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Abstract—This paper presents a new approach to power system in turn depends (at least in part) on “digital quality” elec-
automation, based on distributed intelligence rather than tradi- trical power.
tional centralized control. The paper investigates the interplay be- 4) Market failure: Customer demand response to market
tween two international standards, IEC 61850 and IEC 61499, and
proposes a way of combining of the application functions of IEC prices is all, but absent in deregulated electricity mar-
61850-compliant devices with IEC 61499-compliant “glue logic,” kets. New technologies are needed to facilitate end-user
using the communication services of IEC 61850-7-2. The resulting participation in electricity markets.
ability to customize control and automation logic will greatly en- 5) Performance of network service providers: As regulated
hance the flexibility and adaptability of automation systems, speed- monopolies, such companies must strive to meet ever
ing progress toward the realization of the smart grid concept.
higher performance expectations in an economically ef-
Index Terms—IEC 61499, IEC 61850, power system automation, ficient way. New technology can help to improve perfor-
smart grid. mance while containing costs.
6) Digital society: Private individuals increasingly rely on
“digital quality” electrical power to serve their lifestyle
I. INTRODUCTION needs.
The agendas for technical reform are crystallized in Electric
SIGNIFICANT challenge now confronting the electricity
A industry is that proven architectures based on 20th cen-
tury performance requirements are now looking increasingly
Power Research Institute’s (EPRI) IntelliGrid Architecture [1]
(for North America) and the European SmartGrids Technology
Platform [2] (for the European Union). The most complex ini-
antiquated. The need to fundamentally change the architecture
tiatives require significant research and development effort prior
and performance of electricity networks has risen quickly to the
to commercialization.
fore in developed economies, as a result of concerns about the
In this paper, a new approach to power system automation is
following.
proposed aiming at the challenges listed earlier. It is based on
1) Energy security: The combination of dwindling low-cost
the ability to automatically detect changes and reconfigure the
energy sources (in some parts of the world), and the vul-
power system appropriately. The proposed solution aims at mak-
nerability to terrorist disruption of existing energy supply
ing power system automation more adaptable to uncontrolled
systems means that more resilient energy infrastructure is
environmental influences, which are as follows:
desirable.
1) Network topology: Growth and/or alteration of the net-
2) Global warming and greenhouse gas emissions: Replace-
work to cater for changing loads;
ment of fossil fuels with flexible, renewable, and dis-
2) Network loads and embedded generators: Coming and
tributed energy resources brings a raft of operational prob-
going in response to energy pricing signals;
lems, which cannot be solved with existing technologies.
3) Nature of loads: Critical (e.g., hospital), industrial,
3) International competition: The preservation and enhance-
domestic;
ment of traditional comforts (employment, community
4) Weather: Affecting conductor ratings, the level of solar
services, etc.) in developed economies depends on suc-
PV and/or wind generation, etc.;
cessful competition in international marketplaces, and this
5) Primary system failures: Cars hitting poles, builders dig-
ging up cables, equipment failing;
6) Secondary system failures: Loss of monitoring and/or con-
trol, errors in measurements, etc.;
Manuscript received June 12, 2009; revised November 3, 2009. This paper
was recommended by Associate Editor R. W. Brennan.
7) Source impedance: Affecting voltage profiles and fault
N. Higgins is with ENERGEX, Brisbane, Qld. 4014, Australia (e-mail: levels.
neilhiggins@energex.com.au). Two upcoming international standards IEC 61850 and
V. Vyatkin and N.-K. C. Nair are with the Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
IEC 61499 make the backbone of the proposed automation
(e-mail: v.vyatkin@auckland.ac.nz; n.nair@auckland.ac.nz). architecture.
K. Schwarz is with Schwarz Consulting Company, Karlsruhe D-76138, The paper is structured as follows. In Section II, the state-
Germany (e-mail: schwarz@scc-online.de).
Color versions of one or more of the figures in this paper are available online
of-the-art in power system automation is briefly surveyed.
at http://ieeexplore.ieee.org. Section III discusses the IEC 61850 standard’s role in achiev-
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/TSMCC.2010.2046322 ing flexibility of automation via interoperability of components.
