JP2008042254A - Method and apparatus for determining power line phase - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a power line phase determining apparatus capable of easily and highly accurately determining the difference in phase of a power line, even if a periodic noise exists in the power line while hardly reducing a transmission/reception period of general data even in a phase determination period. <P>SOLUTION: The apparatus includes a transmitter to be connected to a first outlet of an arbitrary point on the power line, and a receiver to be connected to a second outlet. The transmitter includes a first polarity determining section for determining the voltage polarity of the first outlet in a predetermined determination timing and creating first polarity information, and a transmitter for creating a signal including the first polarity information and transmitting the signal to the receiver via the power line. The receiver includes a receiving section for receiving the signal and extracting the first polarity information from the signal, a second polarity determining section for determining the voltage polarity of the second outlet at a determination timing and creating second polarity information, and a polarity comparison phase determining section for comparing the first polarity information with the second polarity information to determine the difference in phase between the first and second outlets. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a power line phase determination method and apparatus in a power line communication system that performs communication using a power line.

  Generally, single-phase three-wire wiring using a commercial power source is provided in a home of a general household. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a single-phase three-wire in-house wiring using a commercial power source provided in a general home. As shown in FIG. 9, in the single-phase three-wire wiring, the voltage phase of the power supplied by the first conductor L1 and the grounded third conductor L3, and the second conductor L2 and the ground are grounded. The voltage phase of the power supplied by the third conductor L3 is 180 degrees different from the voltage phase. As a result, when a power line communication system is constructed in a home where single-phase three-wire wiring using a commercial power source is applied, signals are transmitted between the same phase or opposite phases of the commercial power source. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 9, the power line communication modem 101 connected to the point A and the power line communication modem 102 connected to the point B transmit signals between the same phases (hereinafter referred to as inter-phase communication). It will be. On the other hand, the power line communication modems 101 and 102 and the power line communication modem 103 connected to the point C transmit signals between opposite phases (hereinafter referred to as different phase communication).

  As shown in FIG. 9, in the single-phase three-wire wiring, the first conductive wire L <b> 1 and the third conductive wire L <b> 3 that supply electric powers having the opposite phases to each other are pillars installed outside the dwelling unit. The upper transformer 104 is coupled via a coil. The pole transformer 104 is generally designed to operate as a transformer with respect to a commercial frequency, and is not designed to allow a high-frequency carrier wave used in power line communication to pass well. As a result, depending on the installation conditions of the power line communication system, the attenuation of the transmission signal may be increased between the power line communication modems 101-103 that perform the inter-phase communication. As a result, in the inter-phase communication, the communication speed cannot be obtained and the communication speed becomes unstable as compared with the in-phase communication.

From the contents described above, it is important to grasp whether an arbitrary pair of outlets is in-phase or out-of-phase. The following are specific advantages of understanding the differences between phases.
1. In-phase communication generally has a smaller signal attenuation than inter-phase communication, and high-speed communication is possible by connecting power line communication devices together between the in-phase.
2. By connecting noise devices and low-impedance devices that degrade the communication performance of power line communication between the power line communication device and the different phase, adverse effects of these devices can be eliminated, and high-speed communication is possible.
3. When the power line communication device is connected between the different phases, it is possible to take measures against the different phase communication such as installing a different-phase coupler using a capacitor or a high-pass filter in the main breaker or in the vicinity thereof.
4). When there is a communication failure such as a communication speed not being achieved, it is possible to take appropriate measures corresponding to each.
5. As a technique for extending long-distance transmission and communication coverage, it is possible to install a repeater that receives and amplifies the transmission signal on the transmission side and transfers it to the reception side between transmission and reception, but the installation location of this repeater, It becomes possible to determine efficiently based on the in-phase / different phase relationship between the transmitting side and the receiving side.

  Here, conventionally, the installer of the power line communication system pulls out the electric wire from each outlet, and directly grasps the voltage waveform with a measuring instrument such as an oscilloscope to grasp whether it is in-phase or out-of-phase (judgment) Was. As a result, as the distance between the two points to be determined increases, the work of drawing the electric wire has become difficult. Furthermore, since it is necessary to prepare a measuring instrument such as an oscilloscope, there is a problem that work efficiency does not increase.

