Power Line Communication Networks and Methods employing Multiple Widebands

• US 20090252209A1
• Filed: 06/15/2009
• Published: 10/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/03/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Networks Spain SL (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Riveiro, Juan Carlos, Fouren, Nils Hakan, Hurwitz, Jonathan Ephraim David
• Granted Patent: US 7,877,078 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 375/222
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5416 by adding signals to the wave form of the power source
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2203/5495 having measurements and testing channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/542 the information being in digital form

Abstract

Systems and methods for communicating over a power line are configured to substantially simultaneously communicate over a plurality of wideband frequency ranges. Signals may be communicated two or from a communication node at two different frequencies simultaneously. These signals may be exchanged with different nodes and/or include independent data. In some embodiments, some of the wideband frequency ranges are above 30 MHz.

Claims

1. A communication network comprising:

a first communication node configured to communicate using a first wideband frequency range;

a second communication node configured to communicate using a second wideband frequency range separate from the first wideband frequency range; and

a third communication node configured to simultaneously and independently receive communication from the first communication node over a power line using the first wideband frequency range and from the second communication node over the power line using the second wideband frequency range, wherein the third communication node is further configured to communicate with the second communication node by using both the first wideband frequency range and the second wideband frequency range at the same time.

2. A communication network comprising:

a first communication node configured to communicate using a first wideband frequency range;

a second communication node configured to communicate using a second wideband frequency range separate from the first wideband frequency range; and

a third communication node configured to simultaneously and independently receive communication from the first communication node over a power line using the first wideband frequency range and from the second communication node over the power line using the second wideband frequency range, wherein the first communication node is configured to communicate using a first standard and the second communication node is configured to communicate using a second standard, at least one of the first standard and the second different standard being included in a set consisting of the Homeplug 1.0/1.1 standards, the Homeplug AV standard, the CEPCA standard and the Digital Home Standard.

3. A communication network comprising:

a first communication node configured to communicate using a first wideband frequency range;

a second communication node configured to communicate using a second wideband frequency range separate from the first wideband frequency range; and

a third communication node configured to simultaneously and independently receive communication from the first communication node over a power line using the first wideband frequency range and from the second communication node over the power line using the second wideband frequency range, wherein the third communication node is configured to relay data from the first communication node to the second communication node.

4. A communication network comprising:

a first communication node configured to communicate using a first wideband frequency range;

a second communication node configured to communicate using a second wideband frequency range separate from the first wideband frequency range; and

a third communication node configured to simultaneously and independently receive communication from the first communication node over a power line using the first wideband frequency range and from the second communication node over the power line using the second wideband frequency range, wherein the first wideband frequency range includes higher frequencies than the second wideband frequency range, and the third communication node is further configured to communicate with the first communication node over the power line without sending signals through a junction box, and to communicate with the second communication node by sending signals through the junction box.

5. A method comprising:

communicating first data between a first communication node and a second communication node over a power line using a first wideband frequency range having a maximum frequency less than about 30 MHz; and

communicating second data between the first communication node and a third communication node over the power line using a second wideband frequency range separate from the first wideband frequency range and having a minimum frequency above 30 MHz, the first data and the second data being communicated simultaneously.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the communication between the first communication node and the second communication node uses a first communication standard and the communication between the first communication node and the third communication node uses a second communication standard.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein communicating the first data and communicating the second data includes relaying information from the second communication node to the third communication node through the first communication node.

8. A method comprising:

sending a first communication from a first communication node over a power line using a first wideband frequency range, the first communication including data configured to identify a second communication node configured to communicate in the first wideband frequency range;

receiving a response to the first communication from the second communication node;

sending a second communication from the first communication node over the power line using a second wideband frequency range, the second communication including data configured to identify a third communication node configured to communicate in the second wideband frequency range;

receiving a response to the second communication from the third communication node; and

determining a communication strategy based on the response to the first communication and the response to the second communication.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein determining a communication strategy includes determining if communications between the second communication node and the third communication node should be relayed through the first communication node.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein determining a communication strategy includes determining which protocol of a plurality of alternative communication protocols to use for communicating between the first communication node and the second communication node.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the plurality of alternative communication protocols include at least one protocol from a set consisting of the Homeplug 1.0/1.1 standards, the Homeplug AV standard, the CEPCA standard and the Digital Home Standard.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein at least part of the first wideband frequency range is below 30 MHz and at least part of the second wideband frequency range is above 30 MHz.

13. The method of claim 8, further including simultaneously communicating between the first communication node and the second communication node using the first wideband frequency range, and communicating between the first communication node and the third communication node using the second wideband frequency range.

14. A communication network comprising:

three communication nodes, each including a first analog filter, each configured to communicate simultaneously and independently over a power line with the other two communication nodes using a plurality of widebands wherein a high band of the plurality of widebands has a minimum frequency greater than 30 MHz.

15. The communication network of claim 14 wherein a low band of the plurality of widebands has a maximum frequency of about 30 MHz.

16. The communication network of claim 15 wherein the first analog filter of each communication node comprises a low pass filter.

17. The communication network of claim 15 wherein each of the three communication nodes is configured to transmit signals in the low band with a low band transmission power and configured to transmit signals in the high band with a high band transmission power and wherein the low band transmission power is approximately one thousand times greater than the high band transmission power.

18. The communication network of claim 14 wherein the first analog filter of each communication node comprises a first analog high pass filter and each communication node comprises:

a high band receiver including the first analog high pass filter, a first demodulator, and a first ADC coupled between the first analog high pass filter and the first demodulator;

a low band receiver including a first analog low pass filter configured to exclude frequencies above about 30 MHz, a second demodulator, and a second ADC coupled between the first analog low pass filter and the second demodulator; and

a transmitter including a second analog filter, a first modulator, and a first DAC coupled between the second analog filter and the first modulator.

19. The communication network of claim 18 further comprising a second modulator coupled to the first DAC.

20. The communication network of claim 18 wherein the second analog filter of the transmitter comprises a second analog high pass filter.

21. The communication network of claim 18 wherein the second analog filter of the transmitter comprises a second analog low pass filter configured to exclude frequencies above about 30 MHz.

22. The communication network of claim 14 wherein the first analog filter comprises a first analog high pass filter and each communication node comprises:

a high band transmitter including the first analog high pass filter, a first modulator, and a first DAC coupled between the first analog high pass filter and the first modulator;

a low band transmitter including a first analog low pass filter configured to exclude frequencies above about 30 MHz, a second modulator, and a second DAC coupled between the first analog low pass filter and the second modulator; and

a receiver including a second analog filter, a first demodulator, and a first ADC coupled between the second analog filter and the first demodulator.