B. Protection
After supplying customers with electricity, the foremost mis-
sion critical function of the distribution system is protection,
i.e., the detection and clearance of faults and overloads. A fault
is defined as the uncontrolled flow of electrical energy due to
insulation failure. To put things into perspective, human contact
with a live 11 kV conductor is usually fatal. Fault currents at
11 kV are up to 20 kA; hence, the energy released at the site of
a fault can be highly injurious to both humans and equipment.
The simplest form of protection is fuse protection, but for
Fig. 1. Typical residential electricity supply structure.
a range of reasons, this is used only at the extremities of the
network. Elsewhere, faults are detected by protective relays and
cleared by circuit breakers (CBs). A protective relay processes
Section IV presents the idea of implementing the control logic of voltage and current measurements in order to determine the
automation systems using IEC 61499 function blocks (FBs). In existence, and also in some cases the location of a fault.
Section V, we further investigate the potential interplay between A CB is a type of switch capable of interrupting fault current.
the two standards using examples of automation and monitoring Other switch types with less onerous capabilities include load
functions. Section VI shows a scenario in which fault location, break switches (capable of interrupting load current, but not fault
isolation, and supply restoration are accomplished by collaborat- current) and disconnectors (only capable of off-load switching
ing distributed components. Implementation of the correspond- for the purpose of isolating equipment for maintenance access).
ing distributed simulation with IEC 61499 FBs is sketched in Faults on 11 kV overhead feeders can be temporary in na-
Section VII. The paper concludes with future research plans and ture, e.g., caused by tree branches or animals. Accordingly, the
references. associated feeder CBs are often configured with automatic re-
The factual references in this paper often come from closing, a function, which recloses the CB one or more times
ENERGEX, one of Australia’s largest power distribution after fault clearance in an attempt to restore supply. If the fault
utilities. is permanent, a lockout occurs and the feeder cannot be put back
into service until repaired.
To speed the process of restoring customers blacked out by a
II. POWER SYSTEM PROTECTION AND AUTOMATION fault, an 11 kV feeder may be divided into sections by sectional-
A. Power System Equipment izing switches, and connected to adjacent feeders via (normally
open) tie switches. Once the site of the fault has been located,
The typical ENERGEX customer is supplied via a service
sectionalizing switches are opened to isolate the faulted section,
wire from a three-phase, low voltage (LV) distribution feeder
and tie switches are closed to restore supply to the unfaulted
with a nominal voltage of 240 V (phase-to-neutral)/415 V
sections.
(phase-to-phase). As exemplified in Fig. 1, each LV feeder
is supplied by an 11 kV/415 V distribution substation, typi-
cally a pole transformer or ground transformer. Each distribution C. Automation
substation is supplied via a medium voltage (MV) distribution Computer-based remote control of power system equip-
feeder, with a nominal voltage of 11 kV (phase-to-phase), from ment simplifies such processes as restoring power to customers
a zone substation. Each zone substation is supplied via a 33 blacked out by a fault.
or 110 kV subtransmission network from a bulk supply substa- For example, control of sectionalizing switches can be done
tion. Each bulk supply substation constitutes an interface to the by remote manual control using a supervisory control and data
transmission system. acquisition (SCADA) system. SCADA has been a feature of
In urban and rural settings, LV feeders and 11 kV feeders zone substations (and above) for at least three decades. With
typically have a radial configuration, meaning that each has a improvements in technology, SCADA has become cost effective
single point of supply—a distribution substation or a zone sub- for distribution system equipment as well.
