Title :
A multipath model for the powerline channel
Author :
Zimmermann, Manfred ; Dostert, Klaus
Author_Institution :
Inst. of Ind. Inf. Syst., Karlsruhe Univ., Germany
fDate :
4/1/2002 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
The development of powerline communication (PLC) systems for Internet, voice, and data services requires measurement-based models of the transfer characteristics of the mains network suitable for performance analysis by simulation. This paper presents an analytic model describing complex transfer functions of typical powerline networks using only a small set of parameters. The model is based on physical signal propagation effects in mains networks including numerous branches and impedance mismatching. Besides multipath propagation accompanied by frequency-selective fading, signal attenuation of typical power cables increasing with length and frequency is considered. A verification of the model at a test network, as well as its use for definition of attenuation profiles and reference channels, demonstrate the practical value of the proposed model
Keywords :
carrier transmission on power lines; fading channels; multipath channels; transfer functions; 500 kHz to 20 MHz; Internet; branches; complex transfer functions; data services; frequency-selective fading; impedance mismatching; mains network; multipath model; multipath propagation; power cables; powerline channel; powerline communication; reference channels; signal attenuation; signal propagation effects; transfer characteristics; voice services; Analytical models; Attenuation; Frequency; IP networks; Impedance; Performance analysis; Power system modeling; Programmable control; Transfer functions; Web and internet services;
Journal_Title :
Communications, IEEE Transactions on