On the Exploitation of Admittance Measurements for Wired Network Topology Derivation

The knowledge of the topology of a wired network is often of fundamental importance. For instance, in the context of Power Line Communications (PLC) networks it is helpful to implement data routing strategies, while in power distribution networks and Smart Micro Grids (SMG) it is required for grid monitoring and for power flow management. In this paper, we use the transmission line theory to shed new light and to show how the topological properties of a wired network can be found exploiting admittance measurements at the nodes. An analytic proof is reported to show that the derivation of the topology can be done in complex networks under certain assumptions. We also analyze the effect of the network background noise on admittance measurements. In this respect, we propose a topology derivation algorithm that works in the presence of noise. We finally analyze the performance of the algorithm using values that are typical of power line distribution networks.Comment: A version of this manuscript has been submitted to the IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement for possible publication. The paper consists of 8 pages, 11 figures, 1 tabl

A new coupling solution for G3-PLC employment in MV smart grids

This paper proposes a new coupling solution for transmitting narrowband multicarrier power line communication (PLC) signals over medium voltage (MV) power lines. The proposed system is based on an innovative PLC coupling principle, patented by the authors, which exploits the capacitive divider embedded in voltage detecting systems (VDS) already installed inside the MV switchboard. Thus, no dedicated couplers have to be installed and no switchboard modifications or energy interruptions are needed. This allows a significant cost reduction of MV PLC implementation. A first prototype of the proposed coupling system was presented in previous papers: it had a 15 kHz bandwidth useful to couple single carrier PSK modulated PLC signals with a center frequency from 50–200 kHz. In this paper, a new prototype is developed with a larger bandwidth, up to 164 kHz, thus allowing to couple multicarrier G3-PLC signals using orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) digital modulation. This modulation ensures a more robust communication even in harsh power line channels. In the paper, the new coupling system design is described in detail. A new procedure is presented for tuning the coupling system parameters at first installation in a generic MV switchboard. Finally, laboratory and in-field experimental test results are reported and discussed. The coupling performances are evaluated measuring the throughput and success rate in the case of both 18 and 36 subcarriers, in one of the different tone masks standardized for the FCC-above CENELEC band (that is, from 154.6875–487.5 kHz). The experimental results show an efficient behavior of the proposed coupler allowing a two-way communication of G3-PLC OFDM signals on MV networks

Unequal error protection for power line communications over impulsive noise channels

Power line communication (PLC) has recently attracted a lot of interest with many application areas including smart grids\u27 data communication, where data (from sensors or other measurement units) with different QoS may be transmitted. Power line communications suffer from the excessive power lines\u27 impulsive noise (which can be caused by shedding loads on and off). In this thesis, we present a study of power line communications with unequal error protection for two and four data priority levels hierarchical QAM modulation and space-time block coding. We consider the two commonly used power lines\u27 impulsive noise models with Bernoulli and Poisson arrivals. In our proposed approaches, we achieve UEP on both of bit and symbol levels. Approximate closed form expressions for the error rates are derived for each priority level for both single carrier and OFDM in SISO and MIMO systems. In addition, these simpli fied expressions are used to implement a bit loading algorithm to provide UEP for frequency-selective PLC channels. For the case of MIMO PLC channels, we describe three different MIMO schemes to allow more control over the UEP levels. The three schemes are namely: maximum ratio combiner (MRC) receive diversity, Alamouti space-time block code, and a new structure for a space-time code that allows for unequal error protection at the symbol level. Finally, we apply an Eigen beamforming technique, assuming channel knowledge at transmitter, which improves the BER as compared to the other MIMO PLC schemes

A time domain model of background noise for inhome PLC networks

International audienceMultiple-Input/Multiple-Output (MIMO) techniques have recently become an important research field for enhancing the performance of in-home Power Line Communication (PLC) systems by exploiting the additional Protective Earth wire. The development of such systems requires an accurate description of the channel noise. In this paper we have presented a model for PLC background noise based on an extensive set of measurements. We have adopted the framework of multivariate time series to model the PLC background noise.This paper employs the Vector Autoregressive (VAR) modeling technique to extract noise model parameters from the measured noise. We have verified the accuracy of the noise model by comparing time and frequency domain correlation of measured and modeled noises

Characterization and Emulation of Low-Voltage Power Line Channels for Narrowband and Broadband Communication

The demand for smart grid and smart home applications has raised the recent interest in power line communication (PLC) technologies, and has driven a broad set of deep surveys in low-voltage (LV) power line channels. This book proposes a set of novel approaches, to characterize and to emulate LV power line channels in the frequency range from0.15to 10 MHz, which closes gaps between the traditional narrowband (up to 500 kHz) and broadband (above1.8 MHz) ranges

The effects of periodic impulsive noise on OFDM

Abstract: The effect of periodic impulsive (short duration) noise on OFDM is investigated. We present results on the nature of periodic impulsive noise, showing that the PDF of periodic impulsive noise is not exactly Gaussian. We also present results showing that periodic impulsive noise can be more devastating to OFDM compared to random impulsive noise. This is because periodic impulsive noise energy is not spread by the FFT on the receiver side of the OFDM, instead it appears periodic in the frequency domain. Results showing the effect of nulling to mitigate periodic impulsive noise are presented. We suggest a simple short block code (as opposed to long block codes) that can effectively combat the effects of periodic impulsive noise