IEEE 1897 : 2024

Abstract:Procedures are described in this recommended practice that may be used by electric utility companies and others to address complaints of interference caused by power line gap noise to radio, television, and other types of wireless communications. A discussion is included on how to determine if a noise may be considered as harmful interference under the FCC rules. Modern noise-locating techniques, equipment, and protocols are also described, including the use of time-domain noise signatures (sometimes referred to as signature analysis) to investigate and identify radio noise in the field, allowing unassociated interference to be ignored unless it needs to be repaired for some other reason (e.g., safety concerns). These techniques enable the identification of which noise source or sources are associated with the reported interference, thus minimizing troubleshooting and repair costs. Troubleshooting and repair recommendations are also included for once all the sources have been identified. Ways to determine and find interference when it is being caused by a source other than electric-utility equipment, such as an electronic consumer device, are also described in this recommended practice. The methods and techniques contained herein have been validated by decades of usage with positive results by a wide range of users, including but not limited to utilities, professional interference investigators, radio engineers, and even the home hobbyist.

Keywords:gap noise, IEEE 1897™, incidental radiators, power line noise, radio frequency interference, radio-noise emissions, unintentional radiators