世界各国のリアルタイムなデータ・インテリジェンスで皆様をお手伝い

This new communications infrastructure will support functions such as automated meter reading, the delivery of electricity usage and pricing information to in-home displays, the command and control of smart in-home devices (e.g., smart thermostats, heating/air-conditioning systems and white goods) and support for plug-in electric vehicles and home micro-generation (e.g., solar panels and domestic wind turbines).

In recent years, many BPL vendors have repositioned themselves as communications solutions for utility smart grid providers. Several have considerably reshaped their businesses to address this opportunity, for example by enhancing their software capabilities or broadening the range of communications technologies they support. Most have de-emphasized their BPL access solutions in their marketing collateral, although they may support this application if required.

The best opportunities for BPL vendors are in Europe, Asia/Pacific and Latin America, where there is strong momentum behind using power line-based technologies for smart metering communications. In the U.S., the design of electricity distribution networks, with a small number of households per MV/LV transformer, makes the business case for BPL for smart metering more difficult, and alternative technologies, particularly private wireless mesh, have gained early support. However, beyond smart metering, there are opportunities for BPL worldwide for MV substation communications.