CATP: Collective Acknowledgement Transmission Protocol for Group Commands in PLC Networks based on the SFN Technique

The problem of covering large Powerline Communications (PLC) networks can be solved by the application of the Single Frequency Network (SFN) technique, building so-called PLC-SFN systems. Such networks are used for various control systems which require confirmations of transmitted commands. This is realized by an acknowledgement transmitted from the slave stations to a master. However, in the considered PLC-SFN systems, applied for ground traffic control in airports with very strong requirements, it is necessary to ensure a reliable acknowledgement transmission within reasonable time boundaries according to the considered application. The both requirements can be ensured by the so-called Collective Acknowledgement Transmission Protocol (CATP), presented in this paper. The CATP is based on a two-phase reservation method for the acknowledgement transmission with the help of so-called collective stations, which are chosen in accordance with specific algorithms. The algorithms are also presented.