November 4, 2012

Introduction
PLC systems use the existing electrical power lines as a transmission

medium to provide high-speed telecommunications capabilities by coupling Radio Frequency (RF) energy onto the power line. The The Federal Communications Commission FCC in US has identified that broadband PLC has the potential to become an effective means for last-mile delivery of broadband services and may offer a competitive alternative to digital subscriber line (DSL), cable modem services, satellite, Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), fiber optic, and other high speed internet access technologies. The FCC chose to use the term broadband over power line for consumer applications. Many people use the terms PLC and BPL interchangeably. PLC is an interdisciplinary field that includes: antennas and propagation, power engineering, electromagnetic compatibility, telecommunications, and others.

November 4, 2012

Introduction
The availability of much faster digital signal-processing

capabilities and the development of sophisticated modulation, encoding, and error correction schemes have allowed the introduction of new, low-power designs for carrier current devices. These new designs can overcome earlier technical bandwidth limitations caused by the inherent noise and impedance mismatches that are common on commercial power lines.

November 4, 2012

Introduction
Electric power line cables have been optimized for an average

transmission of power of 50-60 hertz (Hz) and a maximum in the range of 400 Hz. Most BPL systems are designed to operate in the frequency spectrum from 1.705 to 30 megahertz (MHz), but occasionally up to 80 MHz, using MV and LV power distribution network lines. HF has the rare ability to support long distance, point-to-point communications with no infrastructure (e.g., repeaters) other than the transmission and reception equipment at each end

November 4, 2012

Historical Overview
In the US, during the 1920s, AT&T was awarded several patents for

these technologies. During the 1930s, ripple carrier signaling (RCS) began to operate on power lines. RCS used the frequency range 125 Hz - 3 KHz with amplitude shift keying (ASK) modulation. RCS provided data rates in the order of a few bits per second but this was sufficient for the load management and automatic reconfiguration of power distribution networks that were the most important tasks performed using RCS. In the 1950s, power utilities were using low frequencies (<1 kHz) to send control messages to equipment on the power grid. By the 1980s, bi-directional communications in the 5 500 kHz band were being used. Following these narrowband, low-data-rate PLC applications, broadband PLC started to develop and today commercialized products for LAN applications and Internet access are becoming more widely available.

PLC Bands
l

Low frequency: 0-1KHz

l

Utility use for control Residential and commercial control, radio Broadband IH and AC

Medium frequency: 1 Khz- 1 MHz

l

High frequency: 1 MHz 100 MHz

l

Ultra-high frequency: > 100 MHz

November 4, 2012

10

PLC Infrastructure
BPL is designed to take advantage of the in-place electrical power grid,

which varies among countries around the world. In the alternating current (A/C) electrical power grid is a three-tiered hierarchical system that is comprised of: High voltage (HV): (110380 kV) networks connect the power stations with large supply regions or big customers. They usually span very long distances, allowing power exchange within a continent. Highvoltage networks are usually realized with overhead supply cables. Medium voltage (MV): (1030 kV) networks supply larger areas, cities and big industrial or commercial customers. Spanned distances are significantly shorter than in the high-voltage networks. The medium-voltage networks are realized as both overhead and underground networks. Low voltage (LV): (230/400 V, in the USA 110 V) networks supply the end users either as individual customers or as single users of a bigger customer. Their length is usually up to a few hundred meters. In urban areas, low-voltage networks are realized with underground cables, whereas in rural areas they exist usually as overhead networks.

November 4, 2012

11

PLC Building blocks

1. Concentrator/Injector is a device that aggregates the end-user

data onto the grid. Injectors are tied to the Internet backbone via fiber of T1 lines and interface to the power lines feeding the BPL service area. 2. Repeater is a physical-layer hardware device used on a network to extend the length, topology, or interconnectivity of the physical medium beyond that imposed by a single segment. 3. Extractors provide the interface between the power lines carrying BPL signals and the households within the service area. BPL extractors are usually located at each LV distribution transformer feeding a group of homes. 4. Router is a device that acts as an interface between two networks and provides network management functions.

