News

Panasonic Develops the World's First Broadband Home Networking Technology Using Power Line Capable of High-Definition Video Transmission (22/1/2004)

- Approved as baseline technology by HomePlug Powerline Alliance -

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (NYSE and PCX: MC), best known for its Panasonic-brand products, announced today that it has developed a high-speed home power line IP networking technology capable of high-definition video transmission. The new technology will be part of the HomePlug Powerline Alliance's* next generation HomePlug AV specification for audio, video and data networking.

Panasonic's new PLC technology makes it possible to provide broadband connectivity to every room in a house via existing home power lines using an adapter about the size of an audiocassette tape, that contains a power plug, a LAN connector and an LSI chipset that converts broadband data signals into signals that can travel over a power line. The adapter connects a broadband Internet link, such as ADSL or optical fiber, to the existing power lines in the home. Panasonic expects to introduce PLC adapters for both consumer and office use by the end of 2004, if the HomePlug Powerline Alliance determines the specification in the summer of 2004. An LSI chipset will also become commercially available at the same time.

"The user simply plugs the PLC adapter into any AC power outlet to create a home broadband networking, without installing new cabling," says Akitoshi Aritaka, Director of Panasonic's Broadband Communications Development Center, which developed this technology. "For example, you could watch the same high-definition video content on a large-screen TV in your living room and on a display in your bedroom via the power line connection."

Existing forms of home networking technologies include wireless LANs, coaxial cables and Ethernet LANs. Each has its own strong points, however, coaxial cable and Ethernet communications may require laying new cable in an existing house. On the other hand, it can be difficult to communicate between rooms using wireless LANs, and ensuring security is an issue. Panasonic has developed technology, which it calls HD-PLC (high definition ready high speed power line communication), that overcomes these issues.

HD-PLC also resists interference from other signals, such as amateur ham radio, that often use the same frequencies as wired communications. In order to realize this capability, Panasonic combined OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing)(1) and Wavelet technology to reduce the noise caused by the interference down to one-fifth of typical noise levels. This creates a proprietary interference-resistant and ultra-high-speed modulation-demodulation method without use of additional filter circuitry that eliminates the frequencies where interference is likely to occur.

Panasonic also developed a new TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access)(2) specification which implements efficient data transfer while accommodating varying transfer speed requirements(3). Using TDMA as a basis, the HD-PLC technology allows devices connected to PLC adapters plugged into power outlets to exchange data, such as high-definition video content, computer files, or audio data, freely and efficiently.

All these proprietary technologies make possible stable and affordable data transfer over home power lines at ultra-high speeds of 190Mbps, rivaling optical fiber.

Notes

* HomePlug Powerline Alliance, established in April 2000, is an industry led initiative for promoting the creation of specifications for home power line networking and encouraging the popularization of products based on these specifications. The Alliance is presently in the process of finalizing a HomePlug specification for audio and video data networking that will support high-speed, high-quality data transfer. HomePlug Powerline Alliance, Inc., comprises about 42 companies and is led by ten sponsor companies: Cogency Semiconductor, Conexant, Enikia, Intellon, EarthLink, RadioShack, Sharp, DS2, Comcast, and Panasonic.

(1) OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) is a signal transfer method used for digital broadcasts and the like. In its implementation in the PLC adapter, the 24 MHz frequency band is divided into 390 narrowband channels or carriers, each of which can be used to carry a content signal such as high-definition video. Each of the frequency channels within the main frequency band is highly independent and there is little interference between channels, allowing efficient use of a narrow frequency band.

(2) TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access) is a wireless transmission method used in mobile phones. It works by assigning multiple timeslots to a single frequency, allowing it to be shared by several users simultaneously. Using TDMA as a basis, the HD-PLC technology allows devices connected to PLC adapters plugged into power outlets to exchange data, such as high-definition video content, computer files, or audio data, freely and efficiently.

(3) The data transfer speed requirements vary, depending on the application. For example, the data handled by a home network includes data not amenable to time delays, such as video content and IP phone calls, and data for which time delays are not a problem, such as that associated with Web access or file transfers.

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