Lightweight power line communications for Smart Grid applications with standard RFID tags

This paper introduces a lightweight power line communication system on the basis of an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) approach. Standard passive LF (low frequency) RFID components for the 125 kHz band are connected to power lines of a low-voltage grid in order to establish a communication, where one side consists of passive transponders. Such a system can be used for various applications within a Smart Grid which require low complexity, low deployment costs and high reliability. The paper demonstrates the feasibility of such a system in a low voltage environment with particular attention on the coupling circuitry.