  As a conventional technique for solving these problems, Patent Document 1 describes a method for easily determining the difference between phases. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a determination device described in Patent Document 1 that determines the difference in phase. FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining a determination operation performed by the determination apparatus of FIG. Below, with reference to FIG.10 and FIG.11, the determination operation | movement which the determination apparatus described in patent document 1 performs is demonstrated easily.

  First, the transmission side (transmitter 105) transmits transmission data for determination (hereinafter referred to as determination data) to the reception side only in a half cycle period for each cycle of the power frequency of the power line. In FIG. 11, the determination data is transmitted only during the period when the voltage is positive in each frequency cycle (see (a) to (c) of FIG. 11). Then, the receiving side (receiver 106) receives this determination data (see (c) of FIG. 11). Next, the reception side counts only the number of data of the determination data received during a period in which the voltage during which the transmission side transmits the determination data is positive (see (e) and (h) of FIG. 11). Here, when the receiving side is in-phase, since the determination data is received during the positive voltage period, the number of data of the determination data is counted (see (e) of FIG. 11). On the other hand, when the receiving side is out of phase, the determination data is not received during a period in which the voltage is positive, and thus the number of determination data is not counted in principle (see (h) in FIG. 11). Next, the receiving side displays this count value while sequentially updating it (see (f) and (i) of FIG. 11). Therefore, when the transmission side and the reception side are in phase, the reception side displays the number of determination data transmitted by the transmission side (see (f) of FIG. 11). When the transmitting side and the receiving side are in opposite phases, the receiving side displays 0 or the number of data in the vicinity thereof (see (i) in FIG. 11).

As described above, in the related art described in Patent Document 1, it is possible to determine the difference between the transmission side and the reception side by checking the number of determination data displayed by the receiver 106.
JP 7-336277 A

However, in the configuration of the conventional determination device described above, since the determination data dedicated to the phase determination is transmitted only during the half cycle period of the voltage cycle of the power supply (the voltage is positive or negative), the phase determination is performed during the phase determination period. There is a problem that the period during which the communication device itself and other communication devices perform transmission / reception of general data is extremely reduced.
In addition, for example, a certain type of household electric appliance having a switching power supply circuit generates periodic noise on the power line every cycle of the power supply or every half cycle. When such a household electric appliance is connected to the power line, there is a possibility that determination data cannot be received on the receiving side or the polarity cannot be correctly determined due to this periodic noise. As a result, there is a problem that the configuration of the conventional determination apparatus described above cannot correctly determine the phase.

  Therefore, the object of the present invention is that even during the phase determination period, the communication device itself that performs the phase determination and the period during which other communication devices transmit and receive general data are hardly reduced, and further, periodic noise is generated. To provide a power line phase determination method and a power line phase determination device that can easily and accurately determine the phase difference of a power line (outlet) even when a household electrical appliance or the like is connected to the power line.

  The present invention is directed to a power line phase determination system that determines the difference in phase between outlet pairs provided at arbitrary points on a power line in a power line communication system. And in order to achieve the said objective, the power line phase determination system of this invention is the transmitter connected to the 1st outlet provided in the arbitrary points on a power line, and the 1st provided in the arbitrary points on a power line. A transmitter connected to the second outlet, and the transmitter determines the voltage polarity of the first outlet at a predetermined determination timing and creates first polarity information indicating the voltage polarity obtained by the determination A first polarity determination unit that generates a signal including first polarity information and transmits the signal to the receiver via the power line, and the receiver receives the signal and receives the first signal from the signal. A receiving unit that extracts polarity information; a second polarity determining unit that determines the voltage polarity of the second outlet at the determination timing; and generates second polarity information indicating the voltage polarity obtained by the determination; 1 polarity information and 2nd polarity information Compared bets, and a first outlet and determining polarity comparing phase determination unit difference of phase between the second outlet.

  Preferably, the transmitter further includes a first insulating unit that transmits a signal from the transmission unit to the power line while blocking the influence of the power line power supply voltage on the transmission unit, and the receiver includes a power line power source for the reception unit. A second insulating unit is further provided that transmits the signal from the power line to the receiving unit while blocking the influence of the voltage.

  The receiver may further include a presenting unit that indicates a determination result of the difference in phase. Further, the signal may be a beacon that is a signal with a small amount of data that is transmitted at a constant period and that is an index, or a message that includes a first polarity information in the header portion.

