Echelon sends power, control data via one pair of wires

Toronto, Ontario, Canada— To reduce automation system costs by eliminating local power supplies, Echelon Corp. (San Jose, CA) introduced on Oct. 31 at its LonWorld 2002 a new transceiver that sends power and control network data via one twisted-pair of wires.

By Control Engineering Staff November 6, 2002

Toronto, Ontario, Canada— To reduce automation system costs by eliminating local power supplies, Echelon Corp.

LPT-11 devices, which keeps down the cost of overall plant wiring. Targeted at the factory control, lighting, fire/life safety, security, access control and HVAC markets, LPT-11 can be used in many custom home, building and industrial automation applications.

As the second generation in its link power technology, Echelon states that LPT-11 is smaller in size and offers more performance than the device it replaces. It will reportedly fit into light switches, fluorescent ballasts, luminaires, infrared receivers, motion sensors, smoke detectors, limit switches, and other low-cost devices in which space is at a premium. By offering improved immunity to common mode noise typically found in building and industrial environments, Echelon says LPT-11 provides robust signaling, even in electrically harsh environments.

“Our design goals were to allow Echelon’s home, building and industrial automation customers to build smaller, lower-cost devices that are less expensive to install and maintain,’ said Mathew Chacko, Echelon’s transceiver product marketing manager. ‘We’ve achieved all of these goals with the LPT-11 transceiver. Its compact packaging transceiver will fit into a range of sensors and actuators, while the elimination of local power supplies and associated power cabling produces significant savings for device manufacturers, system integrators and facility owners. The use of link power technology should typically result in overall system savings of more than 20% including equipment and installation. In a competitive market, these savings can make the difference between winning and losing an automation project.”

LPT-11 is scheduled to start shipping in volume in 1Q03. Sample transceivers, as well as development and network installation tools compatible with LPT-11, are presently available from Echelon. The firms also offers training and comprehensive support services for LPT-11, including pre-production design reviews to help manufacturers integrate the transceiver and other Echelon products into their devices.

Control Engineering Daily News DeskJim Montague, news editorjmontague@reedbusiness.com


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