JP2006319663A - Wiring accessory for power line communication - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable power line communication, while suppressing decrease in the number of usable outlets. <P>SOLUTION: A plug-in port 3a of a modular jack 3 to which a modular plug additionally provided on the end of a communication cable so as to be inserted/withdrawn is connected and plug blade insertion ports 20, 20 to which the plug blade of a power supply plug is inserted are provided on the front face of a housing 1. A pair of plug blades 4 to be connected to the outlet, blade receivers 21, 21 for receiving plug blades of the power supply plug to be inserted into the plug blades inserting ports 20, 20 and a communications interface portion 5 are housed in the housing 1. The plug blades 4, the blade receivers 21 and the communications interface portion 5 are connected via an insulation transformer T. Thus, since power is supplied to the power supply plug to be inserted into the plug blade inserting ports 20 via the blade receivers 21, power line communication can be performed, while suppressing the decrease in the number of usable outlets. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a power line communication wiring device for performing data communication using a power line wired indoors such as an office or a house.

In recent years, a local area network (LAN) in which a plurality of computers are connected is rapidly spreading in offices and houses. A communication cable (so-called LAN cable) is usually used as a communication medium for connecting computers in such a LAN. However, when a new LAN is introduced into an existing office or house, the labor and cost of wiring work are reduced. In some cases, a radio system using radio waves is employed in consideration (for example, see Patent Document 1).
JP 2005-79977 A

  By the way, the power line communication (Powre Line Communication) which performs data communication using the indoor wiring (power line) for power feeding has been conventionally proposed. In such power line communication, superposition and separation of power and communication signals are performed. An apparatus (PLC modem) to perform is required, and such a PLC modem is connected to an outlet provided on a wall surface via a power cord and connected to a communication device such as a computer via a communication cable. However, since the PLC modem occupies the outlet, it becomes necessary to use a table tap or the like in order to secure the power supply of the computer and other devices.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the said situation, The objective is to provide the wiring apparatus for electric power communication which can perform electric power communication, suppressing the reduction | decrease of the useable outlet.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a plug blade connected to a power line wired indoors by being plugged into an outlet, and has a substantially box shape and the plug blade protrudes from the back surface. A power line communication modem that modulates and demodulates a signal for power line communication via a power line housed in the housing and connected to the plug blade, and communication that interfaces between the power line communication modem housed in the housing and the communication device An interface, a connector provided on a surface of the housing and connected to a communication cable connecting the communication device and the communication interface so as to be freely inserted and removed; and a blade receiver housed in the housing and connected to the power line via the plug blade A plug blade insertion port for inserting a plug blade of a power plug and connecting it to the blade receiver is provided on the surface of the housing.

  The invention of claim 2 is characterized in that, in the invention of claim 1, the connector insertion port and the plug blade insertion port are provided on the front surface of the housing.

  The invention of claim 3 is characterized in that, in the invention of claim 1, the plug blade insertion opening is provided on the lower surface of the housing.

  The invention of claim 4 is characterized in that, in the invention of claim 3, the insertion port of the connector is provided on the lower surface of the housing.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the authentication means for judging whether communication with another power line communication modem via the power line is possible based on predetermined authentication information is provided in the housing. It is characterized by being housed in.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fifth aspect of the present invention, a switch for providing a trigger signal for causing the authentication means to perform an authentication process is housed in the housing, and an operation portion for operating the switch is provided on the surface of the housing. It is characterized by being provided in.

  According to the present invention, since power can be supplied to the power plug inserted into the plug blade insertion port via the blade receiver, there is an effect that power communication is possible while suppressing a decrease in usable outlets.

(Embodiment 1)
The power line communication wiring device A1 of the present embodiment includes a pair of plug blades 4 and 4 connected to a power line wired indoors by being plugged into an outlet, and is formed in a substantially box shape from the upper center of the back surface. And a housing 1 from which the blades 4 and 4 protrude.

  The housing 1 is formed of a substantially box-shaped synthetic resin molded product, and a connector (RJ-45 modular plug) 121 attached to the tip of a communication cable (CAT5 LAN cable) 120 is detachably connected to the upper front portion. The insertion port 3a of the receiving side connector (modular jack 3 of RJ-45) is exposed. The insertion port 3a is closed by two doors 3b and 3c that are movable in the vertical direction so as to be opened and closed, and the modular plug is inserted and removed in a state where the doors 3b and 3c are opened. A knob 3d that protrudes forward is provided at the lower end of the lower door 3c. By moving the doors 3b and 3c upward with the knob 3d, the insertion port 3a can be exposed. it can. Further, a pair of plug blade insertion openings 20 and 20 into which the plug blades of the power plug are inserted are provided in the lower part of the front surface of the housing 1, and a pair of plug blades received in the plug blade insertion openings 20 are received in the housing 1. The blade receivers 21 and 21 are accommodated.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the power line communication wiring device A1. A pair of plug blades 4 and 4 connected to a power line wired indoors by being plugged into an outlet are connected to a communication interface unit 5 via a DC cut capacitor C and an insulation transformer T and are connected to AC / A power supply unit 6 composed of a DC converter and a pair of blade receivers 21 and 21 are connected.