station, respectively. Paralleling of and load transfers between Recently, automated fault location, isolation, and supply
adjacent feeders may be effected via ties. restoration (FLISR) products have begun to appear on the mar-
Feeders may be of overhead or underground construction. ket. These products use the SCADA system as “eyes and arms”
Overhead feeders comprise four (LV: three phases plus neutral) to gather information about faults and effect the necessary con-
or three (HV: three phases only) open wires on ceramic or syn- trol actions (opening and closing of switches). In the most com-
thetic insulators. Underground feeders comprise cables, either mon architecture, FLISR is a subsystem of a centralized distri-
direct buried or in conduit. bution management system (DMS). This architecture leverages
HIGGINS et al.: DISTRIBUTED POWER SYSTEM AUTOMATION WITH IEC 61850, IEC 61499, AND INTELLIGENT CONTROL 3
objects that represent the outputs of the interlocking logic: en- IV. ARCHITECTURE: IEC 61499 BELOW
able open (EnaOpn) and enable close (EnaCls). AND ABOVE THE IEC 61850
Two functions for SCADA and condition monitoring are de-
A. IEC 61499 Architecture
fined as built-in communication functions.
1) Functions for supervising status values: Any change of a The IEC 61499 standard [5] describes a general purpose FB
status value may issue a message (report) to a SCADA or architecture for industrial measurement and control systems. A
other system or may post the changed value in a log (the FB is a software unit (or, more generally, an intellectual property
log may be read later). capsule) that encapsulates some behavior.
2) Functions for supervising analog values: An analog value IEC 61499 defines three classes of FBs: basic FBs, composite
can be monitored for violation of absolute limits (low–low, FBs, and service interface FBs. Each FB has a set of input and
low, high, high–high, etc.) or relative limits (deadband and output variables. The input variables are read by the internal al-
percentage change of the value). The limit violations may gorithm when it is executed, while the results from the algorithm
be reported or logged. are written to the outputs.
All of the devices shown in Fig. 2 are digital computers In IEC 61499 basic FBs a state machine (called the execu-
having specific peripherals for switching high-voltage circuits, tion control chart (ECC)) defines the reaction of the block to
or interfacing with other types of electromechanical actuators input events. The reaction can consist of the execution of algo-
and sensors. The pieces of functionality (whose produced and rithms computing some output variables and internal variables
consumed data are represented as LNs) are implemented in as functions of input variables and internal variables, and the
them as program code. IEC 61850 does not specify any de- emission of one or several output events.
tails of such implementation. Vendors of such devices usually A composite FB encapsulates a network of FBs (both ba-
supply them preprogrammed, but with extensive configuration sic and composite), connected to the external data and event
options. sources. The possibility to include composite FBs within other
IEC 61850 suggests the mechanism of system description composite FBs enables a hierarchical system description. This is
called substation configuration language (SCL) as defined in useful for defining multilayered architectures. The FB-based ar-
IEC 61850-6 [4]. chitecture also enables modeling and simulation to be tightly
A complete SCL file (the substation configuration descrip- integrated with the design process. Before deployment, the
tion (SCD) file) contains all LNs and the communication links controller can be validated by either simulation or formal
between them. The SCD file includes also the topology of the verification.
substation (breakers, transformers, lines between them, etc.) In the IEC 61499 architecture, the function performed by
A developer of substations can be interested in the following. the system is specified as an application, which may reside in
1) Changing protection, monitoring, control, and automa- a single device or be distributed among several devices. The
tion functions during the substation’s life cycle. This may application consists of a network of FBs connected by data and
require the addition or deletion of LNs or logical con- event connections. The control system is specified as a collection
nections, or modification of their internal structure and of devices interconnected and communicating with each other
functionality. by means of one or more communication networks.
2) Reusing program components implementing the functions The use of FBs make the control device openly programmable
of LNs, or running them on physical devices of different and easily reconfigurable. IEC 61499-compliant devices can
vendors. easily interface with each other, thus providing for seamless dis-
3) Simulation of the whole substation. For that one would tribution of different tasks across different devices. The user may
need a programmatic model of all the logical devices, create his/her own program using standard FB types. Thus, the
populated by LNs and connected by logical connections. IEC61499 architecture enables encapsulation, portability, inter-
Unfortunately, vendors of different devices may use differ- operability, and configurability. Portability means that software
ent incompatible hardware platforms, operating systems, tools and hardware devices can accept and correctly interpret
or programming languages for coding. They may also be software components and system configurations produced by
unwilling to disclose the code at all. As a result simulation other software tools. With interoperability, hardware devices can
of the whole substation would be only partly possible. operate together to perform the cooperative functions specified
The IEC 61850 standard is coming into wide use in the power by one or more distributed applications. With configurability,
industry. However, one area was intentionally left blank in the devices and their software components can be configured (se-
standard: IEC 61850 does not standardize the representation lected, assigned locations, interconnected, and parameterized)
of combinatorial, sequential, rule-based (or any other form of) by multiple software tools.
