54 research outputs found
A Review of Wireless and PLC Propagation Channel Characteristics for Smart Grid Environments
Wireless, power line communication (PLC), fiber optic, Ethernet, and so forth are among the communication technologies on which smart grid communication infrastructure is envisioned to be built. Among these, wireless and PLC-based solutions are attractive considering the cost of initial deployment. Wireless communication deployment in smart grid covers a variety of environments such as indoor, outdoor, and electric-power-system facilities. Similar diversity is expected in PLC deployment as well covering low voltage (LV), medium voltage (MV), and high voltage (HV) segments of the grid. In spite of being attractive, wireless and PLC channels are very harsh posing great challenges to performance of communication systems. In proposing solutions to smart grid communication needs, two approaches are likely to be followed. One is based on the use of existing wireless and PLC technologies with some modifications, and the other relies upon developing novel communication protocols particularly addressing the smart grid needs. Both of these approaches require an in-depth knowledge of communication channel characteristics. The aim of this study is to reveal the wireless and PLC channel characteristics of smart grid environments in terms of several parameters such as path loss and attenuation, time dispersion, time selectivity, amplitude statistics, and noise characteristics
Multiscaling analysis and modelling of bursty impulsive noise in broadband power line communication channels.
Doctor of Philosophy in Electronic Engineering. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2017.Power line communication (PLC) networks have the potential to offer broadband
application services to homes and small offices cheaply since no additional
wiring is required for it implementation. However, like other communication systems,
it has its own challenges and the understanding of its channel characteristics
is key to its optimal performance evaluation and deployment. Multipath propagation
due to impedance mismatch and bursty impulsive noise are the important
challenges that must be understood and their effects minimized for optimal system
performance. Noise in power line communication networks is non-Gaussian and
as such cannot be modelled as the convenient additive white Gaussian noise. The
noise is known to be impulsive and in most cases, occurs in bursts. Therefore, it can
be referred as bursty impulsive noise. Due to unique nature of this noise in power
line channels, modulation and decoding schemes optimized for Gaussian channels
may not necessarily work well in PLC systems. Recently developed noise models
though take into consideration memory inherent in PLC noise, models capturing
both long range correlations and multiscaling behaviour are not yet available in
the literature. Furthermore, even though it is known that PLC noise has memory
(i.e., it is correlated), the statistical properties of it is not well documented in the
literature and will be the focus of this thesis.
In this thesis, multiscaling behaviour of PLC noise is investigated. Both fractal
and multifractal analysis methods are employed on noise data collected in three
different scenarios (small offices, stand-alone apartment and University electronic
laboratory) and their characteristics analysed. Multifractal analysis is employed
since it is able to characterize both the strengths and frequency of occurrence of
bursts in power line noise. Specifically, the contributions in this thesis are as follows:
Firstly, empirical evidence is provided that PLC noise clearly manifests long
range correlations behaviour. This is achieved by calculating the Hurst parameter
(which is a measure of self similarity) in data from the above scenarios. Various
methods employed to estimate this Hurst parameter reveal that in all the scenarios,
long range dependence is evidenced. Secondly, multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis (MDFA) and multifractal
detrending moving average (MDMA) analysis have been used to investigate the
temporal correlations and scaling behaviour of power line channel noise measured
from the three different scenarios mentioned earlier. Empirical results show that
power line noise clearly manifests both long-range correlation and multifractal scaling
behaviour with different strengths depending on the environments where they were captured. From the estimated singularity spectrum which is left truncated,
it is evident from the two methods used that power line noise is sensitive to small
fluctuations and is characterized by large scaling exponents. Multifractal analysis
of the reshuffled time series noise reveal that the multifractal nature of PLC noise
is as a result of long range correlation inherent in the noise and not from the heavy
tailed distributions in it.
