COMMUNICATIONS

IN
DISTRIBUTION AUTOMATION

K.B. Manjunath
Additional Director, CPRI

Experience you can trust.

Stages involved in Power Distribution

DISTRIBUTION AUTOMATION
Experience you can trust.

Information We Can Get From Intelligent

Disconnections
& Reconnections

Managing
Credit

Transfers &
Vacancies
Customer
Complaints

Collecting
Cash
Customer
Billing
Load
Forecasting

Metering

Revenue
Protection
Power
Quality

What a
Metering
Distribution
Information
Utility does

State of art Energy

Meters with Automatic
Meter Reading system
& backend I.T. support
can provide all these
information.

Tariff
design
System

System

Expansion

Operation
Energy
Accounting

Distribution
Automation
System
Losses

Load
Control

System
Maintenance

INFORMATION WE CAN GET FROM

INTELLIGENT METERING

Experience you can trust.

Distribution Operations
Monitoring the power system
Making adjustments and maintaining the system so that it
can be used reliably, efficiently, and safely
Repairing the system as quickly as possible in response
to incidents such as equipment faults
Tracking and maintaining system reliability data
System planning and expansion to serve new customers

So, within this context, objectives

may be summarized as follows.....
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Objectives
Consistent with Indias National Electricity Policy, to
improve reliability and quality of service of distribution
system by
Reducing frequency and duration of power interruptions
to targets consistent with best international practice
Maintaining power quality with respect to voltage and
frequency excursions

To operate efficiently and safely by

Minimizing power losses
Applying manpower resources effectively
Ideally, these objectives should be obtained at least cost and
risk! Now let us consider some of the factors involved....
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Impact of Automation System

Without Automation

With Automation

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Reliability Performance Indices

With moves toward deregulation and open competition,
access to accurate and timely outage information is
critical in order to maximize operational efficiency,
minimize customer complaints, and maintain electric
system reliability.
In this respect, it is common practice to track and
benchmark reliability using standard performance
indices such as CAIDI, SAIFI, and SAIDI.
These indices serve as valuable tools to compare
utility reliability performance, but care must be taken to
ensure they are being calculated in the same manner.
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Index Definitions
System Average Interruption Frequency Index
SAIFI =

Total Number of Customer Interruptions

Total Number of CustomersServed

System Average Interruption Duration Index

SAIDI =

Customer Interruption Durations

Total Number of CustomersServed

Customer Average Interruption Duration Index

CAIDI =

Customer Interruption Durations

Total Number of Customer Interruptions
Experience you can trust.

Some European Comparisons

Survey Per Year 2004

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Example Strategy Study Using SAIDI

Base

1.0

FCIs

Reconfiguration

Automation

New Feeder

Tree Wire

2.0

New Line Devices

3.0

Fuse Saving
Aggressive Switching

SAIDI (hr/yr)

4.0

0.0
0

Cost (MUSD)
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Law of Diminishing Return

Cust Outage Minutes

Improvement

Reliability Improvement vs. Cost

3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

Cost

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Example of Automated GOS

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Example of Automated
Load Break Switches/Line Reclosers
SF6 LBS

Vacuum LBS

Air-Break LBS

Line Recloser

Experience you can trust.

Example of RMU
(Pad-Mounted Switches)

Generally, if not automation ready, can be retro-fit with motor

or solenoid operating mechanism
Experience you can trust.

Experience you can trust.

DAS Functional/Architectural Overview

Decision
Support
Systems

Maintenance
Management

OMS

DMS
Applications

GIS

Other
Applications
Crew
Management

Corporate Data
Accessibility and
Availability

DMS

SCADA

SCADA
Functions

COMMUNICATIONS

SCADA Platform
Environment

User
Interface

Data
Acquisition

RTU

Experience you can trust.

Typical Distribution Control Room

Environment

Corporate
Asset Data
and
Model

Crew Management
Current State
Analysis
(Incorporates Load
Modelling and
Network Analysis

Future
State
Analysis

Outage
Management

Design

Updates to
Network Model
and Diagrams

Network
Operational
Model
NOM

Outage Analysis

r/t state

Switching
Management

Switching
Planning

r/t state

SCADA

Outage Reporting

CIS

Planning

ERP, GIS

Operational
Diagrams

Reports and
History

Asset
Maintenance

IVR
Calls

Experience you can trust.

Communication Options
Between Substation to Control Centre
Wired
Optical Fibre
Leased Line
PLCC

Wireless

Radio
CDMA
GPRS
VSAT

Between Substation to Distribution Transformers

Wireless(Dialup)
PSTN
GSM

Wireless ( always on)

CDMA
GPRS
Radio

Experience you can trust.

Between Substation to Control Centre

Wired

Wireless

CDMA

RADIO

OFC
PLCC

GPRS

LEASED
LINE

VSAT

Experience you can trust.

Between Substation to Distribution Transformers

Wireless
Always on

CDMA

Wireless
(Dial up)

RADIO

PSTN

GSM

GPRS

Experience you can trust.

CODE DIVISION MULIPLE ACCESS

One of the basic concepts in data communication is

the idea of allowing several transmitters to send

information
simultaneously
over
a
single
communication channel. This allows several users to
share a bandwidth of frequencies. This concept is
called multiplexing. This allows several users to share
a bandwidth of frequencies.
Code division multiple access (CDMA) is a channel
access
method
utilized
by
various
radio
communication technologies.
It should not be confused with the mobile phone
standards called cdmaOne and CDMA2000 (which are
often referred to as simply "CDMA"), that use CDMA
as their underlying channel access methods.

