Austria verifies BPL complaints

Austria's Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT) has verified the interference complaints of HF users in Linz, where a BPL (PLC, or power line communication) system is being operated on a commercial basis. In a report prepared for the February 21-22 meeting of the CENELEC/ETSI Joint Working Group on EMC of Conducted Transmission Networks, the ministry said the measured emission of PLC installations in the Linz region is approximately 42 dB higher than the relevant limit according to CEPT ECC Recommendation (05)04, "Criteria for the Assessment of Radio Interferences Caused by Radiated Disturbances from Wire-Line Telecommunication Networks" [ECC/REC(05)04]. The report says ECC/REC(05)04 "reflects the state of the art in Austria." The limit used by the ministry for the 1-30 MHz range, measured 3 meters from the source, is 40 dBuV/m peak at 1 MHz, decreasing to 27 dBuV/m at 30 MHz. This is roughly comparable to the FCC Part 15 BPL emission limit lowered by 40 dB and applying the 40 dB-per-decade distance factor FCC measurements call for. Other major differences between the Austrian regulations and Part 15 include distance between source and antenna, use of a peak detector and a logarithmic factor in the limit. The report is intended to inform the Joint Working Group about measurements of PLC systems and harmful interference they can cause in the HF bands, and to trigger a discussion to adopt ECC/REC/(05)04 as the document describing the state-of-the-art for wireline telecommunication networks such as PLC networks within Europe.

Thanks to the ARRL

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