System and method for provisioning and registering devices to energy or power system

Abstract

A method of pre-provisioning and registering a device with an energy or power system is provided, the method comprising pre-registering a device with an energy or power system, and pre-provisioning and further registering a device with an energy or power system. Pre-registration of a device with an energy or power system comprises the following steps: 1a.) an operator authenticates itself with the energy or power system, 1b. The operator obtains identity information about the device, preferably by scanning a code on the device, 1c. The operator obtains information about the location of the device, preferably based on a GNSS signal, and 1d.) the operator pre-registers the device with a location aware provisioning server (LAP server) of the energy or power system, where the pre-registration of the device with the LAP server comprises sending a message to the LAP server, the message containing identity information about the device and information about the location of the device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to systems and methods for provisioning and registering devices with energy systems or power systems, and in particular to systems and methods for location-aware provisioning of such devices. Background Art

[0002] Positioning information for installed products is key to fleet management in the energy and power systems industries. However, although most equipment / assets have a fixed location after they have been installed, this positioning information is typically not available to equipment owners.

[0003] Furthermore, zero-touch provisioning has been considered, particularly for systems consisting of numerous devices that must connect to a server. Zero-touch provisioning enables automatic detection, connection, and configuration of new devices with the system's servers. Once a new device connects to the network, the zero-touch provisioning protocol identifies the server address, establishes a connection to the server, and receives the necessary configuration data from the server.

[0004] For example, US Pat. No. 9,854,391 B2 discusses zero-touch configuration support for Universal Serial Bus (USB) modems. An identifier of a modem connected to an access point can be determined. Positioning information corresponding to the access point can also be determined. Based on the modem identifier and the positioning information, the access point can select a specific configuration for the modem, wherein the specific configuration is appropriate for the geographic location associated with the positioning information.

[0005] US2021 / 0120412 A1 discloses an Internet of Things ("IoT") device that can authenticate on a wireless local area network ("WLAN") without human intervention. The IoT device can also authenticate itself to a network service without human intervention. To achieve this functionality, when the IoT device is manufactured, data identifying a service set identifier ("SSID") used by the WLAN, a digital certificate for authentication on the WLAN, and a digital certificate for authentication to the network service are stored in the IoT device. The digital certificate for authentication on the WLAN is stored at an authentication server, and information about the digital certificate for authentication to the network service is stored at the network service. The IoT device can connect to the WLAN using the SSID and authenticate to the authentication server and the network service using the digital certificate, respectively.

[0006] CN 101 951 341B provides a server physical location marking method, device, and system. The method includes the following steps: a switch receives a configuration request sent by a server; the switch generates the server's physical location information based on information about a port used to receive the configuration port and pre-configured physical location information of the switch; and the switch packages the server's physical location information into the configuration request and forwards the configuration request to a configuration device, allowing the configuration device to identify the server's physical location. This method reduces the cost and workload of marking the server's physical location and improves the success rate of marking the server's physical location.

[0007] US Pat. No. 11,212,710 B1 A relates to an apparatus, computer-readable medium, and method for generating values for configuration parameters based on collaborative filtering and applying the values to new carriers in a cellular network. This disclosure discloses an example of automatically determining initial configuration parameter values for a new carrier added to a cellular network. This enables zero-touch configuration of the new carrier. In particular, it eliminates the need for manual creation and maintenance of configuration rulebooks.

[0008] US2021 / 0168125 A1 provides a method for separating the identity IP used to identify applications from the locator IP used to identify routes. The Virtual Service Layer (VSL) protocol stack uses the IP addresses assigned by the network administrator to the application endpoints to support the TCP / IP stack as identity IP addresses, which are not announced to the underlying network for routing. On the other hand, the VSL stack uses the IP addresses assigned by the underlying network to the VSL-enabled endpoints and VSL-enabled routers as locator IP addresses for routing packets. The VSL stack formats the application flow packets with identity headers into identity packets and encapsulates the identity packets with locator headers to route the packets. The separation of identity and locator identification is used to eliminate network middleware and provide firewalls, load balancing, connectivity, SD-WAN, and WAN optimization as part of the communication protocol.

[0009] However, current zero-touch provisioning protocols are not optimized for provisioning and registering devices with energy or power systems in particular. Summary of the Invention

[0010] The above-mentioned problems and disadvantages of the prior art are addressed and at least partially solved by different but combinable aspects of the present invention.

[0011] According to a first aspect, a method of provisioning and registering a device with an energy system or power system is provided.

[0012] A device (also commonly referred to as an "asset" in related fields) can be any device that needs to be provisioned and / or registered with an energy system or power system to operate in the system, such as, for example, intelligent electronic devices (IEDs), Internet of Things (IoT) sensors; non-intelligent assets or components such as circuit breakers, bushings, transformers, IGBTs; communication devices such as modems, routers, gateways, etc.

[0013] The types of energy systems or power systems to which the present disclosure is relevant are generally not limited in any way, but specific examples of energy systems / power systems to which the present disclosure can be applied include substations, drives, and control rooms for protection and control. The present disclosure can also be applied to communications and processes in the oil and gas industry, as well as in transportation, for example.

[0014] These statements also apply to all other aspects and embodiments of the disclosure discussed below, even if this fact is not explicitly repeated again.

[0015] Preferably, the method includes pre-registering the device with the energy system or power system, and pre-provisioning the device with the energy system or power system and further registering the device, wherein pre-registering the device with the energy system or power system includes the following steps: 1a.) the operator authenticates himself to the energy system or power system, 1b.) the operator preferably obtains identity information about the device by scanning a code on the device, 1c.) the operator preferably obtains information about the positioning of the device based on a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) signal (e.g., GPS, Galileo and / or GLONASS signal), and 1d.) the operator pre-registers the device with a positioning-aware provisioning server (LAP server) of the energy system or power system, wherein pre-registering the device with the LAP server includes sending a message to the LAP server, which message contains identity information about the device and information about the positioning of the device.

[0016] In addition to the actual physical installation of the new equipment at its installation site, installing new equipment into a modern energy system or power system typically includes registering the equipment with the system to "make the equipment known" to the system, and provisioning the equipment, which can include setting up the network capabilities of the equipment and providing (initial) configuration data to the equipment so that the equipment can begin operating in the system.

[0017] One specific item of focus of the present disclosure is a portion of the registration process, referred to herein as "pre-registration," which, according to the disclosed method, addresses both security and positioning issues. By requiring the operator to authenticate himself or herself to the system (hereinafter, for the sake of brevity, generally referred to as "self") before obtaining identity information and positioning information and providing this information to the system in step 1a.), unauthorized tampering with or intrusion into the system can be avoided or at least made more difficult. Furthermore, by providing not only information about the identity but also about the location of the device during pre-registration, this information, which is required in modern systems discussed above, is automatically "built-in" to the disclosed device registration and provisioning process. Additionally, positioning information can also be used to further improve the security and robustness of the method against unauthorized use or attack, as will be discussed in further detail below.

[0018] For example, to partially outline what will be discussed in more detail below and to aid understanding of the present disclosure, one embodiment of the disclosed method may take the following form: During pre-registration (which may be performed by a responsible operator present on-site during or immediately after the physical installation of the device), the operator authenticates himself or herself to the system (e.g., in a fleet management system of an energy system / power system) using a registered and / or authenticated mobile device or application (e.g., an application running on a mobile phone, tablet computer, laptop computer, etc.). Next, the operator uses the mobile device / application to pre-register the newly installed device with the system, which includes providing the system with identity information about the device and sending the system the location of the new device. During subsequent configuration of the device (e.g., using a zero-touch protocol), the device establishes a connection to the system's LAP server, and the LAP server checks the following two characteristics: (1) the device has been pre-registered by an authorized operator, and (2) the location information is available. If both characteristics are met, the system proceeds with configuring the device (e.g., using a zero-touch protocol). In this way, the method ensures that the location information of all new devices is available and that the new device is not an unregistered device or an intruder.

