Communication over a pulse width modulated network: Impact of the power cable

Recently, investigations were made over the use of the power feeder cables in a motor inverter application as a medium for data transmission for control and diagnosis purposes. The Power Line Communication (PLC) technology has proved itself as an interesting solution for communicating in such an environment. Instead of using additional cables devoted for data transmission, Information issued from sensors would be sent via power cables back to the controller despite the harsh environment and the high frequency switching of the inverter. This paper discusses the effect of the power cable on the communication reliability by using the PLC technology over a Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) network. It also underlines the high frequency switching effects of the inverter. A new approach based on experimental measuring of the scattering parameters is used for this purpose and the effects of the power cable length and the inverter's switching are used to evaluate the effectiveness of communication.