Patent ID: 6842668

Claim:
Power control apparatus for executing load control command signals in an AC power distribution network of the type including power distribution conductors for supplying AC operating voltage at a power distribution frequency to one or more loads, comprising in combination: a high frequency blocking filter including a power input circuit for receiving AC operating voltage from an AC power source and a power output circuit for supplying filtered AC operating voltage to the power distribution conductors while suppressing or substantially attenuating the transmission of high frequency signals that occur at a frequency higher than the power distribution frequency; a transmitter having an input for receiving load control command signals and an output coupled to one or more of the power distribution conductors on the output circuit side of the high frequency blocking filter for modulating the filtered AC operating voltage with load control command signals at a power line carrier modulation frequency; and a control module coupled to one or more of the loads and to one or more of the power distribution conductors for recovering the load control command signals from the modulated AC operating voltage and using the command signals to control the application of the filtered AC operating voltage to one or more of the loads.