Remote Redundant Protection Server for Substation Automation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Medium-voltage substation protection functions lack redundancy due to cost inefficiencies associated with duplicating hardware devices, such as Intelligent Electronic Devices (IEDs), which doubles the system price and engineering efforts.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a remote redundancy facility with a computerized protection server that transmits redundancy protection commands to Substation Automation (SA) systems via communication links, allowing redundant protection functions to be executed off-site, thereby sharing costs and minimizing engineering requirements across multiple substations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If redundant protection functions are implemented locally in medium-voltage substations by duplicating hardware devices such as IEDs, then system reliability is improved, but system cost and device complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a virtual copy of the protection function by implementing redundant protection logic in a remote substation control system rather than duplicating physical IED hardware. The remote system receives data from the substation, executes redundant protection algorithms, and sends commands back to control the substation equipment, thereby providing redundancy through software-based copying instead of hardware duplication.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a communication network and remote control system as intermediaries between the substation equipment and the redundant protection function. The communication links serve as mediators that transmit data and commands between the substation IEDs and the remote protection system, allowing redundancy to be implemented remotely without requiring duplicate hardware at the substation site.
2Reliability
If redundant protection functions are implemented locally in medium-voltage substations, then system availability is improved, but engineering effort and implementation complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the remote control system universal by designing it to provide redundant protection functions for multiple substations simultaneously. The same remote system can serve several different substations, each with its own protection requirements, thereby reducing overall engineering complexity by avoiding the need to design and implement separate redundant systems for each individual substation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the redundant protection functions of multiple substations into a single remote control system. By combining the protection logic and control capabilities in one centralized location, the system reduces the total engineering effort required compared to implementing separate redundant systems at each substation, while still maintaining the necessary protection availability for each bay.
3Reliability
If duplicate hardware devices are deployed in each substation for redundancy, then protection function reliability is improved, but cost efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces physical hardware copying with virtual/software copying of protection functions. Instead of deploying duplicate IED devices, the system uses software-based redundant protection logic running on remote hardware that serves multiple substations, thereby providing the same reliability benefit without the associated hardware cost and physical space requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal remote protection system that can serve multiple substations with a single hardware platform. This multi-functional system provides redundant protection across several different locations, eliminating the need for each substation to maintain its own dedicated redundant hardware, thereby significantly reducing the total quantity of hardware devices required in the overall system.
Data Source
AI summary
A Substation Automation (SA) system is configured to perform protection functions for a bay of an electrical power distribution substation, receive, via a communication link, redundancy protection commands from a remote center, and execute the redundancy protection commands for the bay. The SA system is configured to transmit to a redundant protection server of the remote center, process values measured by measurement equipment of the substation, and to receive, from the redundant protection server, and forward, via the process bus, the received redundancy protection commands directed to operating equipment of the substation. Thus, for multiple SA systems, redundant protection functions are implemented and provided cost-efficiently by one common remote central unit.