Narrowband, low data rate communications on the low-voltage mains in the CENELEC frequencies. I. Noise and attenuation

This is the first part of a two-part series on communications over the European 240 V domestic powerline in the frequencies identified by the CENELEC European mains signalling standard using low-cost equipment for applications requiring data rates of no more than hundreds of bits per second (bits/s). To minimize costs, narrow-band modem techniques are considered. The series of papers identifies the key impairments introduced by the channel, proposes a novel model structure to simulate them, and gives quantitative values for simulation based on empirical measurements. The first paper describes the principal linear impairments; noise whose intensity cycles at twice the ac line rate, and linear signal attenuation. The second paper [21] describes nonlinear multiplicative fading. Both papers present suitable modulation schemes based on orthogonal frequency division modulation (OFDM).