[0019] Step 1a.) of the operator authenticating themselves to the system can take different forms, such as entering a username and password, using a two-factor authentication method, using biometric data (e.g., fingerprint(s), eye scan, etc.), or other means to log into a device or application that provides the ability to authenticate users to the system (e.g., to the system's queue management server and / or LAP server (both of which will be discussed in more detail below)). Authenticating oneself to the system can also involve using a "trusted" device that is known to the system and has been marked by the system as qualified to perform user authentication.

[0020] As mentioned, step 1b.) of obtaining identity information about the device can involve scanning a code on the device that encapsulates the identity information and / or points to an information source (e.g., a database, website, etc.) from which the relevant information can be retrieved. This code can, for example, be a barcode, QR code, or any other code known in the art, particularly one that can be read and processed by handheld devices such as mobile phones and tablet computers. The identity information can also be stored on an RFID chip and obtained by reading the chip, or it can be obtained via a Bluetooth connection, etc. At least for such automated methods of obtaining identity information, they may require prior authentication of the operator according to step 1a.) in order to gain access to the information. However, the operator can also manually read and then enter the identity information, for example, from a tag attached to the device. Alternatively, a combination of automatic and manual acquisition of identity information can be used. The obtained identity information can simply consist of an identifier (e.g., a number, name, alphanumeric code, etc.), which preferably allows the system to unambiguously identify the relevant device. However, the identity information can also include additional information such as device type, manufacturer, hardware version, firmware version, etc. The identity information can also include or be provided as a picture of the device or a portion of the device taken by the operator.

[0021] Obtaining positioning information in step 1c.) may include an operator manually inputting the location of the device, which may be particularly useful for indoor installations where automatic positioning methods (such as GPS) may be unavailable or unreliable. The device location can be entered as an "absolute value" (e.g., longitude and latitude and possibly altitude), or as a "relative value" (e.g., by providing a public street address), which can then be converted by the system into an absolute address using suitable methods known in the art. However, automatic positioning methods can also be used, particularly using a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) (e.g., GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, or another such system), particularly if the method involves the use of a mobile phone or tablet computer, etc. (also as discussed below), which nowadays generally provide such services with relatively high accuracy. The two methods (manual and automatic) can also be combined, for example by checking the two locations against each other and issuing a warning if the difference between the two is greater than a certain predetermined threshold (e.g., a difference greater than 1m, or 2m, or 5m, or 10m, or 20m). In the case where the mobile device and / or an application running on the mobile device is involved in obtaining the positioning information, the accuracy of the positioning information of the mobile device / application can also be indicated. The algorithm can check whether the accuracy is further improved when in the same location. In addition, the operator can alternatively or additionally take a picture of the device as part of the information about the device obtained during the pre-registration process (also as further discussed elsewhere in this document). The camera used to do this can simultaneously obtain positioning information about the place where the picture was taken, and can also indicate the accuracy of the positioning information obtained by the camera.

[0022] Note that steps 1b.) and 1c.) do not need to be performed in any particular order, ie step 1b.) may be performed before or after step 1c.) and both steps may also occur (at least partially) simultaneously.

[0023] Once the operator has obtained and optionally confirmed the required data, in particular the identification information (which may include, for example, visual information, such as a picture of the device taken and / or information derived from such a picture) and the positioning information, step 1d. of pre-registering the device with the system can be proceeded with to a large extent or completely automatically. The message to the LAP server containing these two pieces of information can preferably be encoded using a suitable encoding scheme known in the art to prevent unauthorized use. The format of the message itself (e.g., the original unencoded message) can depend on the system architecture and server architecture used by the energy system or power system. Common formats known in the art (such as HTML or XML) are a viable option.

[0024] Again, in the disclosed method, alternatively or additionally, a step may be included of obtaining an indication of positioning accuracy and optionally an indication of whether the positioning accuracy is sufficient, and an image of the asset / equipment may be taken and this information used in the pre-registration process.

[0025] The steps of provisioning and further registering the device may mean connecting the device to the system via a network connection (e.g., a wired connection or a wireless connection) and providing all further information from the device to the system and from the system to the device via this connection, which is necessary to fully register the device with the system and allow normal operation of the device within the system. However, specific details and options regarding provisioning and further registration will be described below that are advantageously combined with the disclosed method as discussed above, thus further contributing to addressing the above-mentioned shortcomings of the prior art.

[0026] More generally (i.e. not only in relation to the provisioning and further registration of devices), further possible options, features and embodiments of the disclosed method will now be discussed. These options, features and embodiments may also be combined with one another, even if such a combination is not explicitly mentioned, unless otherwise explicitly stated or such a combination is excluded technically or according to some laws of nature. The order in which the following discussion is presented is also not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure, unless some feature explicitly depends on or must be present before another feature mentioned therein. Individual features or sub-features may also be omitted without departing from the scope of the present disclosure if they are deemed not necessary for achieving a given technical goal or effect.

[0027] Steps 1a.) to 1d.) of the pre-registration may be performed using the operator's mobile device, in particular using a mobile app running on the operator's mobile device and / or a web application accessed via the operator's mobile device.

[0028] As already hinted, the mobile device may be a "standard" mobile device, such as a mobile phone or tablet computer, which is also used by the operator for other purposes, but which provides the operator with the necessary capabilities or interfaces to authenticate himself to the system and perform steps 1a.) to 1d.) of the pre-registration process, as well as optionally perform the provisioning and further registration of the device. For this purpose, an app running on the mobile device and / or a website or web interface accessed, for example, via a web browser running on the mobile device may be used. However, the mobile device may also be a dedicated device provided to the operator specifically for the purpose of performing the registration and provisioning of new devices to the energy / power system, which may increase the level of security compared to the use of a standard general-purpose device (such as a mobile phone or tablet computer).

[0029] The method may further include physically installing the device at the installation site by an operator.The physical installation may be performed before or during device pre-registration.

[0030] Since providing information about the location of the device is part of the pre-registration process, the location should preferably remain fixed from the time the pre-registration process is initiated. Therefore, it is preferred that the physical installation of the device occurs before or at the latest during the pre-registration of the device. In the event that the location of the device must be changed again, the device can, for example, be re-registered and provisioned, or the location information can be updated, as will be discussed further below.

[0031] Provisioning a device to an energy system or power system and further registering the device may include the following steps: connecting the device to a network, and initiating provisioning of the device by the device through a LAP server. Preferably, initiating provisioning involves initiating a zero-touch provisioning protocol on the LAP server.

[0032] As mentioned, provisioning of a device may include (at least) setting up the network capabilities of the device and establishing a (permanent) network connection with the device so that the necessary operating parameters of the device can be configured via the network, as performing these steps manually (e.g. by an operator) is very cumbersome, especially considering that modern energy systems and power systems typically include a large number of devices that must be configured in this manner. Therefore, using a zero-touch provisioning protocol that works (essentially) without human involvement or intervention is particularly suitable for configuring such systems and devices and can lead to a significant reduction in effort and time.

[0033] In order to establish an (initial) network connection with a device, several options are possible, which will now be discussed. It is noted that once the device has been provisioned and configured and / or already during this process, the network configuration can also be changed again, for example by switching to a network configuration for normal operation of the device in the system, which can, for example, further increase the security level of the connection compared to the initial configuration.

[0034] (Initially) connecting the device to the network may include establishing a connection of the device to a default IP address.

[0035] The default IP address may be the same for all newly added / installed devices in the energy / power system and may be set by and / or point to the system's LAP server and / or queue management server. Correspondingly, the device may (initially) be connected to the LAP server and / or queue management server via the default IP address. However, the default IP address may also depend on, for example, the device type or device class, meaning that devices of different types or classes may be connected to different default IP addresses. The default IP address may be known to the device before it is installed and pre-registered in the system (it may, for example, be stored in the device during manufacture of the device), or it may be provided to the device before or during pre-registration (for example, an operator may inform the device of the default IP address to which it is to connect, for example, using the operator's mobile device and a suitable connection to the device being installed (e.g., a USB connection or a Bluetooth connection, etc.).