BPL Equipment for Medium-Voltage Lines

1st- Generation Unit

2nd-Generation Unit

IBEC BPL Regenerator Units

November 4, 2012

13

HomePlug-Modem Access

HomePlug-Compatible Modem Providing Broadband to the Power Outlet

Typical BPL Internet Access Setup

November 4, 2012

14

5. Inductive couplers are used to connect BPL modems to the

medium voltage power lines. An inductive coupler transfers the communications signal onto the power line by wrapping around the line, without directly connecting to the line. A major challenge is how to deliver the signal from the medium voltage line to the low voltage line that enters your house, because the transformer that lowers the electric power from several thousands volts down to 220/110 is a potential barrier to the broadband signal.

November 4, 2012

15

BPL modems use silicon chips designed to send signals over

electric power lines, much like cable and DSL modems use silicon chips designed to send signals over cable and telephone lines. Advances in processing power have enabled new BPL modem chips to overcome difficulties in sending communications signals over the electric power lines.

November 4, 2012

16

November 4, 2012

17

November 4, 2012

18

November 4, 2012

19

Power Line Characteristics

The use of power line cables for HF data transmission presents a number of

technically difficult challenges such as attenuation, random assembled network, variable terminal impedance at different communication signal frequencies and with the time of day as the networks electrical load pattern varies and atmospheric conditions (temperature, humidity, barometric pressure, lightning, sunspots, and the distance above ground all have an effect). Despite the aforementioned transmission impediments, MV power lines are excellent carriers of RF energy as they are comprised of open wire equipment. The number of MV line crossovers is much less than is found on LV lines. Thus, a low power transmission of only 10 watts can be sufficient to overcome distances of 500 kilometers or more. HF signals can be injected onto a power line by using an appropriately designed high pass filter. Received signal power will be maximized when the impedance of the transmitter, power line and the receiver are matched.

November 4, 2012

20

PLC Noise Sources

Periodic impulses as in switching power supplies u Rich in harmonics u Oscillator 20Kh to > 1MHz u Conduct oscillator noise onto power line u Frequency often varies with load u Switching power supply, halogen lamp, etc. u Severe noise power Universal series wound motors u Vacuum cleaners, kitchen appliances, drills u High repetition rate impulses Random Impulse noise as in Dimmers u Produce large impulses at 100Hz to 120 Hz u Large 20V to 50V impulses Power line intercoms u 3Vpp to 7Vpp from 150KHz to 400KHz u Large harmonics u About 30KHz bandwidth Radio Interference

Drill Noise on Power Line

0.02 0.01

Volts

0.01

0.02 0

50

100

150

200

250 Time (uS)

300

350

400

450

500

20

40

Level(dB)

60

80

100 0

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Frequency (MHz)

Periodic Impulse Noise

0.004 0.002

Volts
0.002 0.004 0.006 0

50

100

150

200

250 Time (uS)

300

350

400

450

500

40

60

Level(dB)
80 100 0

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Frequency (MHz)

Random Impulse Noise

1 0.5

Volts

0.5

50

100

150

200

250 Time (uS)

300

350

400

450

500

20

40

Level(dB)

60

80

100 0

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Frequency (MHz)

Random Impulse Noise

2 1

Volts

50

100

150

200

250 Time (uS)

300

350

400

450

500

20

40

Level(dB)

60

80

100 0

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Frequency (MHz)

Frequency Dependent Fading

l

Multiple reflection points in medium

l l l

Wire gauge changes Sharp turns in wiring Junction box connections

l l l l

Causes frequency dependent fading Longer impulse response => ISI Load changes affect channel Every path is unique (even in each direction)

November 4, 2012

26

PLC Advantages
Extensive coverage: power lines are installed almost everywhere

and this provides broad coverage even for rural areas where other communication infrastructure may not be available. Cost: since existing power lines are used for the infrastructure of PLC networks, communication can be established quickly and cost effectively (Gungor & Lambert 2006).

