Universal Powerline Bus (UPB) is a standard protocol for devices used for home automation. It uses the AC powerline wiring in the home as the medium for signalling and control of smart devices. UPB was developed by PCS Powerline Systems and dates back to 1999.
Based on the same concepts as the X10 standard that came 20 years before, UPB has an improved transmission rate and higher reliability over X10 (UPB is reportedly 99.9% reliable versus 70%-80% reliability of X10). Since UPB requires the use of the AC power lines for communication and has no wireless capabilities there are no battery powered UPB devices such as door locks and sensors. A handful of companies manufacture home control products using the UPB standard, far fewer than X10.
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