Patent ID: 7664117

Claim:
A method or providing communications over a plurality of low voltage power line subnets of a power distribution system to a plurality of groups of subscriber interface devices, wherein each subnet comprises one or more low voltage power lines connected to a distribution transformer and extending to one or more subscriber residences and wherein each group of subscriber interface devices receives communications service via a respective different low voltage subnet, the method comprising: providing a power line communications device coupled to each of the plurality of low voltage subnets; establishing non-power line communications between each of a multitude of the power line communication devices and a remote network; establishing a plurality of Virtual Local Area Networks (VLAN), wherein each of the plurality of VLANs comprises one of the power line communications devices and a multitude of subscriber interface devices that are connected to the same low voltage subnet; with a first subscriber interface device, receiving first data from a first subscriber device; storing in a memory of the first subscriber interface device a VLAN identifier; formulating a first data packet with the first subscriber interface device that includes at least a portion of the first data and the first VLAN identifier; transmitting the first data packet over the VLAN to a first power line communications device with the first subscriber interface device; receiving the first data packet that includes the first VLAN identifier and the at least a portion of the first data; modifying the first data packet to remove the first VLAN identifier to provide a second data packet; and transmitting the second data packet to a remote destination via the remote network.