Technology

PLC

RHINO Technology Overview - Download the PDF

Overview

Power Line Communication (PLC) technology allows networking of two or many products by transmitting information via signals sent over power lines. PLC eliminates the need to add new communication cables between various networked products, often quite distant and separated by walls and concrete floors. Therefore, PLC’s main advantage is to significantly reduce system installation time and cost in an existing environment: you do not need to run communication wires through walls and floors between your system’s products. Since power line cables are available where most networking products are located, PLC also provides a ubiquitous network access when compared to wireless technologies, which are often physically limited by walls, floors or line of sight.

PLC Control Networking

PLC-based control networking is used for monitoring and control purposes in applications such as street lighting control, automated meter reading (AMR), building energy management and many others.

For example, in a street lighting system, a data concentrator, or gateway, is installed beside the low-voltage transformer and acts as a Master: it monitors and controls various street lights, those acting as Slaves. Street lights can be turned on or off via PLC following a lighting schedule, either stored in the gateway or in a remote location (if the gateway is connected to the Internet).

The gateway can also find out if a street light is burned (or soon to be). This substantially reduces the maintenance costs by simplifying the planning of efficient maintenance routes. All the information exchanged between the gateway and the street lights is sent via existing power lines, taking away the need and substantial cost of installing new communication wires.