November 4, 2012

27

PLC disadvantages
High noise resulting in high bit error rates: when it comes to

data communications, power lines environments are considered noisy due to their surrounding by noise sources (e.g. electrical motors, power supplies, fluorescent lights and radio signal interference) (Pavlidou et al. 2003). Attenuation and distortion: signal attenuation and distortion can be significant for reasons such as power network physical topology and power lines impedance fluctuation. Furthermore, signal attenuation arises significantly at specific frequency bands as a result of wave reflection at terminal points (Galli & Scaglione 2003).

November 4, 2012

28

Security: there is neither shielding nor twisting in power cables

and thus power lines produce a significant amount of Electro Magnetic Interference (EMI) which can be received via radio receivers (Liu & Widmer 2003). Therefore, in order to guarantee security of data, appropriate encryption techniques must be used to prevent interceptions by unauthorized persons. Open circuit problem: communication over the power lines is lost with devices on the far side of an open circuit, which severely restricts the usefulness of power line carrier systems for applications involving re-closers, switches, and outage detection. Interference: Usual PLC operating up to carrier frequencies of 30 MHz will cause narrowband interference with several services in the corresponding bands like e.g. amateur radio.

November 4, 2012

29

November 4, 2012

30

PLC Applications
Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI): electricity, water, or gas

meter readings can be transmitted over PLC, and collected at a center point for billing, developing analytics, and controlling the power grid accordingly. The market for AMI is huge and it justifies continuous developments in PLC technologies. In order to move a step forward towards a smart grid, deploying AMI is a must. Home networks: electrical and electronic appliances within the house can be interconnected, and therefore monitored and controlled centrally via end users. This is part of what is called a smart home. Last mile two-way data communication: as discussed earlier, PLC can be used to connect customer premises with service providers; Internet broadband and control schemes are among the most wellknown PLC access applications.

November 4, 2012

31

Distribution Automation and Supervisory Control and Data

Acquisition (DA and SCADA): utility companies use such systems to monitor and control power distribution networks. It seems more viable to use PLC in such systems instead of PSTN or dedicated RF networks. Rural communication systems: in low density areas where installing capital intensive communication infrastructures is not possible or non-profitable PLC is a good alternative. PLC is also under discussion for use on board an aircraft. Here, the challenge is a distribution of broadband services like Internet access, video streams, and alike. Electromagnetic compatibility and the high required spectral efficiency suggest the use of a wired technology rather than wireless systems.

November 4, 2012

32

Smart grid: smart grid is an integrated application of information and

communication technology (ICT) on electric power transmission and distribution networks. A smart grid replaces analog electromechanical meters with digital meters that record real-time usage data. Smart meters provide a communication path extending from generation plants to electrical outlets (smart sockets) by using robust two-way communications, advanced sensors and distributed computing techniques to improve the efficiency, reliability and safety of power delivery and economy in electricity. Radio transmitting programs: PLC was and is used to transmit radio programs over power-lines or over telephone lines, for example in Germany and Switzerland, the system were called as Drahtfunk and Telefonrundspruch respectively. In all cases the radio programs were fed by special transformers into the lines.

November 4, 2012

33

November 4, 2012

34

PLC Challenges 1) Electromagnetic Interference

This is a critical issue in PLC. The power line acts as a huge

antenna for transmitting and receiving signals, and the transmitted signal radiates in the air. It is very important that this radiated signal does not interfere with other communication systems, and distort them. The radiation of underground power lines is small, while the major contribution is generated from households (unshielded wires around a household radiate heavily). A solution would be to use filters to block interferences.

