Home Area Networks and IPTV

The field of Home Area Networks (HAN), a dedicated residential subset of LAN technologies for home-based use, is fast becoming the next frontier for the communications industry.<br /> This book describes the various technologies involved in the implementation of a HAN: high-speed Internet connections, indoor implementations, services, software, and management packages. It also reviews multimedia applications (which are increasingly the most important and complex aspects of most HANs) with a detailed description of IPTV technology. It highlights the main technologies used for HANs: information transmission by means of copper pairs, coaxial cables, fiber optics, and Wi-Fi radio systems, as well as the software systems necessary for the processing and management of these data communications. These technologies – examples of which include the well-known 802.11 family of standards, and less widespread applications such as the HomePlug powerline standard – are highly relevant to multimedia, remote healthcare, remote working, energy, and device management in the home.<br /> The book is written for engineers working in the field, or who are interested in high-speed communication technologies and their actual or potential use in the home or in the small – medium size enterprise (SME) commercial environment.