[0036] As an alternative to connecting to a default IP address, (initially) connecting the device to the network may include the following steps: the LAP server provides identity information about the device to a factory server of the device's manufacturer, in response to which the LAP server receives connection information for the device from the factory server, and the LAP server establishes a connection with the device using the connection information received from the factory server.

[0037] As mentioned, the identity information provided to the LAP server during pre-registration preferably allows for a unique identity of the device, so that, given this information, the LAP server can query a database, particularly a database of the device's manufacturer, for connection information that allows for setting up and establishing an initial (wired or wireless) connection with the device. For example, at the time of manufacture, the manufacturer may pre-configure the device with the connection information stored in the database, and once the LAP server has the identity information about the device, this connection information can be retrieved by the LAP server and then used to establish the (initial) network connection (wired or wireless) with the device. The process can be further protected from unauthorized use or intruders by using suitable techniques known in the art (e.g., encryption methods or digital certificates).

[0038] In principle, the queue management server could also participate in the process, for example by first obtaining identity information from the LAP server and then performing a query to the manufacturer database, at which point the queue management server could either establish a connection to the device or provide the retrieved information back to the LAP server to establish a connection to the device.

[0039] Additionally, it is mentioned again that an indication of positioning accuracy and optionally whether the positioning accuracy is sufficient can be obtained and that an image of the asset / equipment can be taken and that this information can be used during the pre-registration process, as these options can also be combined with or included in the process described herein for establishing a network connection using a factory server.

[0040] Initiating provisioning may include: the device sending identity information about itself to the LAP server via the network; checking, by the LAP server, whether the device has been pre-registered by an authorized operator; and canceling the provisioning of the device if the device has not been pre-registered by an authorized operator.

[0041] Thus, once a network connection has been established with a device, the system (particularly the LAP server) can use this connection to further configure / provision and register the device, which means that the need for further human intervention or involvement (e.g., by an operator) can be reduced or even completely eliminated. By only proceeding with provisioning if pre-registration has been successfully performed, the risk of an intruder abusing the system is eliminated or at least reduced.

[0042] It is important to note that the identity information about the device itself that is sent by the device via the network to the LAP server to initiate provisioning may be the same identity information that is obtained by the operator in step 1b.) and sent to the LAP server as part of the message in step 1d.). However, the identity information about the device itself that is sent by the device via the network to the LAP server may also be a (true) subset or a (true) superset of the identity information of steps 1b.) and 1d.). That is, the device may provide the same information, less information, or additional information about itself to the LAP compared to the information contained in the message sent to the LAP server in step 1d.). Furthermore, the two sets of identity information may also contain different information but have some common overlap (e.g., ID codes contained in both sets of information), and the two sets of identity information may even be completely separate, meaning that each contains information that the other does not contain (although this may be less preferred as it may make it more difficult to associate them with the same device).

[0043] To give just one illustrative example, during pre-registration, the operator may obtain a simple ID code, etc., as identification information about the device, allowing for unique identification of the device among all devices in the energy system or power system, in step 1b.), and then send this ID code as part of a message to the LAP server in step 1d.). Alternatively, to initiate provisioning, the device may send more detailed identity information about itself to the LAP server, preferably also including the ID code, for example, including additional identity information such as device type, manufacturer, operating parameter values, and / or its network / communication capabilities.

[0044] Again, it is mentioned that an indication of positioning accuracy and optionally whether the positioning accuracy is sufficient can be obtained and an image of the asset / device can be taken and this information used in the pre-registration process.

[0045] Initiating provisioning may further include checking, by the LAP server, whether information about the location of the device is available, and canceling provisioning of the device if no information about the location of the device is available.

[0046] This option takes into account the fact mentioned at the beginning that positioning information is nowadays important information for successful fleet management but is often overlooked in the field, and by only proceeding with provisioning if this information has been provided, it is ensured that all fully provisioned and registered devices in the system have provided this information to the system.

[0047] To further enhance this advantage of the present invention, initiating provisioning may additionally include: verifying, by the LAP server via the queue management server, that the identity information about the device and the information about the location of the device are valid, wherein preferably, the verification involves confirming that installation of a given type of device at the location specified by the information about the location of the device is desired. If the verification fails, the provisioning of the device is canceled.

[0048] In order to enable verification that installation of a device of a given type is desired at the location specified by the information about the location of the device, the identity information provided to the LAP server in step 1d.) and / or by the device used to initiate its provisioning preferably includes information about the device type. Furthermore, in addition to the mentioned option of verifying that installation of a device of a given type at a specified location is desired, the fleet management server may also contain more "fine-grained" information about the desired installation details (regarding device ID, device type, device location, etc.) that can be used in the verification process.

[0049] Once the device has initiated provisioning and assuming the provisioning process has not been cancelled, particularly due to one of the conditions discussed above, the LAP server may configure the device, particularly by using the already mentioned zero-touch provisioning protocol.

[0050] Using the zero-touch provisioning protocol may include identifying an address of a LAP server, establishing a connection between the device and the LAP server, and receiving configuration data from the LAP server by the device, wherein these steps are performed automatically without human intervention.

[0051] If the connection between the device and the LAP server has already been established (e.g., by using a default IP address or by querying the manufacturer's database, as discussed above; or by some different method), the steps of identifying the address of the LAP server and establishing the connection between the device and the LAP server can be skipped or shortened. However, even in this case, a new network connection can still be established to perform zero-touch provisioning and configuration of the device, e.g., a connection with better security than the initial connection.

[0052] Turning now to further configuration of the device, further registration of the device with the energy system or power system may include sending, by the LAP server, data about the successfully registered device and its location to the fleet management server, the data preferably including at least identity information and information about the location of the device.

[0053] In contrast to the LAP server (which may be primarily responsible for managing the installation of new devices in the energy system or power system), the queue management server may primarily manage the queues of the system's devices or assets during normal operation and after the system's devices or assets have been successfully provisioned and registered with the system (although the queue management server may also participate in the (pre)registration and provisioning process). Thus, the LAP server may forward the identity information and location information about the device that it has obtained during the pre-registration and / or provisioning phase so that the queue management server / queue management system of the energy system or power system can utilize this information to manage the queue.

[0054] For example, fleet management servers / queue management systems for energy and power systems can manage fleets using a database with dashboards, visualizing the fleet through various viewing options, and applying filters for data mining. The fleet management server can be located on-site and / or in the cloud. The fleet management system can also provide secure interfaces for connecting to data analysis and engineering tools. It can also provide remote interfaces to asset suppliers, for example, to receive software updates or product information.

[0055] A particular advantage of the disclosed method is that it can be provided "as a service" on existing infrastructure.

[0056] In other words, the method can enhance the functionality of an existing system in the manner described herein and with the corresponding advantages disclosed herein, without requiring modifications to the (hardware) infrastructure of the system.

[0057] The step 1c.) of the operator obtaining information about the positioning of the device may further comprise the steps of obtaining information about the quality of the information about the positioning of the device and storing information about the quality of the information about the positioning of the device.

[0058] For example, during (pre-)registration and provisioning, it can be verified that installation of a given type of device at a specified location is desired in order to allow provisioning of the device, as already discussed above. By storing not only information about the location, but also information about the quality or (expected) accuracy of the location information, it can be facilitated to decide whether to proceed with provisioning of a device, for example in case there is a mismatch between the information about the location of the device and the information about the location of the desired installation site of such device. In this case, if the quality or accuracy of the provided location information about the device is high, the provisioning can be cancelled, whereas if the quality or accuracy is low, the device can still be provisioned, since it can be concluded that the mismatch is due to measurement errors about the location of the device and not to actual differences between the location of the device and the desired installation site. Furthermore, the information about the quality of the location information can be used in combination with the information about the location of the device not only for verifying the provisioning request, but also in other stages of the registration and provisioning process, or later for queue management and maintenance operations, in a similar manner to that discussed above or in some different manner.