  The communication interface unit 5 is connected to the secondary side of the isolation transformer T and is superimposed on the power line with a transmission / reception unit 7 for transmitting / receiving a signal for power line communication (hereinafter referred to as a communication signal) to / from the power line. Connected to a modular jack 3 and a PLC modem 8 having a demodulation function for demodulating a data signal from a communication signal of a predetermined format transmitted and a modulation function for modulating transmission data of a communication device such as a computer into a communication signal of a predetermined format A LAN controller 9 for transmitting data to and from a communication device via a communication cable in conformity with a standard such as 100BASE-TX, and a CPU as main components, and controls the entire communication interface unit 5 And a control unit 10. The control unit 10 has a security function such as filtering of data (packets) exchanged between the PLC modem 8 and the LAN controller 9, for example. The communication interface unit 5 is operated by a DC power source created by the power source unit 6.

  By the way, the outlet for inserting and connecting the plug blades 4 and 4 of the power line communication wiring device A1 of the present embodiment is an embedded outlet 100 embedded in a construction surface such as a wall as shown in FIG. It is desirable to be. The embedded outlet 100 has a fitting recess 101 that fits into the housing 1 of the power line communication wiring device A1, and a plug connection portion 102 that has a pair of plug blade insertion ports 103 at the bottom of the fitting recess 101. Two are arranged side by side vertically. Here, when attaching the power line communication wiring device A1 to the embedded outlet 100, when the housing 1 is inserted into the fitting recess 101, the plug blades 4 are respectively inserted into the plug blade insertion openings 103 of the upper plug connection portion 102. Then, the communication interface unit 5, the power supply unit 6, and the blade receiver 21 are each connected to the power line via the plug blade 4. Further, since the housing 1 of the power line communication wiring device A1 is attached in a state of being half-embedded in the fitting recess 101 of the embedded outlet 100, the amount of protrusion from the construction surface is reduced, and the construction surface is clean. Moreover, since the peripheral surface of the housing 1 is held by the inner surface of the fitting recess 101, the shakiness of the housing 1 can be eliminated. In this way, by inserting the plug blade 4 into the outlet installed on the construction surface, the communication interface unit 5 can be connected to the power line and perform power line communication, so if it is a place where the outlet is installed, The housing 1 can be attached and used at a desired location. In addition, if the plug blade of the power plug is inserted into the plug blade insertion port 20 provided on the front surface of the housing 1, the power plug is connected to the power line via the blade receiver 21 in the housing 1 to supply power to the power plug. Is possible.

  As described above, the power line communication wiring device A1 according to the present embodiment can supply power to the power plug inserted into the plug blade insertion port 20 via the blade receiver 21, thereby suppressing a decrease in usable outlets. Power communication can be performed.

  4 and 5, the insertion port 3a of the modular jack 3 may be provided at the center of the front surface of the housing 1, and the plug blade insertion ports 20 and 20 may be provided on the lower surface of the housing 1. 6 and 7, the insertion port 3 a of the modular jack 3 and the plug blade insertion ports 20, 20 may be provided in parallel on the lower surface of the housing 1. Thus, if both the plug blade insertion ports 20 and 20 or the plug blade insertion ports 20 and 20 and the insertion port 3 a of the modular jack 3 are provided on the lower surface of the housing 1, the power cord 110 and the communication cable 120 are connected from the housing 1. By reducing the amount of protrusion in parallel, it can be prevented from interfering with walking and furniture.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 8 is an external perspective view of this embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a circuit block diagram. However, since the basic configuration of the power line communication wiring device A2 of the present embodiment is substantially the same as that of the power line communication wiring device A1 of the first embodiment, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. .

  In performing power line communication via a power line wired indoors using the power line communication wiring device according to the present invention, predetermined authentication information is held in each power line communication wiring device, and mutual authentication information is stored. It is conceivable to ensure security by permitting power line communication only between the wiring devices for power line communication that match. For this purpose, in the present embodiment, the authentication information is stored in a memory (not shown) provided in the control unit 10, and the control unit 10 serving as an authentication unit performs authentication processing when the switch 12 is turned on. The trigger signal for giving is provided. The switch 12 is composed of, for example, a tact switch, and is pushed by an operation button 13 provided on the upper right portion of the front surface of the housing 1.

