ACN

Pioneering Swiss Technology at the Heart of a Rapidly Growing Smart Grid Market

Download the article as published in the Swiss Banking Yearbook 2011-2012.

Worldwide Smart Grid market set for huge growth

Download the article as published in the Swiss Banking Yearbook 2010.

ACN Announces BPL Access Products Complying to the Recently Ratified IEEE 1901 Standard

ACN Advanced Communications Networks SA (ACN) today unveiled its plans to develop Broadband Over Power-Line (BPL) Access Chipsets as well as BPL Access Products complying to the new IEEE1901 BPL PHY and MAC standard recently approved by the IEEE-SA Standards Board.

The Company is a Promoter and Member of the HD-PLC Alliance. ACN’s bandpass Wavelet OFDM technology was ratified in the new IEEE 1901 Standard as part of the BPL Access Specification.

In explaining the move, Dr. Stephan Horvath, CEO of ACN Advanced Communications Networks SA observes: “BPL chips optimized for the Access and Smart Grid communications are currently not available on the market and will be developed by ACN as a first mover responding to market needs. We are excited to develop a first Wavelet OFDM based Access BPL chipset complying with the IEEE 1901 Standard.” He adds: “Our Company has pioneered power line communication and we have many years of field experience with BPL Access communications in different countries. This allows us to provide our customers with the most advanced Access Products complying with the new IEEE1901 BPL PHY and MAC standard.”

The Company’s Wavelet OFDM based Access Chipset are expected to be available by the middle of next year and its Access BPL Products for Smart Grid communication by Q3 2011.

“It is worthwhile noticing that ACN’s bandpass Wavelet OFDM technology is the result of the Company’s extensive field experience.” said Michimasa Aramaki, President and Chair of HD-PLC Alliance. “By participating in HD-PLC Certification Program, ACN will help to accelerate the deployment of the Wavelet OFDM technology.”

“Now that the IEEE 1901 Standard is ratified, it is important that companies like ACN respond to the market needs quickly with compliant products.” said Jean-Philippe Faure, Chair of the IEEE 1901 working group.

The worldwide Smart Grid market is set for huge growth. The cumulative spending in Smart Grid technology worldwide by 2015 is estimated to be worth of $200 billion.

Without advanced two-ways communication the Smart Grid will not mature. In other words: BPL Access communications are required to make the Grid intelligent. ACN is pursuing a credible strategy to becoming a leader in Smart Grid communications.

HD-PLC Alliance Certifies Powerline Network Products Complying to Recently Ratified IEEE 1901 Standard

Fukuoka, Japan – November, 1 – HD-PLC Alliance, the world leader of the promotion of powerline communication products, today announced its certification program for Wavelet OFDM-based powerline network products complying to the new IEEE1901 BPL PHY and MAC standard recently approved by the IEEE-SA Standards Board.   The  HD-PLC  Alliance  and  its  members  are  now  accelerating  the  wide  adoption  among  multiple,  global industries—consumer products, transportation systems, and Smart Grid systems. The certification program newly provided by HD-PLC Alliance is for IEEE1901 compliant devices. The certification tests include required PHY performance and compatibility tests with all HD-PLC products. In addition to these certification tests, the program provides certification to the coexistence specification, also known as Inter-System Protocol (ISP) in IEEE1901. This same coexistence protocol was also approved as ITU-T G.9972 as of June 2010.

“This is a tremendous achievement for the PLC industry and for the global communication markets”, said Michimasa Aramaki, president and chair of HD-PLC Alliance. “Under the slogan GREEN UBIQUITOUS chosen from the outset as a guiding principle of the Alliance, HD-PLC Alliance not only certifies IEEE1901-compliant products, it also shares the experiences and ideas in how to apply this technology to various ecosystem solutions”.

Jean-Philippe Faure, chair of the IEEE1901 working group confirms: “The 1901 standard is designed to accommodate a wide range of major applications for powerline communications (PLC), including in-home broadband networks for data, audio and video distribution, Smart Energy, Smart Grid, and transportation systems, including plug-in electric vehicles.  IEEE  is  pleased  to  see  the  new  standard  supported  by  an  HD-PLC  Alliance  certification  program  for compliance and interoperability,”

The  HD-PLC  Alliance  members,  supporting  companies,  and  organizations  have  all  massively  contributed  to  the success of IEEE1901 standardization over the last five years.   “HD-PLC; which Panasonic developed in 2005, is now globally adopted and has matured sufficiently for many mission critical applications. Right off the trigger of IEEE1901 approval, we started licensing IEEE1901 compliant HD-PLC designs to LSI manufacturers” said, Mr. James French, president of Panasonic R&D Company of America.