[0059] Information about the quality of the information about the positioning of the device may be stored, for example, in one or more of the following forms: a color code indicating low, medium or high quality of the information about the positioning of the device, and / or a value in meters indicating the accuracy of the information about the positioning of the device.

[0060] Storing the accuracy in the form of a color code can allow a particularly intuitive representation to be provided to the operator or maintenance personnel of the system (for example, during maintenance operations, when finding the location of the equipment), while storing the accuracy in a numerical format (for example, in meters (or yards, feet, etc.)) can be particularly useful for further automated processing, for example in the process described above.

[0061] The information about the location of the device may alternatively or additionally use a location format allowing coordinate to address conversion, which enables fine-grained filtering capabilities, in particular filtering on one or more of: street name, intersection, place.

[0062] As already mentioned above, information about the location of the device can be provided, for example, based on a street address, in particular if it is entered "manually" by an operator. This can be beneficial for maintenance operations, allowing maintenance personnel to easily find the installation site of the device. However, for automatic methods of determining and obtaining information about the location of the device (for example, satellite-based methods such as GNSS (for example, GPS, GLONASS and / or Galileo)), the information itself may not be in a "human-readable" format, but rather given as "absolute values", for example, latitude, longitude and possibly altitude. In this case, it is preferred that the positioning information is provided or formatted in a form that allows coordinate-to-address conversion (for example using suitable methods known in the art and available on the Internet for this purpose), so that filtering by street names, intersections, places, etc. can be possible, which may be more useful to human users than longitude / latitude values.

[0063] The method may further include the following steps: the LAP server marks each pre-registered device that has been successfully configured (particularly, successfully configured using the zero-touch provisioning protocol), the LAP server detects that a new device uses the same identity information as an already configured device, and the LAP server issues a warning in response to detecting that the new device uses the same identity information as an already configured device.

[0064] This approach (particularly where the identity information about the devices allows each device's unique identity to be added to the system, and the LAP server uses (at least) this information to tag each pre-registered device that has been successfully configured) adds an additional level of security to the registration and provisioning process, which occurs "early" in the process, before new and potentially intrusive devices have been deeply integrated into the system. Thus, attacks can be prevented, or at least the potential harm caused by intrusion attempts can be limited. Furthermore, the management and maintenance of the energy / power system can be facilitated, as each added device can be ensured to remain uniquely identifiable. Of course, all of this only applies if warnings are not ignored, and if two devices with identical identity information are not installed into the system despite the warnings.

[0065] After successfully registering the device with the energy system or power system, a person (e.g., a system administrator or maintenance personnel) may also authenticate themselves to the energy system or power system via the person's mobile device (particularly by using a mobile app running on the person's mobile device and / or a web application accessed via the person's mobile device), and using the person's mobile device, identity information about the device may be obtained, preferably by scanning a code on the device. The identity information may then be sent to the LAP server and / or the queue management server, and in response thereto, stored information about the location of the device may be received. Again, by using the person's mobile device, the latest information about the current location of the device may also be obtained, and the latest information about the current location of the device may be compared with the stored information about the location of the device obtained. If the comparison produces a difference above a predetermined threshold, the person may be prompted to indicate whether the stored information about the location of the device should be updated, and if the indication is that the information should indeed be updated, the stored information about the location of the device may be updated using the latest information about the current location of the device.

[0066] This method (which represents an independent aspect of the present disclosure and can therefore also be used and claimed independently of and / or in combination with the other disclosed features of the first aspect of the present invention) allows the system and, in particular, the positioning information about the installed devices to be kept up to date without having to run the entire (pre-)registration and provisioning process again. In this way, the coupling of (preferably unique) identity information with positioning information, which is inherent in the disclosed pre-registration process (see, for example, steps 1b.) to 1d.) of the disclosed method), can be advantageously utilized.

[0067] As already indicated, the use of the disclosed method in energy systems or power systems comprising a large number of devices (for example at least 100 devices, or even at least 1000 devices) is a particularly preferred field of application, since in such systems, in particular when the option of using a zero-contact provisioning protocol is called up, the high degree of automation that can be called up after the pre-registration process (which involves only a relatively small number of rather simple steps) has been concluded on site by the operator can be advantageously utilized.

[0068] The identity information about the device can also be divided into two parts, wherein the first part of the identity information is provided to the LAP server during pre-registration in a message sent to the LAP server, the message containing the identity information about the device and information about the location of the device, and wherein the second part of the identity information is provided by the device to the LAP server via the network during initiation of provisioning. Provisioning of the device proceeds only if the two parts match.

[0069] It has been discussed above that the identity information provided in the message sent (by the operator) to the LAP server during pre-registration and the identity information provided by the device itself to the LAP server do not have to be the same. In fact, as will now be discussed, distributing or splitting a complete set of identity information into two parts can add another level of security to the (pre-)registration and provisioning process, because if only one part is tampered with, the two parts will generally no longer match.

[0070] For example, the first part of the identity information (and / or the second part of the identity information) may include or consist of a picture of the device (or a part of the device) taken by the operator and provided to the LAP server during pre-registration.

[0071] The form of the match between the two parts can take different forms. For example, a match can be determined if the serial number provided by the device over the network and decoded by the LAP server matches a photograph including the serial number taken from the device and provided to the LAP server by the operator during pre-registration. Alternatively, a match is determined if the serial number decoded by the LAP matches the order code of the device provided as part of the identity information. Alternatively, the serial number is hashed and printed on the device as a barcode, and on the LAP server, the hash value obtained from the barcode and sent to the LAP server during pre-registration is compared with the hash value of the serial number received from the device over the network. (The hash value cannot be decoded or "recovered" even when the algorithm is known, so the hash value provided as a barcode and the device ID hashed by the LAP server can only be compared at the hash level). Correspondingly, the identity information can be split or distributed into two parts, for example based on device information and company information or a hash value combination as described above.

[0072] If the device does not initiate provisioning and further registration of the device within a predetermined threshold amount of time after receiving a message containing identity information about the device and information about the location of the device at the LAP server, the disclosed method may be terminated. The threshold amount of time may be, for example, one minute (1 min).

[0073] By "timing out" after a certain threshold amount of time, the security of the entire process can be improved. For example, if the operator is prevented from completing the registration and provisioning process for any reason after dispatching a message to the LAP server and / or receiving a message at the LAP server (or simply forgets to do so), the device and system are not left in this intermediate and potentially vulnerable state, but the system is reset. Preferably, in this case, the entire method can be reinitiated by the operator (in which case, if the obtained identity information and / or positioning information about the device has not changed in the meantime, this information can be reused). Moreover, the "timeout" can help ensure that the positioning information provided about the device is correct and up-to-date, particularly where the threshold amount of time is in the range of seconds or minutes, because it is unlikely, or at least unlikely, that the device can be taken to a different location (e.g., intentionally by an attacker, or accidentally due to an error) in such a short amount of time after the message to the LAP server has been dispatched / received. In this regard, a threshold amount of, for example, 1 minute is suitable because it is short enough to avoid errors / attacks on the system, but not so short that frequent accidental interruptions are expected to occur.

[0074] However, depending on the circumstances, the threshold amount of time may also be 10s, 20s, 30s, 45s, 2min, 5min, 10min, 15min, 30min, 45min, or 1h, to name a few further specific examples.

[0075] The method may further include taking a picture of the device using the operator's mobile device and providing the picture to the LAP server and / or the queue management server.

[0076] Taking a picture of a device is an easy and comfortable way to obtain information about the device, its location and surroundings, and is facilitated by the fact that modern mobile devices may include high-quality photographic equipment and graphics processing capabilities.