  Preferably, the determination timing is a timing excluding a zero cross point at which the voltage polarity is switched.

  In addition, the power line phase determination system performs the phase difference determination multiple times, and the polarity comparison phase determination unit counts the number determined to be in-phase and the number determined to be different from each other, and the two numbers counted are counted. In comparison, the final phase difference may be determined.

  In addition, the transmitter further includes a noise detection unit that detects noise in the power line and notifies the first polarity determination unit of a period during which the noise is detected, and the first polarity determination unit is configured to detect noise. The timing excluding a certain period may be used as the determination timing.

  The transmitter is provided in one power line communication device that communicates with a communication partner using a power line, and the receiver is provided in the other power line communication device that communicates with a communication partner using a power line. The polarity comparison phase determination unit of the receiver may record the determined phase difference together with the address of one of the power line communication devices.

  The present invention is also directed to a power line phase determination method for determining a difference in phase between outlet pairs provided at arbitrary points on a power line using a transmitter and a receiver in a power line communication system. And in order to achieve the said objective, the power line phase determination method of this invention determines the voltage polarity of the 1st outlet socket to which the transmitter was connected in the predetermined | prescribed determination timing in a transmitter, and is obtained by determination. Generating first polarity information indicating the voltage polarity obtained, generating a signal including the first polarity information and transmitting the signal to the receiver via the power line, and receiving the signal at the receiver. Extracting the first polarity information from the signal, and determining the voltage polarity of the second outlet connected to the receiver at the determination timing, and indicating the voltage polarity obtained by the determination Creating information and comparing the first polarity information and the second polarity information to determine a phase difference between the first outlet and the second outlet.

  The receiver may further include a step of indicating a determination result of the difference in phase. In addition, the signal may be a beacon that is a signal with a small amount of data that is transmitted at a constant period and that is an index, or a telegram in which the header portion includes the first polarity information.

  Preferably, the determination timing is a timing excluding a zero cross point at which the voltage polarity is switched.

  In addition, the phase difference determination is performed a plurality of times, and the receiver determines the number determined to be in phase and the number determined to be different from each other, and compares the two counted numbers to determine the final phase. There may be further provided a step of determining the difference between the two.

  The transmitter may further include a step of detecting power line noise, and the step of creating the first polarity information may use timing excluding a period during which noise is detected as determination timing.

  The transmitter is provided in one power line communication device that communicates with a communication partner using a power line, and the receiver is provided in the other power line communication device that communicates with a communication partner using a power line. In the step of comparing the first polarity information and the second polarity information to determine the phase difference between the first outlet and the second outlet, the determined phase difference is further determined as one power line. You may record with the address of a communication apparatus.

  As described above, according to the power line phase determination method and the power line phase determination apparatus of the present invention, the installer of the power line communication system or the like can easily separate without using a wire such as an oscilloscope or using a measuring instrument such as an oscilloscope. It is possible to determine the difference between the phases of the power lines (outlets) between the points. In addition, even during the phase determination period, the communication apparatus itself that performs the phase determination and the period during which other communication apparatuses transmit and receive general data are hardly reduced, and home appliances that generate periodic noise are also connected to the power line. Even when connected, the power line (outlet) phase difference can be determined with high accuracy, enabling simultaneous video transmission requiring high-speed transmission and audio transmission requiring low delay. Thus, it is possible to construct a power line communication system that provides stable quality of service (QoS).

(Embodiment of the present invention)
Below, the structure and operation | movement of the power line phase determination apparatus 30 which concern on one Embodiment of this invention are demonstrated. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a power line phase determination device 30 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the power line phase determination device 30 includes a transmitter 10 and a receiver 20. The transmitter 10 includes a polarity determination unit 1, a transmission unit 2, and an insulation unit 3. The receiver 20 includes a polarity determination unit 4, an insulation unit 5, a reception unit 6, a polarity comparison phase determination unit 7, and a presentation unit 8.

Next, the determination operation performed by the power line phase determination device 30 will be described.
Here, before performing the phase determination, the transmitter 10 and the receiver 20 are respectively connected to two points (two outlets) on the power line where the phase determination is performed. The transmitter 10 and the receiver 20 can be carried separately. Moreover, the plug which becomes the reference | standard side of a polarity with which the transmitter 10 and the receiver 20 are equipped is connected to the minus side (ground side) of the power outlet of a power line.