November 4, 2012

35

2) Impedance Mismatches
The power network is not matched with regards to impedance,

unlike conventional communication systems. Input and output impedance varies with the addition and removal of loads at different locations on the power line. It can reach milli-ohms or kilo-ohms, and it is noteworthy to mention that impedance is very low at the substation. In addition, there are impedance mismatches along the power line itself, such as mismatching between a power line cable and a cable box which results in signal attenuation. In order to avoid such impedance mismatches, filters need to be used depending on measured mismatches.

November 4, 2012

36

3) Signal-to-Noise Ratio
One of the most important performance parameters when

evaluating a communication system is its Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR). The SNR value is the only parameter on which the achievable bit-error rate in a simple transmission model, namely the so-called additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel, depends. It can be shown that the bit-error rate performance improves the increasing SNR values. The noise modeled as Gaussian wide-sense stationary process includes disturbances of many different sources in the receiver, i.e. thermal noise in the power amplifiers, as well as on a power line, such as signal from vacuum cleaners, kitchen machines, TVs, computers, etc.

November 4, 2012

37

To avoid such distance restrictions, repeaters are added along the

power line. In order to improve the SNR, the use of filters is encouraged to block noise generated in households from disturbing the grid power lines. It is noteworthy to mention that although power lines are highly susceptible to disturbances and attenuation, other communication systems used today have the same tendency.

November 4, 2012

38

4) RF Noise Issues
Radiation from lightning discharges (atmospheric noise due to

lightning) Unintended radiation from electrical machinery, electrical and electronic equipment, power transmission lines, or from internal combustion engine ignition (man-made noise) Emissions from atmospheric gases and hydrometeors The ground, or other obstructions, within the antenna beam Radiation from celestial radio sources such as sunspots

November 4, 2012

39

November 4, 2012

40

PLC Studies
NTIA Phase I Study In the United States, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has completed a study of the cumulative effects of BPL system deployments in major cities around the world on the users of HF spectrum. The NTIA concluded a Phase I study of BPL a Phase II study in January 2006. Phase I studied interference risks to radio reception in the immediate vicinity of BPL and made mitigating recommendations to the FCC in the 1.7-80 MHz range.

November 4, 2012

41

Present at one measurement location where a large number of

BPL devices were deployed on multiple three-phase and singlephase MV power lines, appreciable BPL signal levels (i.e., at least 5 dB higher than ambient noise) were observed beyond 500 meters from the nearest BPL energized power lines. Finally, NTIAs measurements show that the radiated power from the BPL energized power lines was consistently higher when the measurement antenna was placed at a greater height (e.g., 10 meter vs. 2 meter).

November 4, 2012

42

NTIA recommendation : 1. Use of the minimum output power needed from each BPL device 2. Avoidance of locally used radio frequencies 3. Differential-mode signal injection oriented to minimize radiation 4. Use of filters and terminations to extinguish BPL signals on power lines where they are not needed 5. Judicious choice of BPL signal frequencies to decrease radiation.

November 4, 2012

43

BBC Studies
The British Broadcasting Company (BBC) employs a staff of

Research & Development engineers, scientists, and mathematicians for the purpose of keeping BBC at the forefront of technology. During the period from 1999 to 2005, the BBC produced a series of White Papers covering various aspects of BPL. The BBC was early to identify BPL as a technology that could support censorship by being employed to keep unwanted foreign shortwave signals from reaching citizens in various parts of the world. In October 1999, the BBC produced a study titled: Protection of sensitive receiving sites which included aeronautical/marine safety, monitoring, surveillance, and radio astronomy. The study concluded that the size of an exclusion zone (e.g., BPL-free area)

November 4, 2012

44

In July 2000, a BBC study titled The Threat to New Radio

Systems from Distributed Wired-Communication Installations concluded that many radio users stand to suffer serious disruption of their services if BPL communications systems were allowed to be widely deployed. A BBC research and development study published in June 2005, titled Co-existence of Power Line Telecommunications and Radio Services a possibility?