[0077] The device's picture may then be sent to the LAP server and / or the queue management server and compared to one or more reference pictures by the LAP server and / or the queue management server.

[0078] The image can be sent to the server in any suitable format (e.g., JPEG, PNG, etc.) in an unencrypted or preferably encrypted manner, and can be processed at the server using known image processing methods (including machine learning methods and processes for image recognition).

[0079] For example, comparison with reference image(s) can be used to determine the device type of the device being photographed, but more detailed comparisons can also be performed, such as to determine the model or hardware specifications (e.g., type of input / output ports, etc.), or even to identify individual devices (e.g., from a group of devices scheduled for installation that day, week, month, etc., and whose images are stored on the corresponding server).

[0080] In particular, in the case where the device type of the device is determined based on a comparison of a picture of the device with one or more reference pictures, the determined device type can be compared with the identity information about the device obtained in step 1b.) and sent as part of the message to the LAP server in step 1d.) to evaluate the correctness of the determined device type.

[0081] On the one hand, this can help verify the identity information received in the message from the LAP server in step 1d.). On the other hand, it can also be used, for example, to check whether the installation of a device of a certain type at or near the location specified by the device's location information is desirable, with the entire process requiring only the operator to take a picture of the device. Both aspects can thus further improve the robustness and security of the process.

[0082] According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for provisioning and registering a device with an energy system or power system.

[0083] The system may perform provisioning and registering a device with an energy / power system by using any of the embodiments and variations of the method as disclosed in this document.

[0084] Thus, the system may comprise means, such as one or more processors and / or one or more memories storing instructions to be executed by (multiple) processors, adapted to perform the method according to any one of the embodiments and variants of the method according to the first aspect of the present disclosure.

[0085] For example, in an embodiment, the system includes a location-aware provisioning server (LAP server) and a queue management server, wherein the LAP server is adapted to: receive authentication of an operator, receive a message from the authenticated operator containing identity information about a device and information about the location of the device, and pre-register the device based on the information contained in the received message. The system is further adapted to perform provisioning of the device to the energy system or power system and further register the device.

[0086] The system may further include a mobile device operated by an operator.

[0087] With regard to further options, features and possible modifications of the disclosed system and the associated technical advantages, reference is made to the corresponding statements made above in conjunction with the method according to the first aspect of the present disclosure, as these statements apply analogously to the presently discussed system according to the second aspect of the present disclosure and are therefore not repeated in order to avoid redundancy and simplify the discussion.

[0088] According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed, cause the system according to the second aspect of the present disclosure to perform the method according to the first aspect of the present disclosure.

[0089] In summary, according to certain aspects and features of the present disclosure, systems and methods for location-aware provisioning are provided that efficiently combine determining a device's location with its zero-touch configuration while adding a second layer of authentication to the registration and provisioning process.

[0090] That is, embodiments of the present disclosure provide for transmission of information regarding device location to a system server and / or improved security and authentication, which are becoming increasingly important in the energy industry. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0091] The following describes in more detail possible embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the following drawings:

[0092] Figures 1a to 1f : A method for provisioning and registering a device with an energy system or power system according to certain embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0093] Figure 2 : Systems and methods for provisioning and registering devices to an energy system or power system according to embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0094] The following describes possible embodiments of different aspects of the present invention. However, it is clear that only the various embodiments of the present disclosure may be described in more detail below. Therefore, the skilled person will understand that, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the options, features and possible modifications described with reference to these specific embodiments may also be further modified and / or combined with each other in different ways or in different sub-combinations. If individual features or sub-features are not necessary for obtaining the desired result, they may also be omitted. In order to avoid redundancy, reference is therefore made to the explanations in the preceding sections, in particular with regard to the part concerning the summary of the invention, which also applies to the following detailed description.

[0095] Figures 1a to 1f A method for provisioning and registering a device with an energy system or power system and some possible modifications of the method are shown.

[0096] As mentioned at the outset, the device may be, for example, or include, an intelligent electronic device (IED), an Internet of Things (IoT) sensor; non-intelligent assets or components such as circuit breakers, bushings, transformers, IGBTs, etc.; or communication devices such as modems, routers, or gateways. The energy / power system may, for example, be or include one or more substations, drives, and control cabinets for protection and control. The method may also be applied to communications and processes in the oil and gas industry, as well as in transportation, for example.

[0097] It is further pointed out that although Figures 1a to 1f The different steps of the method are depicted in a certain order, but this order may be changed unless explicitly stated otherwise or a given step or feature is dependent on the existence or prior performance of another step.

[0098] Figure 1a A method 100 of provisioning and registering a device with an energy or power system (not shown) is shown. The method 100 includes pre-registering a device with the energy or power system at step 110 and provisioning and further registering the device with the energy or power system at step 120.

[0099] Optionally, before or during pre-registration 110, method 100 may include physically installing 105 the device at the installation site.

[0100] For pre-registration 110 of the device, at step 111, an operator authenticates himself or herself to the energy system or power system. At step 112, the operator obtains identity information about the device (e.g., by scanning a code on the device), and at step 113, the operator obtains information about the location of the device (e.g., by using the GNSS capabilities (e.g., GPS / Galileo / GLONASS) of a mobile device carried by the operator while standing in close proximity to the device). Then, at step 114, the operator pre-registers the device with a location-aware provisioning server of the energy system or power system, wherein pre-registering the device with the LAP server includes sending a message to the LAP server containing the identity information about the device and information about the location of the device. Pre-registration 110 (and in particular, performing steps 111 to 114) can be performed using a mobile device (e.g., a mobile phone, tablet computer, laptop computer, or some such device) carried and operated by the operator. To perform the steps of pre-registration 110, in particular steps 111 to 114, a dedicated app running on the mobile device can be used and / or a website / web application that provides the necessary functionality can be accessed using a browser running on the mobile device.

[0101] The step 113 of the operator obtaining information about the location of the device may further include obtaining information about the quality of the information about the location of the device and storing the information about the quality of the information about the location of the device. The information about the quality of the information about the location of the device may be stored, for example, in the form of a color code indicating low, medium, or high quality of the information about the location of the device, and / or a value in meters indicating the accuracy of the information about the location of the device. Alternatively or additionally, the information about the location of the device may use a location format that allows for coordinate-to-address conversion, enabling fine-grained filtering capabilities, in particular filtering on one or more of the following: street names, intersections, and places.

[0102] Figures 1b to 1f Shown Figure 1a Possible variations of method 100 and / or regarding Figure 1a 100. Figures 1a to 1f The figures are referred to by the same reference numerals, so statements made about a given step in the context of one figure may also apply to the corresponding step in other figures, unless explicitly stated otherwise or excluded technically or by some laws of nature.

[0103] It is noted that the operator's mobile device mentioned above may also participate in further optional steps of the method 100 which will now be discussed.

[0104] Figures 1b to 1f Further possible details regarding the provisioning and further registration of the device in step 120 are shown.

[0105] The provisioning and further registration 120 of the device may include connecting the device to the network (see step 130 ), and initiating provisioning of the device by the device through the LAP server (see step 140 ).

[0106] like Figure 1b As shown in FIG, connecting the device to the network at step 130 may include establishing a connection between the device and a default IP address (see step 131), or it may include the LAP server providing identity information about the device to a factory server of the device manufacturer (see step 132), in response to which the LAP server receives connection information for the device from the factory server (see step 133), and the LAP server establishing a connection with the device using the connection information received from the factory server (see step 134).