  Below, operation | movement of the transmitter 10 is demonstrated first. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a sinusoidal voltage waveform at a point (transmission point) to which the transmitter 10 is connected and transmission data of the transmitter 10. FIG. 2 shows signals (hereinafter referred to as beacons) 13 to 15 that are transmitted in a constant cycle in principle and have a small amount of data and serve as indexes. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation performed by the transmitter 10. The transmitter 10 is assumed to be connected to the lead wire L1 of the single-phase three-wire wiring (see FIG. 9).

  First, when performing phase determination, the transmitter 10 shifts from a normal state in which phase determination of a power line is not performed to a phase determination state in which phase determination is performed. Next, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the polarity determination unit 1 confirms the presence or absence of a beacon transmission request (step S <b> 1). When there is no beacon transmission request, the polarity determination unit 1 repeats the operation of step S1. When there is a beacon transmission request, the polarity determination unit 1 proceeds to step S2. Next, the polarity determination unit 1 determines the polarity (plus or minus) of the sine wave voltage at the transmission point (the connection point to the power line of the transmitter 10) at the time of beacon transmission, and polarity information (hereinafter referred to as transmission side polarity) Information) is created (step S2). Next, the transmission unit 2 receives the transmission side polarity information from the polarity determination unit 1, creates a beacon including the transmission side polarity information and modulates it, and then transmits the beacon over the power line via the insulation unit 3 (step S3). The insulating unit 3 transmits a beacon from the transmitting unit 2 to the power line while blocking the influence of the power supply voltage of the power line on the transmitting unit 2.

  With the above-described operation, as shown in FIG. 2, the transmitter 10 transmits the beacon 13 that is transmitted when the voltage is positive, including positive polarity information. Similarly, the transmitter 10 transmits the beacons 14 and 15 transmitted when the voltage is negative, including negative polarity information.

  Next, the operation of the receiver 20 will be described. 3 and 4 are diagrams illustrating a relationship between a sine wave voltage waveform at a point (reception point) to which the receiver 20 is connected and reception data of the receiver 20. 3 and 4 show beacons 13 to 15 transmitted by the transmitter 10. 3 shows a case where the receiver 20 is connected to the lead wire L1 of the single-phase three-wire wiring (when the phase is in phase with the transmitter 10 connected to L1), and FIG. Is connected to the lead wire L2 of the single-phase three-wire wiring (when the phase is different from the transmitter 10 connected to L1) (see FIG. 9). FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation performed by the receiver 20.

  First, the receiving unit 6 receives the beacon transmitted by the transmitter 10 via the insulating unit 5 (step S11). Here, the insulating unit 5 transmits the beacon from the power line to the receiving unit 6 while blocking the influence of the power supply voltage of the power line on the receiving unit 6. When the beacon is not received, the receiving unit 6 repeats the operation of step S11. When receiving the beacon, the receiving unit 6 extracts the transmission side polarity information included in the beacon after demodulating the beacon, and notifies the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 of the transmission side polarity information, Move on to S12. Next, the polarity determination unit 4 determines the polarity (plus or minus) of the sine wave voltage at the reception point (the connection point to the power line of the receiver 20) at the time of receiving the beacon, and the determined polarity information (hereinafter referred to as reception) (Referred to as side polarity information) is notified to the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 (step S12). Next, the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 determines whether or not the polarity of the transmission side polarity information received from the reception unit 6 matches the polarity of the reception side polarity information received from the polarity determination unit 4 (step S13). When the polarities of the transmission-side polarity information and the reception-side polarity information match, the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 determines that the transmission point and the reception point are in the same phase (step S14). On the other hand, when the polarities of the transmission-side polarity information and the reception-side polarity information do not match, the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 determines that the transmission point and the reception point are in different phases (step S15). Next, the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 notifies the presentation unit 8 of the result of the phase determination performed in step S14 or step S15. Next, the presentation unit 8 indicates the received phase determination result with an LED or the like (step S16).

