Power Line Communication via AC Cycle Interruption
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional power line carrier (PLC) systems for remote control of electronic ballasts and LED drivers are expensive and unreliable due to signal attenuation and the need for additional control wiring, necessitating an improved communication method using existing power lines.
Innovation Solution
A transmitter apparatus that selectively interrupts AC power delivery to indicate binary states, allowing binary messages to be transmitted through power lines by interrupting or maintaining power in select AC cycles, with a receiver decoding these interruptions to interpret the message data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional power line carrier circuits transmit modulated high frequency carrier signals through power wiring, then control information can be transmitted to ballasts, but the system becomes expensive and unreliable due to signal attenuation and filtering properties of the power lines
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the communication function from the power delivery function by using selective interruption of power cycles rather than superimposing carrier signals. This separates the control information transmission from the power transmission, eliminating signal attenuation issues while using the existing power infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of modulating a continuous carrier signal to encode data, the invention inverts the approach by using the presence or absence of power delivery itself as the binary encoding mechanism. Power interruption represents one binary state, while continuous power represents the other, fundamentally reversing conventional PLC methodology.
2Ease of operation
If conventional PLC systems use filter trapping to confine signals to targeted ballasts, then signal directionality is achieved, but additional control wiring and receivers are required, increasing system complexity and cost
Solution Approach 1:
The existing power delivery infrastructure serves dual functions: it delivers power to ballasts and simultaneously transmits control information through selective interruption. The ballasts themselves, which must have power reception capability, also serve as the communication receivers, eliminating the need for separate control wiring and dedicated receiver components.
Solution Approach 2:
The ballasts use their inherent power reception capability to also receive control signals. The power interruption pattern is detected by the ballast's existing power circuitry, allowing the ballast to serve its own communication needs without requiring external control systems or additional components.
3Productivity
If carrier signals are transmitted through power lines, then remote control of ballasts is achieved, but the carrier signal is significantly attenuated by inherent filtering properties of the power lines
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses periodic power cycle interruption patterns to encode binary data, where each AC power cycle serves as a time slot for transmitting one bit of information. This periodic structure leverages the natural frequency of power delivery systems and ensures reliable detection at the ballast end without suffering from continuous signal attenuation.
Data Source
AI summary
A transmitter apparatus and a ballast/driver receiver apparatus are presented for transmitting control information through a lighting system power line connection to a ballast or driver in which the transmitter selectively interrupts power delivery in select AC line power cycles to indicate data of a first binary state an uninterrupted power cycles indicate a second binary state with the receiver decoding the message data bits of different binary states based at least partially on the interruptions.