power system control, and automation logic, e.g., the interlock-
ing logic for determining whether a control operation (open
EnaOpn = TRUE or close EnaCls = TRUE of a switch) can be B. Implementing IEC 61850 Provisions With FBs
performed or not. The IEC 61499 architecture can provide solutions to the prob-
The IEC 61499 standard [5], described in the next section, can lems listed in the end of the previous section. The concept of a
fill this gap. This standard can be used to define the algorithms FB can be used to implement, in a vendor independent way, LNs
for a wide range of control and automation functions. and logical devices together with the functions that produce and
HIGGINS et al.: DISTRIBUTED POWER SYSTEM AUTOMATION WITH IEC 61850, IEC 61499, AND INTELLIGENT CONTROL 5
Fig. 3. Conceptual idea of implementing IEC 61850 LNs and logical devices
using IEC 61499 basic and composite FBs.
consume the data objects of the LNs. This is illustrated in Fig. 3. abstract services of Abstract Communication Service Interface
The FB specification is as precise as any program code. (ACSI, IEC 61850–7-2).
Most LNs of IEC 61850-7-4, IEC 6150-7-410, or IEC 61400- Any microprocessor device compatible with IEC 61499 will
25 can be modeled as FBs. The LN concept can be mapped to be able to execute this specification directly and with the same
the FB concept as shown in Fig. 4. result. Thus, the virtual substation function can be implemented
Any data object shown as output data of the “FB” can be as a FB application and can be simulated. After the function-
communicated by the communication services of IEC 61850-7- ality is validated by simulation, the same FBs can be directly
2: deployed in particular physical devices.
1) GetDataValues (read or polling); The FB implementation specifies logical connections be-
2) Report values immediately (event driven, sequence of tween the LNs in detail, implementing them via event and data
events); connection arcs.
3) Log values and query log at any time; The benefit of IEC 61499 compliance can be seen by com-
4) Send values peer-to-peer by multicast mechanisms paring the general purpose microcontroller device (MCD) in
(typically Generic Object-Oriented Substation Event – Fig. 5 with the IEC 61499 compliant one in Fig. 6. To create an
(GOOSE) for status information and sampled values – application specific device, say a bay control unit or an intel-
(SV) for samples of voltage, current, or vibration). ligent CB, based on a MCD with appropriate peripherals (e.g.,
The data objects EnaOpn and EnaCls of the LN CILO (inter- input/out ports, communication interfaces, etc.) one needs to
locking) could be understood as output data of a FB instance. program its various functions in some programming language,
The input data representing the switchgear positions would (in perhaps using library functions provided by an application pro-
the IEC 61850 context) be modeled with SCL as the input sec- gramming interface. The latter may be needed to access the
tion of the LN CILO. The configuration or control values would peripherals (e.g., write value to an output port). Then, using a
be modeled as data objects. device-specific compiler, the executable code can be generated
These communication services are mapped onto Manufactur- and uploaded to the device’s memory using the services of its
ing Message Specification (MMS, ISO 9506) in IEC 61850-8-1. embedded operating system.
A new standard (IEC 61400-25-4 – extensions of IEC 61850 for The IEC 61499-compliant device masks all the hardware
wind turbines) provides also Web services that implement the and software [e.g., operating system (OS)] details, offering a
6 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON SYSTEMS, MAN, AND CYBERNETICS—PART C: APPLICATIONS AND REVIEWS
E. Communications
IEC 61499-compliant devices need to have extensive net-
working capabilities to be used in the role of the domain-specific
controllers. As previously mentioned, SCADA communications
networks have traditionally been designed to support central-
ized monitoring and control. Many utilities are in the process of
rolling out optical fiber—at least to their zone substations and
sometimes beyond—and replacing antiquated serial links with
IP-based communications. These new networks typically have
high-availability architectures and provide different grades of
service according to application requirements. An advantage of
Internet Protocol (IP) is inherent support for peer-to-peer com-
munications (assuming that the application-level protocols can
take advantage of this).
