A Data Communication Redundant Solution based on RF and PLC Systems for Smart Grid Applications

Clean energy challenge requires an integration of high level measurement and control devices for monitoring and automation of electrical networks, distributed generations and storage systems into the smart grid paradigms. Sensible data are exchanged among central control systems and remote devices, whose communication link reliability is of most importance. To this aim, this paper proposes to use a hybrid communication system based on power line communication (PLC) and radio frequency (RF), to perform redundancy of sensible data, thus preserving possible loss of important field measurements or commands. In this framework, the feasibility of a redundant solution is experimentally investigated using two hybrid PLC/RF electronics boards and developing a new firmware, which allows verifying that each frame is coherently transmitted and received by both means. First laboratory experimental tests were conducted to collect measures and to preliminary prove the robustness of the proposed architecture.