Loopback testing of electric power protection systems

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11513143-B2
Application number	US-202117397501-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 9, 2021
Priority date	Oct 10, 2019
Publication date	Nov 29, 2022
Grant date	Nov 29, 2022

Abstract

Systems and methods to test an electric power delivery system include a communication subsystem to transmit test signals to one or more merging units, a test subsystem to transmit a test data stream to the one or more merging units via the communication subsystem, and a processor subsystem to receive looped back data from the one or more merging unit in response to the transmitted test data stream and to determine an operating condition based on the looped back data.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system to test an electric power delivery system, comprising:
a merging unit, comprising:
a communication subsystem, comprising:
a monitored equipment interface to receive information from monitored equipment; and

a relay interface, comprising:
a first port to receive information from a protective relay; and
a second port to transmit information to the protective relay;

a test mode selection subsystem to allow a user to select one of an operating mode and a testing mode;
a routing subsystem, in the operating mode, to route information from the monitored equipment interface through the merging unit to the relay interface to be supplied to the protective relay, and, in the testing mode, to route a test data stream received from the protective relay at the first port directly to the second port and back to the protective relay while bypassing the monitored equipment interface; and
a protective relay in communication with the relay interface of the merging unit, the protective relay further comprising a protective action subsystem to perform at least one protective action in response to the test data stream.

2. The system of claim 1 , further comprising test unit in communication with the protective relay to produce the test data stream.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the protective relay is further to communicate the protective action to the test unit.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the testing unit is comprised in a supervisory system.

5. The system of claim 1 , the test mode selection subsystem is further to enter into the testing mode in response to receipt of the test data stream.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the test data stream comprises a plurality of time-aligned instructions.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein routing subsystem is further to redirect information received from the first port to the second port in the test mode.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the test data stream passes from the first port to the second port substantially unmodified by the merging unit.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the test mode selection subsystem comprises at least one of a physical input or a logical input to allow a user to select one of the operating mode and the testing mode.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the test data stream is to be communicated from the merging unit to the protective relay via a communication link utilized in the operating mode.

11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the routing subsystem is further configured to route the test data stream received from the protective relay at the first port directly to the second port while bypassing the monitored equipment interface to provide a signal in response to the test data stream back to the protective relay.

Assignees

• Schweitzer Engineering Lab Inc

Inventors

• Schweitzer Iii Edmund O
• Whitehead David E
• Gubba Ravikumar Krishnanjan
• Wade Austin Edward

Classifications

• H02J13/1331

  using wireless data transmission · CPC title

• H02J13/12 Primary

  Monitoring network conditions, e.g. electrical magnitudes or operational status · CPC title

• Y04S10/30

  State monitoring, e.g. fault, temperature monitoring, insulator monitoring, corona discharge · CPC title

• G01R19/2513 Primary

  Arrangements for monitoring electric power systems, e.g. power lines or loads; Logging · CPC title

• G05B23/0256

  injecting test signals and analyzing monitored process response, e.g. injecting the test signal while interrupting the normal operation of the monitored system; superimposing the test signal onto a control signal during normal operation of the monitored system · CPC title