CEATEC JAPAN 2008, the IT and electronics comprehensive exhibition was held at Makuhari Messe in Chiba-city, Japan, from Tuesday, September 30, 2008 to Saturday, October 4, 2008. HD-PLC Alliance, in promotion of HD-PLC, was an exhibitor at CEATEC. Using ‘Green Ubiquitous’ as its catchphrase, they appealed how networks using HD-PLC can have new usages in areas such as home networks, AV data transmission, and being conscientious of the environment with the use of the power monitoring system. What attracted the most attention was the network connecting the electric vehicle with the home with HD-PLC and its advantages (technological reference exhibit).

An electric vehicle, which was somewhat of a product of imagination for a long time, is finally showing signs of going to another level. This is because battery size and weight have been reduced, which were the biggest challenges, and at the same time, the users’ demands are increasing due to the high gasoline prices caused by rising oil prices. Electric vehicles do not exhaust CO₂ at all while running, and also the running cost per distance is cheaper compared with gasoline. The current electric vehicles can be recharged from the AC adaptors, so users can recharge the vehicle’s batteries in the same way general home electric products are recharged from the power outlet at home.

If vehicles can be recharged from the home power outlet, the houses and vehicles can be physically connected. If users take advantage of the fact that a network is now available via the power cable, HD-PLC can give some added value to both the vehicles and the homes.

Looking at an Image from In-Vehicle Camera on the Intercom

One idea is to connect the in-vehicle camera and the intercom at the front door via a network. Currently, a lot of vehicles come with small cameras to cover blind spots. The idea is to use the data communication function of HD-PLC to transfer the image of the camera to the intercom display while the recharge cable is connected.

Because there is a built in sensor on this camera, if someone breaks into the car in a parking space at home, an alarm will go off and deliver the image to the intercom at the front door at the same. This makes it possible to prevent someone from breaking into or vandalizing the car by using the in-vehicle camera without having to set up security cameras on the walls at home or in the parking space.

Transmit data through a power line used for recharging, and view the image delivered from the in-vehicle camera on the intercom inside

• The Radio Law in Japan limits the use of HD-PLC for indoor-use only. HD-PLC Alliance exhibited application examples from overseas and technology prototypes at CEATEC.