WireNet: An Experimental System for In-House Power Line Communication

This paper describes the main experimental results that have been obtained with a prototype system developed within a Craft project in the EU Growth Programme: WireNet-"powerline data exchange for domestic and industrial automation based on the ultra wide band (UWB) approach". The project aimed at designing and realising an innovative system for power-line data exchange using some concepts derived from the UWB technology, and in particular, the wide band impulse modulation solutions. The WireNet system targets several application scenarios such as low-data rate home/industrial automation and moderate data rate applications such as voice and audio streaming. Stringent constraints on complexity and overall cost have been set. This has motivated the investigation of simple, though performance wise good, transmission solutions. The paper gives a description of the main principles behind the adopted wide band impulse modulation solution and the protocol specifications. Moreover, a description of the hardware prototype together with a presentation of the performed tests, is given. The experimental results show that the WireNet system allows for reliable communications in indoor powerline scenarios with a simple wideband transmission scheme that is robust in the presence of highly frequency selective channels and background disturbances