1.4 PHY PLC & Go
PHY PLC & Go is Microchip’s example to get started quickly with Power Line Communications (PLC). PLC & Go implements a basic application example of low data rate PLC (up to 275 kbps) using OFDM modulation, that supports point to point and multi-point communications.
There are projects with FreeRTOS and without operative system (Bare-Metal). The following table shows the available PHY PLC & Go projects:
| Bare-Metal / FreeRTOS | Path | Boards |
|---|---|---|
| Bare-Metal | smartenergy_g3_apps\apps\phy_apps\phy_plc_and_go\firmware\pic32cx_mtg_ek_pl460.X | PIC32CXMTG-EK + PL460-EK |
| FreeRTOS | smartenergy_g3_apps\apps\phy_apps\phy_plc_and_go\firmware\pic32cx_mtg_ek_pl460_freertos.X | PIC32CXMTG-EK + PL460-EK |
| Bare-Metal | smartenergy_g3_apps\apps\phy_apps\phy_plc_and_go\firmware\sam_e70_xult_pl460.X | SAME70 Xplained Ultra + PL460-EK |
| FreeRTOS | smartenergy_g3_apps\apps\phy_apps\phy_plc_and_go\firmware\sam_e70_xult_pl460_freertos.X | SAME70 Xplained Ultra + PL460-EK |
PLC & Go runs a chat application between two or more end points using Microchip PLC modem boards. The end points in this example are PCs which are connected via serial interface (UART, USB) to Microchip evaluation boards acting as PLC modems. Any end point can transmit a message, which is received by the other end points in the network.
PLC & Go chat application is built on top of the state-of-the-art physical layer (PHY) of G3-PLC standard. As such, PLC & Go is taking advantage of the speed, robustness and frequency band profiles defined by the G3-PLC PHY. For the sake of simplicity, PLC & Go removes all advanced networking features available in the MAC layer of G3-PLC. This is not required for the basic point to point / point to multi-point communication scenarios described in this application example.
Microchip PLC solution is flexible and provides designs optimized for several frequency sub-bands below 500 kHz. Adopters can decide which band to use based on application requirements/restrictions and/or communications performance, which can be affected by different types of noise sources in the PLC channel.