Motorola's Commercial Broadband Over Powerline Solution Debuts at Telecom 2005
Motorola today announced the introduction of a wireless to low-voltage Broadband Over Powerline (BPL) solution, Powerline LV (Low Voltage). Powerline LV鈥檚 introduction to the utility industry was made during the United Telecom Council鈥檚 "Telecom 2005" Expo in Long Beach, Ca.
Powerline LV unites Motorola鈥檚 Canopy Broadband Internet Platform with enhanced HomePlug technology to provide an end-to-end Broadband Over Powerline solution for the utility market. The first wireless to low-voltage solution for widespread commercial use, Powerline LV combines the Canopy platform鈥檚 reliable high-speed Internet service with the lower-cost and non-invasive benefits of a low-voltage BPL option.
By operating the Canopy HomePlug system on low-voltage powerlines, Powerline LV is significantly less susceptible to interference. Motorola developed a solution that does not use medium-voltage wiring, greatly reducing high-frequency (HF) interference. Motorola also integrated true radio-frequency (RF) notch filtering, providing additional protection for amateur radio transmissions.
鈥淢otorola created a low-voltage broadband solution that is both economical and extremely easy to install and maintain, enabling an attractive business case for utilities entering this market,鈥� said Chris Banakis, Motorola Vice President and Director of Enterprise Utilities Solutions. 鈥淧owerline LV combines the best of both worlds 鈥� proven technology with a commercially effective BPL system.鈥�
Powerline LV is an extension of Motorola鈥檚 integrated broadband solutions offering, including end-to-end hardware and software to deliver broadband services to telecommunications providers world-wide.
Operating Efficiency for Utilities
With Powerline LV, only three pieces of equipment are needed to connect a customer to the broadband network 鈥� the Powerline LV access point cluster, integrated antenna and bridge router and home plug modem. Because no cabling or other wiring is required to bring the broadband signal to service areas, start-up costs and installation requirements are minimal.
鈥淥n top of offering significant business expansion opportunities for utilities, Powerline LV supports many of today鈥檚 core utility applications, making the solution鈥檚 value proposition even stronger,鈥� continued Banakis.
Grid management applications such as Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) and Substation Monitoring can easily be supported by Powerline LV鈥檚 Canopy platform. Many of Canopy鈥檚 existing utility customers already use the system to successfully support a variety of core business applications.
Broad River Customers Up-to-Speed with Powerline LV
As many as 13 million U.S. households remain unable to receive broadband services from traditional cable modem or DSL providers.[1] Broadband Over Powerline options such as Powerline LV bring the power of broadband to cities and municipalities underserved by current broadband providers.
A distribution cooperative serving approximately 25,000 rural utility customers in upstate South Carolina, Broad River Electric represents one of the nation鈥檚 underserved markets. Broad River receives networking communications and project management support from New Horizon Electric Cooperative. Earlier this month, Broad River and New Horizon established a relationship with Motorola to launch Powerline LV within Broad River鈥檚 South Carolina service area.
鈥淎s an electric cooperative in an area with very limited broadband service options, we were actively seeking ways to bring high-speed Internet to our customers,鈥� said Michael Varner, Vice President for Information Services, New Horizon Electric Cooperative.
鈥淧owerline LV presented a cost-effective approach to serving customer needs within a rural, underserved market, while also satisfying Broad River鈥檚 need for managing core business applications on an IP system. As a result, we see return on investment potential in both areas.鈥�
Leveraging the Canopy Broadband Internet Platform
Canopy鈥檚 point-to-multipoint technology allows utility customers to create a broadband network of virtually any size. Once in place, the Canopy network can serve as a dedicated data link or as a back-up network for the enterprise.
鈥淭he Canopy system provides the scalability and control necessary to target specific areas for service delivery without requiring a full buildout,鈥� said Tom Hulsebosch, Global Director of Business Development for Motorola's Canopy Wireless Broadband group. 鈥淭his level of flexibility is especially important for utilities introducing their customers to the new offering since costs are incurred only as customers are added to the system.鈥�
鈥淲ith more than 15,000 Canopy sites deployed worldwide, we have worked with customers to implement and support a wide range of wireless broadband networks, and can now bring this expertise to the Powerline LV solution,鈥� said Hulsebosch.
