Standards & Regulation
Among broadband technologies, PLC already showed outstanding performances and huge abilities to address market requirements (VoIP, Broadband Internet...). Now, to support significant deployments, standardization processes are crucial.
Ilevo always strongly believes in the need for clear and unique standards to ensure coexistence and interoperability between technologies, as well as compliance with the EMC regulation.
This is why we are pleased to play a leading role in Standardization, through different projects:
IEEE P1901 (Medium access control and physical layer specifications)
Ilevo chairs the P1901 project which is an IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers) draft standard for Broadband Power Line (BPL) networks, defining medium access control and physical layer specifications.
The purpose of this project is to develop an independant and openly designed standard to define detailed mechanisms for coexistence and interoperability between BPL devices. It will also address security/privacy issues and comply with EMC limits set by national regulators.
Developing standards to contribute to the development of PLC technology and involve technology providers as well as customers is very important to better meet market requirements and support the diffusion of PLC among other broadband access technologies. CISPR/I (Electromagnetic interference)
Concerning Electromagnetic interference applied to PLC equipment, no standard has been finalized so far.
To make this standard come true, Ilevo leads the PLT project within CISPR (Comité International Spécial des Perturbations Radioélectrique - Special International Committee on Radio Interference). This PLT project is part of CISPR/I subcommittee for Electromagnetic compatibility of information technology equipment, multimedia equipment and receivers.
The project is dedicated to the limits and methods of measurement of broadband telecommunication equipment over power lines.
CISPR is a technical committee of IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission).
IEC has an agreement with the European Commission and standards specified by the PLT project inside CISPR will also permit to ensure conformity of products to European Directives. UPA (Universal Powerline Association)
Promoting PLC technology among governments and industry leaders as well as allowing interoperability and coexistence between PLC equipment is very important. That's precisely the purpose of UPA (Universal Powerline Association), lead by Ilevo and including key players on the PLC market (PLC equipment providers, utilities, consumer electronic equipment manufacturers, and chipset providers). OPERA (Open PLC European Research Alliance)
Working together with other PLC technology providers on research projects also contributes to improve the technology and give its best to our customers. To ensure this result, Ilevo is a member of OPERA, an open research project at European level. Ilevo chairs the Technical Committee of the project.
This alliance also represents its members in various standardization processes (IEEE, ETSI...) and makes researches in the perspective of developing a technology that will become a worldwide standard. And also:
- Ilevo is very active in the EU to define standards for broadband installations and a member of the relevant CENELEC/ETSI groups
- Ilevo chairs the French committee to prepare the votes in CENELEC