  When a trigger signal is input from the switch 12, the control unit 10 reads authentication information stored in the memory, converts the authentication information into a communication signal by the PLC modem 8, and transmits the communication signal from the transmission / reception unit 7 to the power line. On the other hand, the control unit of another power line communication wiring device that has received the communication signal also sends the authentication information stored in the memory to the power line using the communication signal. And in the control part 10 of each wiring apparatus A2 for power line communication, the authentication information received by the communication signal and the authentication information stored in the memory are collated, and only when they match, the subsequent communication signal The transmission / reception of communication signals is permitted, and if they do not match, the transmission / reception of communication signals is not permitted.

  Thus, according to the present embodiment, power line communication is possible only between the power line communication wiring devices A2 that share predetermined authentication information, and security in data communication can be ensured.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 10 is an external perspective view of the present embodiment, and FIG. 11 is a circuit block diagram. However, since the basic configuration of the power line communication wiring device A3 of the present embodiment is substantially the same as that of the power line communication wiring device A1 of the first embodiment, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. .

  The present embodiment is characterized in that USB is used as an interface between the communication device and the PLC modem 8 in the communication interface unit 5 instead of 100BASE-TX in the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the front side of the housing 1 has a USB connector insertion side (hereinafter referred to as USB) attached to the tip of a communication cable (USB cable) 130 instead of the insertion port 3a of the modular jack 3. An insertion port 15a of a receiving side (hereinafter referred to as a USB jack) 15 of a USB connector to which a plug 131 is detachably connected is exposed. Further, as shown in FIG. 11, a USB controller 16 for performing data transmission with a communication device in accordance with a USB standard via a communication cable (USB cable) connected to the USB jack 15 is a LAN controller 9. Is provided in the communication interface unit 5 instead.

  Thus, if the USB jack 15 of the power line communication wiring device A3 of this embodiment and the USB jack of the personal computer are connected by a USB cable, the personal computer can perform power line communication via the USB cable.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 12, the insertion port 15a of the USB jack 15 may be provided in the center of the front surface of the housing 1, and the plug blade insertion ports 20, 20 may be provided on the lower surface of the housing 1, or as shown in FIG. As described above, the insertion port 15 a of the USB jack 15 and the plug blade insertion ports 20, 20 may be provided in parallel on the lower surface of the housing 1. Similarly to the second embodiment, the authentication information is stored in the memory provided in the control unit 10, and the operation button 13 provided on the upper right portion of the front surface of the housing 1 is pressed as shown in FIG. When the is turned on, a trigger signal for causing the control unit 10 to perform an authentication process may be given.

1 shows Embodiment 1 of the present invention, where (a) is a front view, (b) is a left side view, and (c) is a top view. FIG. It is a circuit block diagram same as the above. It is a perspective view of the same as above and an embedding receptacle. The other structure same as the above is shown, (a) is a front view, (b) is a left side view, and (c) is a bottom view. It is a perspective view which shows the other structure same as the above. It is a bottom view which shows other structure same as the above. It is a perspective view which shows other structure same as the above. It is a perspective view in the state where Embodiment 2 of the present invention was connected to the embedded outlet. It is a circuit block diagram same as the above. It is a perspective view of Embodiment 3 of the present invention and an embedded outlet. It is a circuit block diagram same as the above. It is a perspective view which shows the other structure same as the above. It is a perspective view which shows other structure same as the above. It is a perspective view which shows another structure same as the above.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Housing 3 Modular jack 4 Plug blade 5 Communication interface part 6 Power supply part 7 Transmission / reception part 8 PLC modem 9 LAN controller 20 Plug blade insertion port

Claims (6)

  Plug blade connected to the power line wired indoors by plugging in an outlet, a housing formed in a substantially box shape with the plug blade protruding from the back, and a power line housed in the housing and connected to the plug blade A power line communication modem that modulates and demodulates a signal for power line communication via the communication interface, a communication interface that is housed in the housing and interfaces with the power line communication modem and the communication device, and a communication device and a communication interface provided on the surface of the housing A connector that allows the communication cable to be inserted and removed to be inserted and removed, and a blade receiver that is housed in the housing and connected to the power line via the plug blade, and is connected to the blade holder by inserting the plug blade of the power plug A power line communication wiring device, wherein a plug blade insertion opening is provided on the surface of the housing.   2. The power line communication wiring device according to claim 1, wherein the connector insertion port and the plug blade insertion port are provided on the front surface of the housing.   2. The power line communication wiring device according to claim 1, wherein the plug blade insertion opening is provided on a lower surface of the housing.   4. The power line communication wiring device according to claim 3, wherein the connector has an insertion port provided on a lower surface of the housing.   5. The authentication means for determining whether or not communication with another power line communication modem via a power line is possible based on predetermined authentication information is housed in the housing. Wiring equipment for power line communication.   6. The switch for providing a trigger signal for causing the authentication means to perform authentication processing is housed in the housing, and an operation portion for operating the switch is provided on the surface of the housing. Wiring equipment for power line communication.

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