Review of Power Line Communications Standards in Africa

Abstract

The standards in power line communications (PLC) calibrate parameters such as frequencies allocation, signal level, security, topology of the network and many others parameters. The leap forward of power line communications technology is motivated by the willingness of the standardization organizations (SDO)s such as ITU, IEC, ISO, IEEE, CENELEC to define how the technologies are going to be deployed. This paper presents the different SDOs, Alliances and groups regulating the PLC sector. The interoperability and coexistence for some technologies are underlined. The process of developing PLC standards by ITU, IEEE 1901, CENELEC is described. The advantages and disadvantages of using PLC technology in Africa are discussed. © Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering 2014.