Communications with geographically dispersed feeder equip- Fig. 9. Use of IEC 61850 models and its relation to IEC 61499 for control
functions.
ment are typically radio-based and non-IP. For example,
ENERGEX has just begun to roll out a “mesh radio” network for
distribution SCADA. This network supports peer-to-peer com- The functionality described earlier may be implemented by
munications, and provides a measure of redundancy, although any means—IEC 61850 does not standardize the implementa-
it will initially be used for traditional SCADA. tion. Since we discuss the use of IEC 61499; therefore, we can
easily map the functionality of interlocking to two FBs: CSWI
and CILO. The FBs would have programmed logic describing
V. INTERPLAY BETWEEN IEC 61850 AND IEC 61499 how the blocking conditions for opening and closing allowed
are calculated. This requires also the specification of the “input
A. Relationships Between IEC 61850 and IEC 61499 for
signals” (mainly the switch positions of related switches). These
Automation Functions input signals are specified in SCL.
The term automation function is used to differentiate the func- In case (b), two LNs CSWI and CILO are implemented
tions and communication for controlling (involving automatic in separate devices—this requires communication using IEC
functions, like tripping a CB, preventing an operation due to a GetDataValues, reporting, or GOOSE. In case (c), several de-
specific interlock condition, or restoring supply to blacked out vices need to exchange information for their functions.
customers) and those for monitoring from a supervisory point The mapping from IEC 61850-based LNs and data objects to
of view (e.g., a SCADA system keeping track of sequence of FBs is required if the design of a substation is mainly done by a
events). The use of IEC 61850 models and its relationship with tool that implements SCL. But the design can also be done with
IEC 61499 for control functions is illustrated in Fig. 9. a tool that uses the IEC 61499 FB models. In the latter case,
Case (a) in Fig. 9 shows a single device that implements the the FBs would hide the LNs. The SCL file for the interlocking
control function of a unit of switchgear (CB, load break switch, function (CSWI and CILO) would automatically be generated
disconnector, etc.). The control function is represented in IEC by the FB specification tool.
61850 as a LN with the name switch controller (CSWI). The The specification of the function can principally be done by
CSWI has a data object Pos with the attribute ctlVal (control a tool that uses the LN view (generating the corresponding SCL
value) that can be addressed by a substation computer. The file), or by a tool that applies the FB view which one is the
substation computer sends a control message to the device with preferred solution depends on many issues.
the LN CSWI—it addresses the attribute CSWI.ctlVal and sets it Case (c) depicts a situation, where the tools (either LN or FB
to open or close. centered) have built-in mechanisms to map the specified func-
The operation to close a CB will not be allowed if the config- tions to FBs and a SCL file. The SCL file may be used to config-
ured conditions for blocking the open or close are fulfilled. For ure a SCADA system to receive the sequence-of-events of the
example, if an adjacent earthing switch is in the closed position, switch operations. Each time the switch position (CSWI.stVal—
closing a CB would cause a short circuit and would probably status value) changes, the device would send a report message
damage the primary equipment. with the new state indication (usually with time stamp and qual-
The function, which checks whether the conditions are met ity information).
is modeled in IEC 61850 with the LN CILO. This interlock- The SCL file may also be used to document the communi-
ing function is well known in substations. The CSWI has to cation with regard to LNs, data objects, datasets, and control
communicate with the CILO to figure out what is allowed. blocks.
8 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON SYSTEMS, MAN, AND CYBERNETICS—PART C: APPLICATIONS AND REVIEWS
Fig. 11. Use of IEC 61850 models and its relation to IEC 61499 for monitoring
functions.
or opening ROS2, and closing ROS4); the head section will have
to await repair.
