Intellon Corporation

James E Vander Mey

Timothy J Vander Mey

Bruce A Denton

An apparatus and methods are provided for controlling data communications across power lines. The apparatus preferably has a power line interface for interfacing with a power line so as to detect both a wide bandwidth data communications protocol being initiated across the power line and a narrow bandwidth data communications protocol being initiated across the power line synchronously with the power line mains frequency and so as to initiate either a wide bandwidth data communications protocol onto the power line or a narrow bandwidth data communications protocol onto the power line synchronously with the power line mains frequency. The narrow bandwidth of the narrow bandwidth data communications protocol preferably falls within the wide bandwidth of the wide bandwidth data communications protocol. An input wide and narrow bandwidth protocol receiver is positioned responsive to the power line interface for receiving either the wide bandwidth protocol or the narrow bandwidth protocol. An output wide and narrow bandwidth protocol transmitter is connected to the power line interface for transmitting a selected one of either the wide bandwidth protocol or the narrow bandwidth protocol. A protocol controller is positioned responsive to the input protocol receiver and the output protocol transmitter for controlling the receipt of and the transmission of wide bandwidth and narrow bandwidth data communications protocols.

Apparatus and method for controlling data communications having

Spread spectrum chirps (i.e., wideband frequency packets) are propagated on a local area network in a hostile communications environment, such as a powerline or a crowded radio frequency band. Chirps are self-synchronizing, data bit (or subdata bit) in length and detectable by all network nodes, to allow the contention resolution and collision detection needed to support carrier-sense based network protocols. A matched filter of the same time length and encoding sequence as the transmitted chirp provides the self-synchronized chirp reception at each receiver.

Spread spectrum communications system for network

Spread spectrum communication using direct sequences that approximate a swept frequency waveform in which successive square waves are formed by the chips making up the sequence, and in which the durations of the square waves extend over a plurality of chips, and in which the frequency of the square waves varies across at least a portion of the sequence. Information is encoded by varying the direction of the direct sequence, so that the sequence is transmitted as either a forward or a reverse frequency-swept sequence. The spectrum of the direct sequences is in a passband. The direct sequence biphase modulates a carrier (e.g., RF) to produce a spread-spectrum signal with two passbands centered about the frequency of the modulated carrier. Received signals are fed to a correlator having forward and reverse sequence outputs, the outputs of the correlator are independently tracked, and generally different sampling times are used for taking samples of the forward and reverse correlator outputs for purposes of making decoding decisions. The receiver uses a local oscillator for demodulation that is not synchronized with the local oscillator used for modulation in the transmitter. The overall phase of successive direct sequences is pseudorandomly varied to produce a more uniform spreading of energy across the frequency band. Dual level coding is used, in which a quality and value outputs from the lower level decoding are used to provide, in effect, a correlator for the higher level decoding. Both 0 and 90 degree matched filter sections are provided to make the correlator insensitive to phase shifts.

Spread spectrum communication system particularly-suited for RF network

Communication apparatus and method that includes generating a series of successive spread-spectrum chirp signals, which are progressively swept within a defined bandwidth. The chirps are divided into two frequency-swept portions, one beginning at an intermediate frequency within the bandwidth being swept to one end of the frequency range of the chirp, and a second beginning at the other end of the frequency range and being swept to the intermediate frequency. This has the effect of moving the frequency transition from the boundaries of the chirp to its center, with the result that the discontinuities introduced at the boundaries by phase reversals due to successive modulated chirps generate less out-of-band energy. In preferred embodiments, the full frequency range of the chirp is at least about two octaves (two doublings of frequency), and the intermediate frequency is at least about one octave (one doubling of frequency) from the either end of the range, whereby the one-half and double frequency components that result from phase reversals remain within the band. The method and apparatus may be used for communication over power lines.

Spread-spectrum chirp communication with sharply defined bandwidth

Spread spectrum chirps (i.e., wideband frequency packets) are propagated on a local area network in a hostile communications environment, such as a powerline or a crowded radio frequency band. Chirps are self-synchronizing, data bit (or subdata bit) in length and detectable by all network nodes, to allow the contention resolution and collision detection needed to support carrier-sense based network protcols. A matched filter of the same time length and encoding sequence as the transmitted chirp provides the self-synchronized chirp reception at each receiver.

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Ocala, FL, United States of America

James E Vander Mey