Monetize Your Distribution System

Some utilities have been setting up these systems, but it drives the Ham Radio folks crazy with the interference. The Hams have been trying to get the systems banned in parts of our country; I think there is enough crap on the power grid now - let's not add more with unreliable broadband.

Trying to send things like broad band internet and high definition television over power lines comes under the category of it seemed like a good idea at the time. BUT!

I have had no end of problems over the years trying to isolate high speed digital equipment from analog equipment. The earthing installed in most building is woefully inadequate to cope with induced voltages on the existing power lines let alone deliberately sticking signals on it.

I can just see us needing to install shielded ferro-resonant transformers and secondary earth neutral links for every electronic appliance in the place, Even then you will probably need to run an RF earth cable about 12mm thick to each transformer.

Please lets keep the power distribution system doing what it was designed to do and the high frequency stuff inside shielded cables.

CFE, the Mexican power authority, has just got a permit to do exactly what you are describing.

I have no problem with companies wanting to do BPL just so long as they are REQUIRED to satisfy FCC part 15 which is in regards to radio frequency interference, or the standards which cable companies must meet regarding spurious radiation. Now how these BPL companies accomplish this, well....... That is their problem.

My ARRL handbook from 1944 discusses various scemes for communication over the power lines using frequencies in the 100/200KHz region, something to keep amature radio operaters amussed during the war.

I am envious of your having a 1944 handbook, and am curious of what they have to say on the subject. If they were to use Morse code at those frequencies, you could have a bunch of conversations going on at once. A morse code transmission takes up maybe 100 Hz of bandwidth. Also at those frequencies, radiatiion is very minimal. I have also seen power line modems which also operate down in that part of the spectrum, but they are only good for 300 bits per second. There are no problems with this.

One standard NTSC television channel takes up 6 MHz of bandwidth. This is 60 times the amount of bandwidth described in the above paragraph... and powerline being a good antenna would love to radiate this signal. So we are now going to have gobs of video channels, gigabit data transmissions, and lord knows what other radiation out in the air? It makes me want to find my lead lined jock strap.

Regarding your street lamps... If they are using shielded cable to power them, that is a step in the right direction. Plus it is good for public safety, to keep Joe Consumer from getting zapped.

Noting your screen name... didn't they have a law about that?... syhpruM Law or something like that?? Just kidding of course.

I am afraid I no longer have the handbook but but it might be available via some libararies.

They discused the way to match and couple the transmitter and reciever to the power line and to try and avoid routes with transfomers, the need to couple to the power line side of the meter (taking care not to upset the supply company) and how to modify a normal reciever for the LF band (I recall a popular reciever the RCA AR88 was available with the MF band replaced with an LF band, perhaps with this purpose in mind).

I aquired my screen name from viewing in my rear view mirror a truck following me with Murphys Beer!

And here I was thinking of Murphy's Law... Oh Well...

I got to thinking about the concept of replacing power line with 75 ohm coaxial cable, (which cable companies use). Thinking of feedline from the pole to the house, if the line were 1/0 gauge (.3249 inches thick), a 75 ohm coax, using polypropylene dielectric would be 2.164 inches (before we put a PVC jacket around it). I have no idea what such a product would cost per foot. Oh Yes!! Since houses are typically fed with 220 vac, it would require three lengths of cable for each installation.

Sure... High speed data can be sent over power lines, but it makes about as much sense as all of us using an 18 wheeler to drive around town every day. It will do the job, but it is not a very good idea.

I noticed after a truck destroyed a street lamp in my district that the lamps are powered via coaxial cable.

In India Specialy in our State (Tamilnadu) all power plant more than 5 are linked with Telemetric Concept (its a concept of sending telephonic signal through power lines)...They all are got well sucess...Because here it is impossible to lay telephone lines in mountain or other highly isolated areas (most of the power plants are completely Isolated from main cities)...But intial cost wise and maintanance also very high... But only advantage is communication is established....

As per my sugession if its necessary means transmit telephonic or high frequency signals in electricty cables otherwise please simply leave it....because it add additional cost...also high maintance is needed...