[0107] like Figure 1cAs illustrated in , initiating provisioning at step 140 may involve initiating a zero-touch provisioning protocol on the LAP server (see step 141). Alternatively or additionally, initiating provisioning 140 may include, by the device, sending identity information about itself to the LAP server via the network (see step 142), checking, by the LAP server, whether the device has been pre-registered by an authorized operator (see step 143), and, if the device has not been pre-registered by an authorized operator, canceling the provisioning of the device (see step 144). Alternatively or additionally, initiating provisioning 140 may further include, by the LAP server, checking, by the LAP server, whether information about the location of the device is available (see step 145), and, if no information about the location of the device is available, canceling the provisioning of the device (see step 146). Still further, initiating provisioning 140 may alternatively or additionally include, by the LAP server, verifying, via the queue management server, that the identity information about the device and the information about the location of the device are valid (see step 147), wherein the verification may preferably involve confirming that it is desirable to install a device of a given type at the location specified by the information about the location of the device (see step 148). If verification fails, the device may be deprovisioned (see step 149).

[0108] like Figure 1d As shown in FIG, once the initiation has been successful and not canceled, the provisioning and further registration at step 120 may further include configuring the device by the LAP server (see step 150), in particular configuring the device using a zero-touch provisioning protocol (see step 151). The zero-touch provisioning protocol 151 may include identifying the address of the LAP server (see step 152), establishing a connection between the device and the LAP server (see step 152), and receiving configuration data from the LAP server by the device (see step 153). For the zero-touch protocol, steps 152 to 154 are automatically performed without human intervention.

[0109] like Figure 1e As shown in FIG, further registering the device with the energy system or power system at step 120 may alternatively or additionally include the LAP server sending data about the successfully registered device and its location to the queue management server (see step 160). Preferably, the data sent to the queue management server includes at least identity information and information about the location of the device (see reference numeral 161).

[0110] As still Figure 1eIn another option shown in FIG1 (see step 170), the provisioning and further registration of devices with the energy system or power system at step 120 may alternatively or additionally include the LAP server marking each pre-registered device that has been successfully configured using the zero-touch provisioning protocol (see step 171), the LAP server detecting that a new device uses the same identity information as an already configured device (see step 172), and the LAP server issuing a warning in response to detecting that a new device uses the same identity information as an already configured device (see step 173).

[0111] like Figure 1f As shown in , method 100 may further include an update process 180 of the stored positioning information of the device after the device is successfully registered with the energy system or the power system, and the update process may include the following steps: the person authenticates himself to the energy system or the power system via the person's mobile device (in particular, by using a mobile app running on the person's mobile device and / or a network application accessed via the person's mobile device) (see step 181); obtains identity information about the device by using the person's mobile device, preferably by scanning a code on the device (see step 182); sends the identity information to the LAP server and / or queue via the person's mobile device The management server and, in response thereto, receives stored information about the location of the device (see step 183); obtains updated information about the current location of the device by using a person's mobile device (see step 184); compares the updated information about the current location of the device with the obtained stored information about the location of the device (see step 185); in response to the comparison producing a difference above a threshold, prompts the person to indicate whether the stored information about the location of the device should be updated (see step 186); and if the indication is that the information should be updated, updates the stored information about the location of the device using the updated information about the current location of the device (see step 187).

[0112] Alternatively or in addition to any of the above, method 100 may further include taking a picture of the device using the operator's mobile device and providing the picture to the LAP server and / or the queue management server. The LAP server and / or the queue management server may then compare the picture of the device with one or more reference pictures. Thus, the device type of the device may be determined based on the comparison of the picture of the device with the one or more reference pictures, and the determined device type may be compared with the identity information about the device obtained in step 112 to assess the correctness of the determined device type.

[0113] According to another option, the identity information about the device can be divided into two parts, wherein at step 114, the first part of the identity information is provided to the LAP server during pre-registration in a message sent to the LAP server, the message containing the identity information about the device and information about the location of the device, and at step 142, the second part of the identity information is provided by the device via the network to the LAP server when provisioning is initiated. Provisioning and configuration of the device (steps 140 and 150) only proceed if the two parts match.

[0114] Alternatively or additionally, if the device does not initiate provisioning and further registration of the device (step 120) within a threshold amount of time after receiving the message containing identity information about the device and information about the location of the device at the LAP server at step 114, then method 100 may be terminated. The threshold amount of time may be set to one minute, for example.

[0115] The method 100 as described above can be provided "as a service" on existing infrastructure. The method 100 can be applied in particular to energy systems or power systems comprising a large number of devices, preferably at least 100 devices, more preferably at least 1000 devices.

[0116] The method 100 may be implemented as a computer program comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more processors in a suitably adapted registration and provisioning system (see, for example, the following regarding Figure 2 ) causes the corresponding components of the registration and provisioning system to perform the steps of method 100.

[0117] Figure 2 A system and method for provisioning and registering a device with an energy system or power system is shown. It is noted that the energy system / power system itself is not Figure 2 is shown in the schematic diagram.

[0118] Figure 2 The following agents, items, and components are shown:

[0119] A device 210 currently installed in an energy system or power system carries a code (in the case shown here a QR code 215) that encapsulates identity information about the device and / or points to an information source that provides such information (e.g., a URL to a website).

[0120] Engineers or operators who install equipment on site 240.

[0121] A mobile device 250 (e.g., a mobile phone, tablet, laptop, etc.) is handled and operated by an operator 210. On the mobile device 250, a mobile application 255 is running (e.g., a dedicated app and / or a web browser), capable of authenticating the operator 210 (e.g., using a fingerprint, facial recognition, a secret key, a username and password, a two-factor authorization method, etc.), obtaining a current position fix (e.g., via GNSS, particularly via GPS, Galileo, and / or GLONASS, as indicated by reference numeral 260), scanning / obtaining a code 215 of the device 210, and connecting to and transmitting data to a LAP server 220.

[0122] A location-aware provisioning (LAP) server 220 is capable of handling pre-registration of devices such as device 210, checking whether the device is pre-registered based on the device's identity information and / or location information, handling provisioning (particularly using (multiple) zero-touch provisioning protocols), and transmitting data about registered devices and their locations to a fleet management server 230. The location-aware provisioning functionality may be provided "as a service" and may run on servers already existing at the customer's premises.

[0123] The queue management server 230 is capable of checking whether the pre-registered devices are in a valid location and storing information about successfully registered devices and their locations.

[0124] Based on these agents, items, and components, registering and provisioning the device 210 with the energy system and power system may proceed, for example, as follows:

[0125] An operator 240 installing the device 210 on site authenticates himself or herself using a mobile application / browser 255 running on a mobile device 250, see step S1. Any secure authentication method is suitable, such as one of the options mentioned herein.

[0126] Next, the operator 240 scans the code 215 of the device 210 using the mobile device 250 , thereby obtaining identity information about the device 210 , preferably a unique identity code, see step S2 .

[0127] Before, during, or after this, the mobile device 250 and / or the mobile app 255 obtains positioning information based on, for example, GNSS signals 260 (e.g., GPS, Galileo, and / or GLONASS signals), optionally along with the quality of the positioning signal (e.g., the quality of the GNSS signal), see step S3. This quality of the positioning information can also be stored in a database, for example, in the form of a color code (e.g., low, medium, high). The database can be hosted, for example, on the LAP server 220 and / or the queue management server 230.

[0128] The operator 240 then uses the mobile device 250, in particular the mobile app / browser 255, to pre-register the device 210 with the LAP server 220, see step S4. To this end, the mobile device 250 sends a message to the LAP server 220 containing identity information about the device 210 and information about the location of the device 210, which location can be regarded as the location of the mobile device 250 processed by the operator 240, since it is assumed that the operator 240 (and therefore its mobile device 250) is in the immediate vicinity of the device 210 when the device 210 is installed and (pre-)registered in the energy system or power system.

[0129] Optionally, at this point, the LAP server 220 may verify via the queue management server 230 that the pre-registration data (identity information and location information) is valid (eg, it is desirable to install a new device of this type at this particular venue location), see step S4a.