“We decided to develop an HD-PLC LSI in full compliance with the recently announced IEEE1901 standard and plan to release it in Q2 2011 as a companion chip for K-Micro’s Analog Front End LSI, which is in mass production for current  HD-PLC  products.  In  addition,  we  also  plan  to  develop  and  release  another  IEEE1901-compatible  “Eco” version  of  HD-PLC  LSI  in  2012  targeted  for  Smart  Grid  applications.  “Eco”  will  operate  at  lower  data  rates  with significantly lower power consumption. We know there are big demands for the standard-based solutions and K-micro supports these desires” said Koichi Akeyama, president of K-micro America.

Wavelet-OFDM technology, which is one of the core technologies of the IEEE1901 standard and HD-PLC provides the superior performance, especially for lower power consumption,

“We are honored that ACN Wavelet OFDM technology was ratified in the IEEE1901 BPL Access Specification. ACN is developing Wavelet OFDM Access BPL Chipset complying with The IEEE1901 standard.” said Dr. Stephan Horvath, CEO of ACN Advanced Communication Networks SA in Switzerland.  HD-PLC Alliance has established strong relationships with the key alliances in China and Brazil, which also welcome the ratified IEEE1901 standard. Together HD-PLC Alliance and IGRS are establishing the first PLC joint-certification program in China. Dr. Sun Yuning, chair of IGRS National Standard Working Group, PRC, and president of IGRS Engineering Lab. Ltd. said, “We are pleased with the announcement that HD-PLC is now ratified as the IEEE1901 world  standard.  IGRS,  which  is  the  ISO/IEC  14543-5  standard,  approved  the  IGRS-PLC  interface  specification contributed to HD-PLC last year. We hope these standardization efforts foster the greater adoption in China and the global market.”
In focus on South America, HD-PLC Alliance is working with the Brazilian Government for the solution of Smart Grid and digital divide issues. “We are conducting Smart Grid field trials jointly with local power utilities using HD-PLC, and establishing broadband education network in the schools using HD-PLC solutions” said Pedro Jatobá, president of APTEL in Brazil. Mr. Jatobá also mentioned “I’m convinced that there are a lot of applications for HD-PLC as the innovative solutions for not only in Brazil, but also in South America in the view of social infrastructures.,”  The HD-PLC Alliance promotes the wide adoption and certification that ensures the interoperability among all the different implementations of HD-PLC products.

Pike Research announces “Smart Grid Communications Node Shipments to Total 276 Million through 2016″

On a fundamental level, the smart grid is the merging of two networks: the power network, consisting of the electrical generation, transmission, and distribution grid, and the modern communications network, which enables voice, video, and data communications for billions of endpoints around the world. As such, networking and communications technologies are at the core of utility smart grid deployments, and have been the focus of significant attention and fierce debate by industry players.

A new report from Pike Research forecasts that 276 million smart grid communications nodes will be shipped worldwide during the period from 2010 to 2016, with annual shipments increasing dramatically from 15 million in 2009 to 55 million by 2016. The cleantech market intelligence firm expects that this will represent a total industry investment of $20.3 billion during the seven-year forecast period, with annual revenues increasing from $1.8 billion in 2009 to $3.1 billion by 2016, despite rapidly falling average selling prices (ASPs) per node.

“The greatest myth of the smart grid is that there will be one communications technology to rule them all,” says senior analyst Bob Gohn. “The reality is that smart grid networks will be as diverse as the internet, including fixed and wireless, public and private, standard and proprietary technologies. Different technologies will lead in various application categories, based on their respective cost and performance characteristics.”

Gohn adds that advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) nodes for smart meters will be the largest communications equipment category over the next several years, followed distantly by home area network (HAN) nodes and network interface converters. Smaller node categories include generalized grid routers, AMI concentrators, wide area network (WAN) backbone nodes, substation routers, and substation ethernet switches.

Pike Research’s report, “Smart Grid Networking and Communications”, examines the global market opportunity for communication technologies in all areas of smart grid operations, from the utility substation to the home area network. The report analyzes key technology decisions being made by utilities with regard to wired and wireless, public and private, standard and proprietary networks. Key industry players are profiled and detailed market forecasts are provided through 2016, segmented by region, application, device, and technology. An Executive Summary of the report is available for free download on the firm’s website.

Pike Research is a market research and consulting firm that provides in-depth analysis of global clean technology markets. The company’s research methodology combines supply-side industry analysis, end-user primary research and demand assessment, and deep examination of technology trends to provide a comprehensive view of the Smart Energy, Clean Transportation, Clean Industry, Corporate Sustainability, and Building Efficiency sectors. For more information, visit www.pikeresearch.com or call +1.303.997.4619.