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 CDMA employs spread-spectrum technology

and a special coding scheme (where each

transmitter is assigned a code) to allow
multiple users to be multiplexed over the same
physical channel.
CDMA is a form of "spread-spectrum"
signaling, since the modulated coded signal
has a much higher data bandwidth than the
data being communicated.

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FIBER OPTIC COMMUNICATION

Fiber-optic communication is a method of transmitting
information from one place to another by sending
pulses of light through an optical fiber.
The light forms an electromagnetic carrier wave that is
modulated to carry information.
The process of communicating using fiber-optics
involves the following basic steps:
Creating the optical signal involving the use a
transmitter, relaying the signal along the fiber,
ensuring that the signal does not become too
distorted or weak, receiving the optical signal, and
converting it into an electrical signal.

Experience you can trust.

Satellite Communication
Heart of the satellite communication system is a
satellite-based antenna in a stable orbit above the
earth
Transponder is an electronics that converts an uplink
signal to a down link signal
Frequency bands for satellite communications L, S, C,
X, Ku, K, Ka

Experience you can trust.

Microwave Communication
Microwave transmission refers to the technique
of transmitting information over a microwave
link.
Properties
Suitable over Line of Sight transmission links
without obstacles
Provides good bandwidth
Affected by rain, vapor, dust, snow, cloud, mist
and fog, heavy moisture, depending on chosen
frequency (see rain fade)

Experience you can trust.

Power Line Carrier

Communication

Most economically viable technology for

transferring Meter data to DCU.

Uses the technique of communicating the data
over existing Electrical Lines which carry LT power
to the site.
Employs an ASIC, which accepts digital data &
converts it into FSK modulation and transmits it
over the power line by sensing a zero crossing of
220V sine wave.
Typical frequency used for frequency modulation
is 132KHz.

Experience you can trust.

Distribution Automation
Communication Requirements

Reliability
Cost effectiveness
Capacity to handle data rates
Ability to reach areas of power outage
Ease of operation and maintenance
Security

Experience you can trust.

Communications Considered

Telephone (Lease)
Utility-operated Radio (DMB/MARS)
Unlicensed Radio (Point-to-Multi-point)
Distribution Power Line Carrier
Optical Fiber
CDMA/GPRS Cellular Radio (Lease)
MPLS (Lease)

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Communication Technology
Overview

Communication Requirements
Locations
Communication characteristics

Communication Technologies
Bearer technologies
Wireless technologies

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Where Is Communication Needed?

Substations
Distribution Feeders: RMUs, Switches, Auto
reclosures, FPIs
Transformers
Energy Meters
Consumer premises
DA Masters Control Centres
State Load Dispatch Center

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Substations
Communication Characteristics:
1200 - 9600 bps (higher in future)
Half-duplex
Channel shared (Party Line) for several substations

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Feeder Automation
Switches and other devices can be purchased with
integrated RTUs and Communications
This equipment can be interfaced using a Point-ToMultipoint Spur Radio or Multiple Address Radio
System (MARS) connected to a Digital Microwave
Backbone (DMB)

Experience you can trust.

Distribution Feeders
Communication Characteristics
Low data volumes
Unsolicited reporting by exception or change of state
Infrequent data scanning (polling)
Low cost per site

Experience you can trust.

SYSTEMS

REQUIRING COMMUNICATIONS

Data Acquisition - RTU/FRTU/RMU/FPIs

Time Synchronization RTU/FRTU/FPIs
Data Exchange IT System under RAPDRP
Continous real time storage & playback
SOE
Supervisory Control
Remote database downloading, diag.& config
CIM Compliance IEC 61968
GIS Adaptor to support native adaptors,
CIM/XML using Model & Data Exchange over IEC
61968 Enterprise SOA based bus
ISR
LDC & DR
DAS
LAN

CPRI Power to perform

SYSTEMS

REQUIRING COMMUNICATIONS

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

SCADA FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

COMMUNICATION REQUIREMENT ELEMENTS

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

SCADA TOPOLOGY

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

REQUIREMENT OF STANDARDS

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

UCA AND IEC 61850 PROTOCOLS

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

DESIGN FACTORS FOR COMMUNICATIONS

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

TRANSMISSION MEDIA CLASSIFICATIONS

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

Electromagnetic Spectrum for Wireless Transmission

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

Electromagnetic Spectrum for Wireless Transmission

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COMMUNICATIONS

OPTIONS

Conducted or Guided Media Transmission

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DISCOMS SUB STATIONS & DISTRIBUTION NETWORK

MASTER CONTROL CENTRE

DISASTER CENTRE

SCADA / DMS FOR DISCOMS

Load Shed Application (LSA)

Network Connectivity Analysis (NSA)

Fault Management and System Restoration (FMSR)

Load Flow Applications (LFA)

Loss Minim.via feeder reconfiguration (LMFR)

State Estimation (SE)

Voltage VAR Control (VVA)

Load Balancing via feeder reconfiguration (LBFR)
Operation Monitor (OM)
Distribution Load Forecasting (DLF)
Dispatcher Training Simulator(DTS)