[0130] After the device 210 is installed, pre-registered, and connected to the network, it initiates a protocol, preferably a zero-touch protocol, to (permanently) connect to the LAP server 220 (and / or the queue management server 230), see step S5. During the protocol, the device 210 sends information about its identity to the LAP server 220, preferably including a unique identity code. The LAP server 220 then checks its database (or a remote database to which it has access) to see if the device has been successfully pre-registered by an authorized operator.

[0131] If the check is successful, LAP server 220 proceeds to configure device 210 via the provisioning protocol (see step S6). In this case, the device's configuration may also depend on the device's location. However, if the check fails, i.e., if it turns out that device 210 has not been successfully pre-registered, the provisioning protocol is aborted and LAP server 220 issues a warning message that an unregistered device is attempting to connect to the network. Importantly, this integration is compatible and can also be integrated with provisioning types other than zero-touch provisioning.

[0132] If provisioning is successful, the LAP server 220 registers the device 210 in the queue management database hosted on the queue management server 230, see step S7. For the positioning format, it is feasible to use a coordinate-to-address conversion that enables device administrators and owners to have fine-grained filtering capabilities (e.g., by street name, intersection, place).

[0133] After the device 210 has been successfully provisioned and registered, an engineer who has authenticated himself to the system (not necessarily the same person as the operator 240 who performed the registration and provisioning process described above) can scan the code 215 locally at any time, and the queue information associated with the device 210 can be sent to the engineer's mobile device (this information can be (automatically) retrieved from the queue management server 230 by, for example, app 255 or an application running in the browser 255 of the mobile device 250). At that moment, the current position, determined / obtained by the engineer using his mobile device in close proximity to the device 210, can be compared with the original stored position obtained by the operator 240 at step S3 and transmitted to the LAP server 220 at step S4. If the stored position is outside a certain tolerance, the engineer will be asked whether the position should be updated. In this way, the quality of the position information is continuously improved.

[0134] To further improve the security of the method, the LAP server 220 may further mark each pre-registered device that has been successfully configured, particularly using a zero-touch protocol, and may detect and issue a warning if a new device uses the same identity information / unique identity code as an already configured device.

[0135] The identity information about the device 210 can also be divided into two parts, which are then combined on the server side, such as at the LAP server 220 (and / or at the queue management server 230), especially if a unique identity code is used as (part of) the identity information. A code match will enable provisioning to begin, for example, enabling a zero-touch configuration download.

[0136] An alternative approach is for the mobile device 250 / mobile app 255 to send the identity information (specifically the unique identity code) to the LAP server 220 as previously described. However, this information / code is then forwarded to the server of the company that produced the device 210 (in Figure 2 20). The manufacturer's company's server then sends connection information back to the LAP server 220 and / or queue management server 230. The corresponding servers 220 / 230 can now remotely reach the device. This approach eliminates the need to connect device 210 to the LAP server 220 and / or queue management server 230 because the initial communication is performed between mobile device 250 and server 220 / 230, rather than between device 210 and server 220 / 230.

[0137] To avoid pre-registration at different locations in advance, the provisioning window and registration window, in particular the matching function (if used), can expire within a pre-defined period (e.g., 1 minute) after a successful pre-registration. In other words, if the device does not initiate the provisioning and registration process in the network within the appropriate time after pre-registration, the process needs to be repeated.

[0138] Hereinafter, further examples are provided to facilitate understanding of the present invention:

[0139] According to an embodiment, a method for pre-registering and registering a device with an energy system or a power system is provided, the method comprising: pre-registering a device with the energy system or the power system, and pre-registering and further registering the device with the energy system or the power system; wherein pre-registering the device with the energy system or the power system comprises the following steps:

[0140] 1a. The operator authenticates itself to the energy system or power system,

[0141] 1b. The operator obtains identification information about the device, preferably by scanning a code on the device,

[0142] 1c. The operator obtains information about the location of the device, preferably based on GPS signals, and

[0143] 1d. The operator pre-registers the device with a location-aware provisioning server (LAP server) of the energy system or power system, wherein pre-registering the device with the LAP server includes sending a message to the LAP server, the message including identity information about the device and information about the location of the device.

[0144] According to an embodiment, steps 1a. to 1d. of pre-registration are performed using the operator's mobile device, in particular using a mobile app running on the operator's mobile device and / or a web application accessed via the operator's mobile device.

[0145] According to an embodiment, the method further comprises physically installing the device at the installation site by an operator, preferably before or during pre-registration of the device.

[0146] According to an embodiment, provisioning a device to an energy system or power system and further registering the device comprises the following steps: connecting the device to a network; and initiating provisioning of the device by the device through a LAP server, preferably wherein initiating provisioning involves initiating a zero-touch provisioning protocol on the LAP server.

[0147] According to an embodiment, connecting the device to the network includes establishing a connection of the device to a default IP address.

[0148] According to an embodiment, connecting a device to a network includes: the LAP server providing identity information about the device to a factory server of the device's manufacturer; in response, the LAP server receiving connection information for the device from the factory server; and the LAP server establishing a connection with the device using the connection information received from the factory server.

[0149] According to an embodiment, initiating provisioning includes: the device sending identity information about itself to the LAP server via the network; checking, by the LAP server, whether the device has been pre-registered by an authorized operator; and canceling the provisioning of the device if the device has not been pre-registered by an authorized operator.

[0150] According to an embodiment, initiating provisioning further comprises: checking, by the LAP server, whether information about the location of the device is available; and canceling provisioning of the device if no information about the location of the device is available.

[0151] According to an embodiment, initiating provisioning further includes verifying, by the LAP server via the queue management server, that identity information about the device and information about the location of the device are valid, preferably wherein the verification involves confirming that it is desired to install a device of a given type at a location specified by the information about the location of the device; and canceling the provisioning of the device if the verification fails.

[0152] According to an embodiment, the method further comprises configuring the device by the LAP server, in particular configuring the device using a zero-touch provisioning protocol.

[0153] According to an embodiment, the zero-touch provisioning protocol includes: identifying an address of a LAP server, establishing a connection between a device and the LAP server, and receiving configuration data by the device from the LAP server; wherein these steps are performed automatically without human intervention.

[0154] According to an embodiment, further registering the device with the energy system or power system comprises sending, by the LAP server, data about the successfully registered device and its location to the fleet management server, the data preferably comprising at least identity information and information about the location of the device.

[0155] According to an embodiment, the method is provided "as a service" on existing infrastructure.

[0156] According to an embodiment, step 1c. of the operator obtaining information about the positioning of the device further includes: obtaining information about the quality of the information about the positioning of the device; and storing information about the quality of the information about the positioning of the device, preferably wherein the information about the quality of the information about the positioning of the device is stored in the form of: a color code indicating low quality, medium quality or high quality of the information about the positioning of the device, and / or a value in meters indicating the accuracy of the information about the positioning of the device.

[0157] According to an embodiment, the information about the location of the device uses a location format allowing coordinate to address conversion, which enables fine-grained filtering capabilities, in particular filtering on one or more of the following: street name, intersection, place.

[0158] According to an embodiment, the method according to any of the foregoing examples further includes: the LAP server marking each pre-registered device that has been successfully configured using the zero-touch provisioning protocol; the LAP server detecting that a new device uses the same identity information as an already configured device; and the LAP server issuing a warning in response to detecting that the new device uses the same identity information as an already configured device.

[0159] According to an embodiment, the method further includes the following steps after successfully registering the device with the energy system or the power system: the person authenticates himself or herself to the energy system or the power system via the person's mobile device, in particular by using a mobile app running on the person's mobile device and / or a web application accessed via the person's mobile device; obtains identity information about the device by using the person's mobile device, preferably by scanning a code on the device; sends the identity information to the LAP server and / or the queue management server via the person's mobile device, and receives stored information about the location of the device in response thereto; obtains the latest information about the current location of the device by using the person's mobile device; compares the latest information about the current location of the device with the obtained stored information about the location of the device; in response to the comparison producing a difference above a threshold, prompting the person to indicate whether the stored information about the location of the device should be updated; and if the indication is that the information should be updated, updating the stored information about the location of the device using the latest information about the current location of the device.