  As described above, when the power line (outlet) to which the receiver 20 is connected and the power line (outlet) to which the transmitter 10 is connected are in phase, the transmission included in the beacons 13 to 15 as shown in FIG. The polarities of the side polarity information and the receiving side polarity information are the same. Specifically, the transmission side polarity information of the beacon 13 and the reception side polarity information at the time of reception of the beacon 13 are both “plus”. Similarly, the transmission-side polarity information of the beacons 14 and 15 and the reception-side polarity information at the time of reception of the beacons 14 and 15 both match with “minus”. Here, since the period from when the transmitter 10 transmits the beacon to when the receiver 20 receives the beacon is sufficiently short to be negligible in relation to the voltage cycle of the power line, the transmission and reception of the beacon are the same time. You may think that this is done. As a result, when the transmission side polarity information and the reception side polarity information match, the voltage of the power line to which the transmitter 10 is connected and the voltage of the power line to which the receiver 20 is connected are the same time (of the phase It can be said that the polarity is the same at the timing of determining the difference. As a result, when the beacon polarity information and the determination polarity information match, it can be determined that they are in phase (step S14 described above).

  When the power line (outlet) to which the receiver 20 is connected and the power line (outlet) to which the transmitter 10 is connected are out of phase, as shown in FIG. The polarity information of the information and the receiving side polarity information does not match each other. Specifically, since the transmission side polarity information of the beacon 13 is “plus” and the reception side polarity information at the time of receiving the beacon 13 is “minus”, the polarity information does not match. Similarly, the transmission side polarity information of the beacons 14 and 15 and the reception side polarity information at the time of reception of the beacons 14 and 15 do not match. Here, since the voltage period of the power line differs by 180 degrees between the different phases, the voltage polarities are opposite to each other. As a result, when the transmitting side polarity information and the receiving side polarity information do not match, the voltage of the power line to which the transmitter 10 is connected and the voltage of the power line to which the receiver 20 is connected are the same time (phase It can be said that the polarity is different at the timing of determining the difference). As a result, when the transmission side polarity information and the reception side polarity information do not match, it can be determined that the phase is different (step S15 described above).

  Then, the power line communication system installer or the like presents in-phase or out-of-phase (step S16 described above), whether the power line connecting the transmitter 10 and the power line connecting the receiver 20 are in-phase or out-of-phase. Can be determined.

  As described above, the power line phase determination device according to the present invention can determine the difference in phase by simply connecting the transmission unit and the reception unit to the power line. The phase of the power line (outlet) can be determined without using a measuring instrument. In addition, the power line phase determination device according to the present invention performs phase determination by transmitting a beacon that occupies a very short period of time, so that the time period during which other communication devices and the like transmit and receive general data is hardly reduced. . As a result, by using the power line phase determination device of the present invention for phase determination, high-speed and low-delay data transmission is possible even during phase determination, and a power line communication system that provides stable QoS is constructed. can do.

  In the power line phase determination device of the present invention, in principle, the timing for transmitting a beacon (timing for determining the difference between phases) can be arbitrarily set. Therefore, the transmitter 10 is further provided with a noise detection unit 9 for the power line, A phase can be determined by transmitting a beacon at a timing when noise is not detected (see FIG. 7). As shown in FIG. 7, the input of the noise detection unit 9 is connected to the power line, and the output of the noise detection unit 9 is connected to the polarity determination unit 1. And the noise detection part 9 detects the noise of a power line, and notifies the polarity determination part 1 of the period which has detected the noise. And the polarity determination part 1 produces transmission side polarity information at the timing except the period during which the notified noise is detected. Then, the transmission unit 2 creates and transmits a beacon including transmission side polarity information (step 3 in FIG. 5). As a result, for example, even in a power line in which noise synchronized with the power supply voltage period exists, phase misjudgment due to beacons being buried in noise is eliminated, and phase determination with high accuracy is possible. As a result, by using the power line phase determination device of the present invention for phase determination, a power line communication system that provides more stable QoS can be constructed.

  The beacon is preferably transmitted at a timing excluding the zero cross point at which the polarity of the power supply voltage of the power line switches from plus to minus or from minus to plus. The beacon transmission cycle does not necessarily have to be constant.

  Moreover, the transmitter 10 may transmit the beacon only once or may transmit the beacon a plurality of times. When a beacon is transmitted a plurality of times, as described below, the accuracy of phase determination can be improved even when noise exists on the power line. For example, the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 compares the number of determinations determined to be in-phase and the number of determinations determined to be out-of-phase, and finally compares the number of determinations based on the larger determination number. Also good. In addition, the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 finally determines the phase based on the larger determination number only when there is a predetermined difference between the determination number determined to be in-phase and the determination number determined to be a different phase. You may do. As a result, even in a power line in which noise is present in one half cycle of the power supply voltage half cycle (a half cycle in which the voltage is positive or a half cycle in which the voltage is negative) Therefore, the power line phase determination device of the present invention can perform phase determination with high accuracy.