Thirdly, we propose a multiplicative cascade model for PLC noise that is able
to reproduce the empirical findings concerning the PLC noise time series: its local
scaling behaviour and long range correlations. Model parameters are derived from
the shape of multifractal spectrum of the PLC time series noise collected from
measurement campaigns. Since in the recent past, the main challenge in PLC
systems has been on how to model bursty impulsive PLC noise, the proposed
model will be very useful in evaluating system performance of PLC networks in
the presence of the bursty impulsive noise inherent in PLC networks. Moreover,
bursts of different frequencies and strengths can be modelled by this proposed
model and hence their effects on system performance evaluated. This will also
open up investigations into designing modulation and decoding schemes that are
optimal in systems prone to bursty impulsive noise
Articulating Factors Defining RMS Delay Spread in LV PLC Networks
Communication over the power line network (PLN) referred as power line communication (PLC) has a long history of narrowband applications. With the recent developments in the field of digital communications, current interest is to exploit this medium for wideband communications for several applications such as Internet access, home networking, and in-vehicle data communication. In line with this recently emerging interest which envisions the conversion of a power transmission network into a communication network, understanding the root-mean-squared (RMS) delay spread is essential for multipath PLC channels for the establishment of reliable communication systems. In this paper, factors that play a role on the RMS delay spread value of low voltage (LV) PLC channels are articulated. Among these factors, dependency of the RMS delay spread on attenuation, loading, and physical characteristics of the communication channel in the PLNs is investigate
WOFEX 2021 : 19th annual workshop, Ostrava, 1th September 2021 : proceedings of papers
The workshop WOFEX 2021 (PhD workshop of Faculty of Electrical Engineer-ing and Computer Science) was held on September 1st September 2021 at the VSB – Technical University of Ostrava. The workshop offers an opportunity for students to meet and share their research experiences, to discover commonalities in research and studentship, and to foster a collaborative environment for joint problem solving. PhD students are encouraged to attend in order to ensure a broad, unconfined discussion. In that view, this workshop is intended for students and researchers of this faculty offering opportunities to meet new colleagues.Ostrav
RFID Technology in Intelligent Tracking Systems in Construction Waste Logistics Using Optimisation Techniques
Construction waste disposal is an urgent issue
for protecting our environment. This paper proposes a
waste management system and illustrates the work
process using plasterboard waste as an example, which
creates a hazardous gas when land filled with household
waste, and for which the recycling rate is less than 10%
in the UK. The proposed system integrates RFID
technology, Rule-Based Reasoning, Ant Colony
optimization and knowledge technology for auditing
and tracking plasterboard waste, guiding the operation
staff, arranging vehicles, schedule planning, and also
provides evidence to verify its disposal. It h relies on
RFID equipment for collecting logistical data and uses
digital imaging equipment to give further evidence; the
reasoning core in the third layer is responsible for
generating schedules and route plans and guidance, and
the last layer delivers the result to inform users. The
paper firstly introduces the current plasterboard
disposal situation and addresses the logistical problem
that is now the main barrier to a higher recycling rate,
followed by discussion of the proposed system in terms
of both system level structure and process structure.
And finally, an example scenario will be given to
illustrate the system’s utilization
A resource-based view of the firm : integrating the role of IT as a strategic resource - an empirical study of South African personal financial services (Assurance) firms, 1999-2003
Includes bibliographical references (p. 502-531).This research explores an "inside the black box" view on how IT enables sustainable competitive advantage. Most researchers have investigated IT competitive competencies that make up a firm's strategic framework to understand competitive advantage. However, Resource-Based Theory (RBT) probes into the inner workings of a firm, suggesting that a firm's IT assets and resources are the basis of a firm's "rare" core competencies to compete successfully. Using RBT and research in the economics, strategy, and IT literatures, an initial "Framework of Sustainability" was created, against which the case studies were conducted. This framework was used as foundation to develop semi-structured questionnaires in which 45, 90 minute (on average) interviews were conducted with managers in the four firms. Both internal and external documents about the firms and the industry were used as sources of corroborating evidence. In addition, a "bottoms up" view was obtained with evidence gathered from a short questionnaire and focus groups discussions held with 178 staff employees in the four firms
Urban Informatics
This open access book is the first to systematically introduce the principles of urban informatics and its application to every aspect of the city that involves its functioning, control, management, and future planning. It introduces new models and tools being developed to understand and implement these technologies that enable cities to function more efficiently – to become ‘smart’ and ‘sustainable’. The smart city has quickly emerged as computers have become ever smaller to the point where they can be embedded into the very fabric of the city, as well as being central to new ways in which the population can communicate and act. When cities are wired in this way, they have the potential to become sentient and responsive, generating massive streams of ‘big’ data in real time as well as providing immense opportunities for extracting new forms of urban data through crowdsourcing. This book offers a comprehensive review of the methods that form the core of urban informatics from various kinds of urban remote sensing to new approaches to machine learning and statistical modelling. It provides a detailed technical introduction to the wide array of tools information scientists need to develop the key urban analytics that are fundamental to learning about the smart city, and it outlines ways in which these tools can be used to inform design and policy so that cities can become more efficient with a greater concern for environment and equity
Urban Informatics
This open access book is the first to systematically introduce the principles of urban informatics and its application to every aspect of the city that involves its functioning, control, management, and future planning. It introduces new models and tools being developed to understand and implement these technologies that enable cities to function more efficiently – to become ‘smart’ and ‘sustainable’. The smart city has quickly emerged as computers have become ever smaller to the point where they can be embedded into the very fabric of the city, as well as being central to new ways in which the population can communicate and act. When cities are wired in this way, they have the potential to become sentient and responsive, generating massive streams of ‘big’ data in real time as well as providing immense opportunities for extracting new forms of urban data through crowdsourcing. This book offers a comprehensive review of the methods that form the core of urban informatics from various kinds of urban remote sensing to new approaches to machine learning and statistical modelling. It provides a detailed technical introduction to the wide array of tools information scientists need to develop the key urban analytics that are fundamental to learning about the smart city, and it outlines ways in which these tools can be used to inform design and policy so that cities can become more efficient with a greater concern for environment and equity
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