Spectral Entropy Features Based Analysis of Impulse Noise Sources for PLC Systems

Impulse noises generated by domestic electrical and electronic appliances impact the performance of indoor Power Line Communication (PLC) systems severely. To understand the nature of complexity of these noises, especially in frequency domain, we need to look beyond average Power Spectral Density (PSD) based attributes. Hence, in this paper we have proposed spectral entropy based analysis for quantifying complexity of impulse noises in frequency domain. It has been demonstrated in this paper that Shannon Spectral Entropy is capable of quantifying the degree of regularity present in the distribution of spectral components of the impulse noises under observation. Thus, spectral entropy based features may contribute significantly in reliable diagnostics or identification of impulse noise sources which are primary disturbers in PLC systems.