  Further, the transmitter 10 may transmit a beacon only to one specific receiving unit, or may transmit a beacon to a plurality of receiving units (broadcast transmission). By performing broadcast transmission, phase determination can be made for a plurality of outlet pairs at the same time.

  In the above description, the transmission side polarity information is included in the beacon. However, the transmission side polarity information may be included in the header portion or payload portion of the message. By including the transmission side polarity information in the header portion of the message, the same effect as when the transmission side polarity information is included in the beacon can be obtained.

  The power line phase determination device of the present invention may be used as a dedicated device for phase determination, or may be used in a power line communication modem (power line communication device) for normal data communication.

  In addition, the power line communication device provided with the power line phase determination device may perform the phase determination by shifting from the normal state to the phase determination state only at the initial installation, or the connection outlet of the power line communication device may change. Assuming that the phase determination may be performed by periodically shifting from the normal state to the phase determination state.

  When the power line communication device includes a power line phase determination device, the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 includes a nonvolatile memory or the like, and determines the determined communication partner (power line communication device including the power line phase determination device). In-phase / different phase information may be retained. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 8, the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7 may classify and hold in-phase / different-phase information corresponding to the phase determination result of the power line for each communication partner. The power line communication device may cause the power line phase determination device to perform phase determination when the in-phase / different phase information of the communication partner is not held in the polarity comparison phase determination unit 7. This eliminates the need for the power line communication device including the power line phase determination device to perform phase determination each time communication is performed.

  Moreover, there is no limitation in particular in the means by which the presentation part 8 shows a difference in phase to a power line communication system installer etc., For example, a display or a buzzer may be sufficient. In addition, the presentation unit 8 may clearly indicate the number of matches or the number of mismatches between the polarity information of the transmission side polarity information and the reception side polarity information without clearly indicating the difference in phase.

  In addition, the negative blade of the power plug of the power line phase determination device of the present invention is larger than the positive side hole of the outlet and smaller than the negative side (grounding side) hole of the outlet, so that incorrect connection is made. It is preferable not to do so. In addition, for the same purpose, the polarity of the power plugs of the transmitter and the receiver is clearly indicated on the periphery of the power plug. The polarities may be matched.

  The present invention can be used for a device for determining the difference in phase of a power line, and in particular, even during the phase determination period, the communication device or the like does not reduce the period during which general data is transmitted and received. Even when a household electrical appliance that generates noise is connected to a power line, it is useful when it is desired to determine the difference in phase of the power line with high accuracy.

The figure which shows the power line phase determination apparatus 30 which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the relationship between the sine wave voltage waveform of the point (transmission point) where the transmitter 10 is connected, and the transmission data of the transmitter 10. The figure which shows the relationship between the sine wave voltage waveform of the point (reception point) to which the receiver 20 is connected, and the reception data of the receiver 20 The figure which shows the relationship between the sine wave voltage waveform of the point (reception point) to which the receiver 20 is connected, and the reception data of the receiver 20 Flow chart showing operation performed by transmitter 10 Flow chart showing operation performed by receiver 20 The figure which shows the transmitter 10 further provided with the noise detection part 9. The figure which shows an example of in-phase / different phase information for every communication partner Diagram showing single-phase, three-wire in-house wiring using commercial power supply for general households The figure which shows the structure of the determination apparatus which describes the difference in phase described in patent document 1 The figure explaining the determination operation | movement which the determination apparatus of FIG. 10 performs

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 4 Polarity determination part 2 Transmission part 3, 5 Insulation part 6, Reception part 7 Polarity comparison phase determination part 8 Presentation part 9 Noise detection part 10, 105 Transmitter 13-15 Beacon 20, 106 Receiver 30 Power line phase determination apparatus 101-103 Power line communication modem 104 Pillar transformer

Claims (15)