In the meantime, the control center has been eavesdropping
on the conversation between the switches. When customers call
to report a loss of supply, each can be fully informed as to when
they can expect restoration. In fact, customers on the unfaulted
feeder sections will probably be restored before they have time
to call.
Having restored supply to as many customers as possible,
the switches go quiet. A repair crew is dispatched to patrol the
faulted feeder section, find the fault and repair it. On comple-
tion of the repairs, the switches are commanded to restore the
distribution system to its prefault configuration.
This particular scenario is one of the simplest possible. It
does not account for load increase and decrease over the daily
load cycle, dynamic ratings of equipment, the possible need for
second-order load transfers to free capacity on the immediately
adjacent feeders, the need to ensure that the system remains
protected at all times, the need to manage embedded genera-
tion, and a host of other possible complications. Nevertheless, it
Fig. 12. Sample power distribution utility with intelligent distributed control. demonstrates that at least in one situation, it is possible for col-
laborating distributed components to solve a problem without
central intervention.
Distribution substations are positioned along each feeder as VII. INTELLIGENT CONTROL AND SIMULATION WITH FBs
required to serve customers’ loads.
A. Feeder Model
In the initial state, the switches ROS3, ROS4, and ROS 9
are open, which is denoted by their white color respectively. As previously mentioned, 11 kV feeders typically have a
All other switches are closed, denoted by their dark color. The branching topology, with distribution substations positioned as
switches are assumed to be “smart” and participating on an required to serve customers’ load. The dominant influence on
ongoing event-driven conversation. feeder topology is the evolution of customer’s load over time,
The scenario begins with a tree falling on the 11-kV mains, and each feeder has a unique topology. Differences between
causing a permanent fault on feeder F1 between CB1 and ROS1. construction standards at different times in the life of a feeder
The feeder protection trips (opens) CB1 at zone substation B. can lead to significant nonuniformity in terms of ratings.
Sectionalizing switches ROS1 and ROS2, being downstream of For the purposes of this exercise, it should be assumed that
the fault location, do not register the passage of fault current. useful power system measurements can only be made at switch
In anticipation of possible followup action, they remember the locations, i.e., at the locations of CBs, sectionalizing switches,
load currents that were flowing through them just before the and tie switches.
fault occurred. After one attempted automatic reclosure, CB1 In future, distribution substation and/or customer meters will
goes to lockout. be remotely monitored and controlled. Current thinking is that
Tie switches ROS3 and ROS4 realized that feeder F1 is the associated data will be communicated on a separate network
no longer energized, and they initiate a search for alternative from the SCADA data communications network, and not in
sources of supply. Each switch is assumed to maintain a local real time, however, the argument is made below that a real-
connectivity map; therefore, it is able to propagate the “call or time subset of the meter data should be made available to the
help” toward a zone substation. CB2 at zone substation A, and automation system.
CB3 at zone substation C, respond with information about the Whereas switches with embedded controllers are becoming
headroom (excess capacity) available. This information propa- quite common, wires and cables are as “dumb” as anything
gates back down feeders F2 and F3. It is updated at each switch, can be, and are likely to remain so. As a result, it will not
so that by the time it reaches ROS3 and ROS4, the available ex- be possible for switches to communicate with the associated
cess capacities can be compared with the loads in the unfaulted connectivity in order to discover the topology and ratings of
sections of feeder F1 (note that in order to achieve this, each the feeder. They will have to be given this information by a
switch must be aware of its own rating and the ratings of the higher authority. The authority, which supplies switches with
downstream conductors). topology and ratings data will (potentially) be able to supply
The switches agree on the steps necessary to restore supply: complex historical data about loads, enabling inferences (not
The midsection of feeder F1 will be transferred to feeder F2 (by always completely accurate) to be made in real time.