November 4, 2012

45

2.7.3 Manassas, Virginia Study

In July 2006 an FCC accredited testing laboratory produced a

report on the BPL system deployed by the city of Manassas, Virginia. The testing was conducted in response to a complaint filed with the FCC by several local American Radio Relay League (ARRL) radio operators who asserted that the BPL system is generating unlawful interference. In addition to the laboratory testing activities, Main.Net (the manufacturer of the Manassas BPL system) set the power level for overhead equipment at 4; the equipment range being 1-7 with 7 being the highest. Additionally, coupling adjustments and other alignments to optimize signal propagation and minimize signal leakage were made by Main.Net. The laboratory testing included measurements at five overhead and five underground locations, which included both low and medium voltage lines.

November 4, 2012

46

ARRL Study
The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) sponsored a study,

published by MetaVox Incorporated in March of 2004, of BPL systems located in the vicinities of both Allentown, Pennsylvania and Manassas, Virginia. The FCC testing standards require that frequencies below 30 MHz measurements should not be made in the near field. \ In comments to the FCC dated July 7, 2003, the ARRL study observed that Making measurements at distances closer than 30 meters and extrapolating at 40 dB/decade can easily result in an underestimation of the actual maximum field at 30 meters distance, by over 20 dB in some cases.

November 4, 2012

47

IEEE Report on USA Broadband Networking

In April 2005, the IEEE Committee on Communications and

Information Policy (CCIP) published a white paper titled, Providing Ubiquitous Gigabit Networks in The United States, which advocates that to remain competitive the US needs gigabit-persecond (Gb/s) networks instead of broadband networks. The IEEE recommended the creation of a new generation of broadband wired and wireless networks as a national priority. For example, future access to a menu of 100 simultaneous video channels at the high definition (HD) digital rate of 20 Mb/s per channel for a diverse audience of end users requires 2 Gb/s capacity.

November 4, 2012

48

Automatic Meter Reading in Egypt

Initiate communication on specific time, Thursdays and

Saturdays between 3:00 am to 9:00 am reported the best results. Avoid times which record high TV sets audience density. Using repeaters to reduce the runtime errors and one of the error correction methods to reduce the checksum errors.

November 4, 2012

49

Narrowband PLC Standards

The ideal PLC low frequency narrowband standard would have scalable bitrates from 1bps to 10Kbps (up to 500Kbps). It would also support rural and urban power grid data communications, and be available for AC as well as DC power lines. 1. 4.3.4.1 FCC The FCC Standard is used in North America. It regulates the power and bandwidth of the transmitted data through power line networks. The frequency band allowed for this standard is between 0 and 530 kHz (Abdelhalim 2007). In the FCC rules, communication over power line is allowed outside the AM frequency band (outside 535 to 1705 kHz). 2. 4.3.4.2 CENELEC The CENELEC Standard is used in countries of the European Union, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland; the frequency band assigned to this standard is narrower than that of FCC: 3 kHz to 148.5 kHz.

November 4, 2012

50

BPL Systems
Motorola Powerline LV Hybrid BPL delivery system that combines a wireless network

infrastructure with customer delivery over LV power lines. A bridge is used to transfer the internet connection from the wireless distribution system onto LV power lines for delivery to customer homes, which use the existing in-home electrical wiring as a LAN. The Motorola system reduces HF band interference by restricting the application of RF to LV power lines only. No MV lines are used. The system also makes use of notches.

November 4, 2012

51

Corridor Systems Motorola Powerline MV

BPL system that operates entirely above the HF radio spectrum

and is offered as an interference free BPL system. Corridor Systems BPL equipment operates in the range from 800 MHz 10 GHz. Provide a low-cost solution with high-performance delivery of information across MV power lines. Corridors system uses a transmission technique that transmits energy over a single conductor of an existing MV power line at frequencies above the HF band, thus avoiding it interference issues.