In the power line communication system, a power line phase determination system for determining the difference in phase between outlet pairs provided at arbitrary points on the power line,
A transmitter connected to a first outlet provided at an arbitrary point on the power line;
A receiver connected to a second outlet provided at an arbitrary point on the power line,
The transmitter is
A first polarity determination unit that determines the voltage polarity of the first outlet at a predetermined determination timing and creates first polarity information indicating the voltage polarity obtained by the determination;
A transmitter that creates a signal including the first polarity information and transmits the signal to the receiver via the power line;
The receiver is
A receiver that receives the signal and extracts the first polarity information from the signal;
A second polarity determination unit that determines the voltage polarity of the second outlet at the determination timing and creates second polarity information indicating the voltage polarity obtained by the determination;
A power line comprising: a polarity comparison phase determination unit that compares the first polarity information with the second polarity information to determine a phase difference between the first outlet and the second outlet Phase judgment system. The transmitter further includes a first insulating unit that transmits the signal from the transmission unit to the power line while blocking the influence of the power supply voltage of the power line on the transmission unit,
The receiver according to claim 1, further comprising a second insulating unit that transmits the signal from the power line to the receiving unit while blocking an influence of a power supply voltage of the power line on the receiving unit. The power line phase determination system described.   2. The power line phase determination system according to claim 1, wherein the receiver further includes a presentation unit that indicates a determination result of the difference between the phases. 3.   2. The power line according to claim 1, wherein the signal is a beacon that is a signal with a small amount of data that is transmitted at a constant period and that is an index, or a header that includes the first polarity information. Phase judgment system.   The power line phase determination system according to claim 1, wherein the determination timing is a timing excluding a zero cross point at which the voltage polarity is switched. The power line phase determination system performs the determination of the difference between the phases a plurality of times,
The polarity comparison phase determination unit counts the number determined to be in-phase and the number determined to be out-of-phase, and compares the two counted numbers to determine the final phase difference. The power line phase determination system according to claim 1. The transmitter further includes a noise detection unit that detects noise of the power line and notifies the first polarity determination unit of a period during which noise is detected,
The power line phase determination system according to claim 1, wherein the first polarity determination unit sets a timing excluding a period during which the noise is detected as the determination timing. The transmitter is provided in one power line communication device that communicates with a communication partner using the power line,
The receiver is provided in the other power line communication device that communicates with a communication partner using the power line,
The power line phase determination system according to claim 1, wherein the polarity comparison phase determination unit of the receiver records the determined difference of the phases together with an address of the one power line communication device. In a power line communication system, a power line phase determination method for determining a phase difference between outlet pairs provided at arbitrary points on a power line using a transmitter and a receiver,
In the transmitter,
Determining a voltage polarity of a first outlet to which the transmitter is connected at a predetermined determination timing, and creating first polarity information indicating the voltage polarity obtained by the determination;
Creating a signal including the first polarity information and transmitting the signal to the receiver via the power line;
In the receiver,
Receiving the signal and extracting the first polarity information from the signal;
Determining the voltage polarity of the second outlet to which the receiver is connected at the determination timing, and creating second polarity information indicating the voltage polarity obtained by the determination;
A power line phase determination method comprising: comparing the first polarity information with the second polarity information to determine a phase difference between the first outlet and the second outlet.   The power line phase determination method according to claim 9, further comprising a step of indicating a determination result of the phase difference in the receiver.   10. The power line according to claim 9, wherein the signal is a beacon that is a signal with a small amount of data that is transmitted at a constant period and that is an index, or a message in which a header portion includes the first polarity information. Phase judgment method.   The power line phase determination method according to claim 9, wherein the determination timing is a timing excluding a zero cross point at which the voltage polarity is switched. The determination of the difference between the phases is performed multiple times,
The receiver further includes a step of counting the number determined to be in-phase and the number determined to be out-of-phase, respectively, and comparing the two counted numbers to determine a final phase difference. The power line phase determination method according to claim 9, wherein the method is characterized in that: The transmitter further comprising detecting noise in the power line;
The power line phase determination method according to claim 9, wherein the step of creating the first polarity information uses a timing excluding a period during which the noise is detected as the determination timing. The transmitter is provided in one power line communication device that communicates with a communication partner using the power line,
The receiver is provided in the other power line communication device that communicates with a communication partner using the power line,
In the step of comparing the first polarity information and the second polarity information to determine the difference in phase between the first outlet and the second outlet, the phase of the determined phase is further determined. The power line phase determination method according to claim 9, wherein the difference is recorded together with an address of the one power line communication device.

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