checking open or opening ROS1 and ROS2, and closing ROS3); Fig. 13 summarizes this situation. Fig. 13(a) shows the
the tail section will be transferred to feeder F3 (by checking open detailed topology of a feeder section. Fig. 13(b) shows the
10 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON SYSTEMS, MAN, AND CYBERNETICS—PART C: APPLICATIONS AND REVIEWS
grids. Each piece of physical equipment is represented by a specifying all information generated and consumed, and
FB in the FB diagram. These blocks are internally organized the methods on how and when to exchange values pro-
following the model view control design pattern [14]. Some, duced by the functions. The required logic will be mapped
like the CB encapsulate its own controller along with model and automatically to IEC 61499 FBs that represent communi-
view, others, corresponding to dumb equipment like sections of cation with IEC 61850-7-2 service models.
wires, are represented only by model and view. As a result, the 2) We plan to investigate the requirements and feasibility for
FB application simulates the depicted distribution system and creating the range of control devices on top of IEC 61499
implements its decentralized control. embedded computing platforms, mimicking and extend-
The modeling of rating values is based on the analytic esti- ing existing IEC 61850-compliant devices (1).
mations (1) and (2) in the previous section. 3) We plan to investigate the requirements and feasibil-
Each FB has input FAULT reserved for modeling fault- ity of “plug-and-play” self reconfiguration of the power
causing events in the particular section modeled by that block. system—the ability to automatically detect changes in the
Thus, the tree fall is modeled by setting the FAULT input of the fabric of the power system, and reconfigure protection and
FB “L2_local_2” modeling, i.e., the corresponding section of automation systems appropriately.
wires (FB-type “link”). IEC 61850 lacks the specification of functions, and IEC 61499
lacks “standard” communication services. The best features
VIII. CONCLUSION AND FUTURE WORK of each standard can satisfy the needs of the other, creating
an architecture for truly flexible and adaptable power system
In this paper, we discussed a pathway to flexible power system
automation.
automation. This involves the use of IEC 61499 as an integration,
extension, and verification mechanism for IEC 61850-based sys-
tems. A fault location, isolation, and supply restoration scenario ACKNOWLEDGMENT
was presented, and its implementation using IEC 61499 FBs
The authors would like to thank J. Reuter of Helinks LLC,
was sketched.
Switzerland, who created the single-line diagram of our sample
In order to enhance the benefits of this approach, devices
system with the Helinks software tool and then converted it to
like protective relays, bay controllers, and substation controllers
SCL.
could be implemented on IEC 61499-compliant platforms,
which would add new value to IEC 61850 compliance—the
ability to customize protection, monitoring, control, and au- REFERENCES
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braries may include “standard” FBs, for example, for the able: http://sourceforge.net/projects/fuber
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12 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON SYSTEMS, MAN, AND CYBERNETICS—PART C: APPLICATIONS AND REVIEWS
Neil Higgins (M’88) received the B.E. Electrical Nirmal-Kumar C. Nair (S’01–M’04–SM’10) re-
(with First Class Hons.) degree in power engineer- ceived the B.E. degree in electrical engineering from
ing from the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda, India, the
Australia, in 1976. M.E. degree in electrical engineering with specializa-
He is currently a Senior Systems Development tion of high-voltage engineering from Indian Institute
Engineer with ENERGEX, Queensland, Australia, of Science, Bengaluru, India, and the Ph.D. degree in
where he is involved in technology road mapping, electrical engineering from Texas A&M University,
and the evaluation and introduction of new network College Station, TX.
technologies, especially those with a significant in- He was at several professional, teaching, and re-
formation and communications technologies compo- search positions. He is currently a Senior Lecturer
nent. He was with the ENERGEX, SEQEB, and the in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engi-
Brisbane City Council Department of Electricity. His research interests include neering, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand. His research inter-
substation design, substation circuitry, protection, supervisory control and data ests include power system analysis, protective relaying and optimization in the
acquisition, distribution system automation, distribution management systems, context of electricity markets, and integration issues of distributed generation
and information technology. (DG)/renewable sources into bulk power system.
Dr. Nair is currently the Chair and a Student Branch Counselor for IEEE
New Zealand (North) Section. He is also the Vice-Chair of Power and Energy
Society (PES) Life Long Learning Subcommittee and is also engaged in several
working groups and Technical Task force of PES Committees.