Important Performance Criteria for Distribution Line Carrier System

Published performance of distribution line carrier communications confuses or misleads through lack of standard performance metrics. This paper presents metrics of communication system performance which can be used to evaluate distribution line carrier systems when used over power distribution lines for automatic distribution functions such as load control, feeder automation, meter reading, and load survey. The emphasis in this paper is on fundamental quantities like throughput and residual error rate which are often used to measure the effectiveness of other data transmission systems and networks. A sample calculation of system requirements is included.