[0160] According to an embodiment, the energy system or power system comprises a large number of devices, preferably at least 100 devices, more preferably at least 1000 devices.

[0161] According to an embodiment, identity information about the device is divided into two parts, wherein a first part of the identity information is provided to the LAP server during pre-registration in a message sent to the LAP server, the message containing identity information about the device and information about the location of the device, wherein a second part of the identity information is provided by the device to the LAP server via the network during initiation of provisioning, and wherein provisioning of the device proceeds only if the two parts match.

[0162] According to an embodiment, the method is terminated if the device does not initiate provisioning and further registration of the device within a threshold amount of time after receiving a message containing identity information about the device and information about the location of the device at the LAP server, preferably wherein the threshold amount of time is one minute.

[0163] According to an embodiment, the method further comprises taking a picture of the device with the operator's mobile device, and providing the picture to the LAP server and / or the queue management server.

[0164] According to an embodiment, the device's picture is compared to one or more reference pictures by the LAP server and / or the queue management server.

[0165] According to an embodiment, the device type of the device is determined based on a comparison of the picture of the device with one or more reference pictures, and wherein the determined device type is compared with the identity information about the device obtained in step 1b. to evaluate the correctness of the determined device type.

[0166] According to an embodiment, a system is provided for provisioning and registering devices to an energy system or a power system according to the method as described above, the system comprising: a location-aware provisioning server (LAP server); and a queue management server; wherein the LAP server is adapted to: receive authentication of an operator; receive a message from the authenticated operator, the message containing identity information about the device and information about the location of the device; and pre-register the device based on the information contained in the received message; and wherein the system is further adapted to perform provisioning of the device to the energy system or the power system and further registration of the device.

[0167] According to an embodiment, the system further comprises a mobile device operated by an operator.

[0168] According to an embodiment, a computer program is provided comprising instructions which, when executed, cause the system as described above to perform the method as described above.

Claims

1. A method (100) of provisioning and registering a device (210) with an energy system or power system, the method comprising: pre-registering (110) the device with the energy system or power system, and provisioning (120) the device to the energy system or power system and further registering the device; Pre-registering the device with the energy system or power system comprises the following steps: 1a. The operator (240) authenticates (111) himself to the energy system or power system, 1b. The operator obtains (112) identity information about the device, preferably by scanning a code (215) on the device, 1c. The operator obtains (113) information about the location of the device, preferably based on Global Navigation Satellite System GNSS signals (260), and 1d. The operator pre-registers (114) the device with a location-aware provisioning server (220) LAP server of the energy system or power system, wherein pre-registering the device with the LAP server includes sending a message to the LAP server, the message containing the identity information about the device and the information about the location of the device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The pre-registration steps 1a. to 1d. are performed using the operator's mobile device (250), in particular using a mobile app (255) running on the operator's mobile device and / or a web application accessed via the operator's mobile device.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, in, said information about the location of said device comprises the physical location of said device, Preferably, wherein said information about the location of said device consists of said physical location of said device, It is further preferred wherein said physical location of said device is given in latitude and longitude and optionally altitude.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein: The physical location of the device is determined based on GNSS signals, in particular GPS signals.

5. A method as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein Provisioning the device to the energy system or power system and further registering the device comprises the following steps: connecting the device to a network (130); and Provisioning of the device is initiated (140) by the device via the LAP server, preferably wherein initiating the provisioning involves initiating a zero-touch provisioning protocol on the LAP server.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein: Connecting the device to the network includes: The LAP server provides (132) the identity information about the device to a factory server of a manufacturer of the device; In response thereto, the LAP server receives (133) connection information of the device from the factory server; and The LAP server establishes a connection with the device using the connection information received from the factory server (134).

7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, wherein: Initiating the provisioning includes: The device sends (142) identity information about itself to the LAP server via the network; checking (143) by the LAP server whether the device has been pre-registered by an authorized operator; and If the device has not been pre-registered by an authorized operator, the device is deprovisioned (144).

8. The method of claim 7, wherein: Initiating the provisioning further includes: checking (145) by the LAP server whether information about the location of the device is available; and If no information about the location of the device is available, the device is deprovisioned (146).

9. The method according to claim 8, in, Initiating the provisioning further includes verifying (147) by the LAP server via a queue management server (230) that the identity information about the device and the information about the location of the device are valid, Preferably, wherein said verification involves confirming (148) that it is desirable to install a device of a given type at a location specified by said information regarding the location of said device; and If verification fails, the device is deprovisioned (149).

10. A method as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein The step 1c. of the operator obtaining information about the location of the device further comprises: obtaining information about the quality of said information about the location of said device; and storing said information about the quality of said information about the positioning of said device, Preferably, wherein said information about the quality of said information about the positioning of said device is stored in the form of: a color code indicating low, medium or high quality of said information regarding the location of said device, and / or A value in meters indicating the accuracy of the information about the location of the device.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein: The information about the location of the device comprises the physical location of the device, which is determined based on GNSS signals, in particular GPS signals.

12. The method of any one of the preceding claims, further comprising: The LAP server marks (171) each pre-registered device that has been successfully configured using the zero-touch provisioning protocol; The LAP server detects (172) that the new device uses the same identity information as an already configured device; as well as The LAP server issues (173) an alert in response to detecting that the new device uses the same identity information as an already configured device.

13. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising the following steps after successfully registering the device with the energy system or power system: authenticating oneself to the energy system or power system by a person via a mobile device of the person, in particular by using a mobile app running on the mobile device of the person and / or a web application accessed via the mobile device of the person (181); obtaining (182) said identity information about said device by using said mobile device of said person, preferably by scanning said code on said device; sending (183) the identity information to the LAP server and / or the queue management server via the mobile device of the person, and in response thereto receiving stored information regarding the location of the device; obtaining (184) updated information regarding the current location of the device by using the mobile device of the person; comparing the latest information about the current location of the device with the obtained stored information about the location of the device (185); In response to the comparison producing a difference above a threshold, prompting (186) the person to indicate whether the stored information regarding the location of the device should be updated; as well as If the indication is that the information should be updated, the stored information about the location of the device is updated (187) with the latest information about the current location of the device.

14. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 13, in, The identity information about the device is divided into two parts, wherein the first part of the identity information is provided to the LAP server during pre-registration in the message sent to the LAP server, the message containing the identity information about the device and the information about the location of the device, wherein the second portion of the identity information is provided by the device to the LAP server via the network during initiation of the provisioning, and Therein, provisioning of the device proceeds only if the two parts match.

15. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, in, terminating the method if the device does not initiate provisioning and further registration of the device within a threshold amount of time after receiving the message containing the identity information about the device and the information about the location of the device at the LAP server, Preferably, wherein said threshold amount of time is one minute.

16. The method of any one of claims 2 to 15, further comprising: taking a picture of the device using the operator's mobile device, and providing the picture to the LAP server and / or the queue management server, The LAP server and / or the queue management server compares the image of the device with one or more reference images.

17. A system (200) for provisioning and registering a device (210) with an energy system or power system according to the method (100) of any one of claims 1 to 16, the system comprising: Location Aware Provisioning Server (220) LAP Server, and Queue management server (230); Wherein, the LAP server is suitable for: receiving (S1) authentication of an operator (240), receiving (S4) a message from said authenticated operator, said message containing identity information about said device and information about the location of said device, and pre-registering the device based on the information contained in the received message; and Therein, the system is further adapted to perform provisioning of the device to the energy system or power system and further registering the device.

18. The system of claim 17, in, The LAP server is primarily responsible for managing the installation of new devices in the system, and The queue management server primarily manages the queues of the system's devices or assets during normal operation and once the system's devices or assets have been successfully provisioned and registered with the system.

19. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed, cause the system of claim 17 or 18 to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 16.

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