A DMT Modem Prototype for Broadband PLC

In this paper, the design and performance of a modem prototype for high hit-rate indoor power-line communications (PLC) are presented. The system architecture is based on two field programmable gate-arrays (FPGA) and a digital signal processor (DSP), in which the transmitter and receiver algorithms have been implemented. The modulation employed is discrete multitone (DMT) with bit-loading and adaptive equalization to channel selectivity both in frequency and time. The structure of the hardware and software used are explained, and the results obtained after testing the modem in some indoor PLC channels are discussed