November 4, 2012

52

This mode exhibits the three characteristics: (1) very low-loss

over distance; (2) propagation speeds near the speed of light; and (3) low radiation

November 4, 2012

53

Standards
Open systems BPL standardization issues are currently being

addressed by the International Telecommunications Union Radiocommunication (ITU-R) Sector, ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T), ANSI, and the IEEE. Additionally, the HomePlug Power Alliance has produced the first BPL technology standard that enjoys widespread industry implementation. This section examines evolving BPL standards.

November 4, 2012

54

Home-Plug In-Home BPL 1.0

The HomePlug Powerline Alliance was founded in March of

2000 by 13 corporate members whose mission is to promote rapid availability, adoption, and implementation of interoperable home powerline networks and products. Among the participating members of this Alliance are: Intel, Motorola, Linksys, and Sony. The HomePlug Alliance thus far has produced two major specifications: (1) HomePlug 1.0 and (2) HomePlug AV. These specifications are not available in the public domain but are restricted to members of the Alliance although some highlevel, technical overviews have been released.

November 4, 2012

55

However, in September 2002 the International Journal of

Communications Systems published a paper titled: HomePlug 1.0 Powerline Communication LANs Protocol Description and Performance Results version 5.4..-- Limited Sepcs. HomePlug 1.0 offers the ability to create an in-home LAN using the power line infrastructure with data rates up to 14 Mb/s. The specification addresses the physical (PHY) and Media Access Control (MAC) layers but complete architectural independence is not maintained because both layers need packet length information and the MAC also needs information about the priority of the packet and about contention control. Thus, the OSI architecture is compromised slightly in favor of increased efficiency.

November 4, 2012

56

HomePlug 1.0 technology uses a combination of adaptive

techniques on each link to optimize data throughput. For example, a different amplitude and phase response between any two links can be used. Channel adaptation is achieved by tone allocation, modulation, and the FEC rate chosen. The tone allocations are used to turn off heavily impaired carriers and thereby reduce the bit error rates (BER). The remaining adaptive techniques target the modulation and FEC rate selection to the remaining higher quality channels..

November 4, 2012

57

Wireless versus PLC

November 4, 2012

58

November 4, 2012

59

Home-Plug AV Specification
The second generation of technology from the Home-Plug Powerline

Alliance. The purpose is to provide high-quality, multi-stream, entertainment-oriented networking over existing A/C wiring within the home. HPAV maintains backward compatibility and interoperability with HomePlug 1.0 devices. HPAV employs PHY and MAC techniques that support up to a 200 M/bps power line network for video, voice, and data. The PHY layer uses the 200 M/bps channel rate to provide a 150 M/bps information rate with robust, near-capacity communications over noisy power line channels. The MAC was designed to support both TDMA and Carrier Sense Multiple Access (CSMA) based access with A/C line cycle synchronization. The TDMA access provides QoS guarantees including guaranteed bandwidth reservation, high reliability and tight control of latency and jitter.

November 4, 2012

60

IEEE P1675 Standard for BPL Hardware

IEEE P1675 has been proposed as a comprehensive standard that addresses Component standards Capacitive couplers Inductive couplers Cabinets and enclosures grounding and bonding. The hardware associated with the distribution lines for BPL signal injection. The equipment installation practices for the purpose of insuring safety, considering that a very common distribution voltage is 12,500 volts.

November 4, 2012

61

IEEE P1901 for PLC MAC and PHY Specification

Goal: develop a standard for 100 M/bps or greater BPL PHY

layer speeds. Bandwidth: below 100 MHz. Purpose:

u To be usable by all classes of BPL devices including BPL devices used for

the first/last 1500 meters to the premise, for LANs and for use in buildings. u This standard focus on the balanced and efficient use of the power line communications channel by all classes of Broadband PLC devices. u defining detailed mechanisms for coexistence and interoperability between different BPL devices, and ensuring that desired bandwidth and QoS are supported

It is limited to the PHY and MAC layers.

November 4, 2012

62

Thank you!
Next Lecture will be on

Transmission Line Theory