The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 22, 1998
Filed:
Sep. 04, 1997
J Marcus Stewart, San Jose, CA (US);
Glen M Riley, Los Gatos, CA (US);
Philip H Sutterlin, San Jose, CA (US);
Marie E Andrus, Los Gatos, CA (US);
Amy O Hurlbut, San Francisco, CA (US);
Milton T Tormey, Los Altos, CA (US);
Echelon Corporation, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Abstract
A power line communications analyzer (PLCA) provides a signal strength metering system and selectable signal attenuation functions for adjusting the transmitting unit's attenuation and measuring error rate without the need for a user to be present at both the sending and receiving locations under test. Each PLCA is coupled to a power line communication network via an electrical outlet and power lines. In actual operation, one of the PLCAs acts as a data transmitter and the other PLCA acts as a data receiver. The mode of operation of the PLCA can be dynamically altered during operation of the system. The PLCA comprises control logic that receives command inputs from a keypad, generates data packets for transmission on the power line communication network, receives and analyzes data packets received from the power line communication network, detects the power line signal and/or noise level and drives the LED display accordingly, and displays packet transmission information on an LCD display.