Estimating Loss Rates of Links in Smart Grids

• US 20130297241A1
• Filed: 08/16/2012
• Published: 11/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/02/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Narayanaswamy, Balakrishnan, Arya, Vijay
• Granted Patent: US 9,043,174 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/61
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 21/133 by using digital technique
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 22/00 Arrangements for measuring time integral of electric power or current, e.g. electricity meters
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00017 using optical fiber
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00034 the elements or equipment being or involving an electric power substation
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/00 Circuit arrangements for ac mains or ac distribution networks
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/0075 for providing alternative feeding paths between load and source according to economic or energy efficiency considerations, e.g. economic dispatch
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/00 Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/124 using wired telecommunication networks or data transmission busses

Abstract

A method for estimating loss rates of links in a smart grid includes identifying end-to-end passage rates from a source to each of multiple receiver and/or load meters in a smart grid, and estimating a loss in at least one link of the grid by identifying the sparsest solution of link loss rates that matches the end-to-end passage rates. Also, a system includes a memory, a processor coupled thereto, and software modules executing on the processor, including a monitoring module for monitoring power flow of receiver and/or load meters in a smart grid, a measurement collector module for collecting measurements to compute end-to-end passage rates from a source to each receiver and/or load meter, and a processing module for estimating a loss in a link of the grid by identifying the sparsest solution of link loss rates matching the end-to-end passage rates.

Claims

1. A method for estimating loss rates of links in a smart grid, the method comprising:

identifying end-to-end passage rates from a source to each of multiple receiver and/or load meters in a smart grid; and

estimating a loss in at least one link of the smart grid by identifying the sparsest solution of link loss rates that matches the end-to-end passage rates;

wherein at least one of the steps is carried out by a computer device.

2. The method of claim 1, comprising identifying likely values of loss on multiple links based on prior information about loss rates.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the prior information comprises at least one of materials used, age of materials and ambient conditions.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising using knowledge of (i) distance of meters from the source and (ii) topology of the smart grid to identify a location of a link with a loss.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising using the link loss rates to identify a location of a link with a loss.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said identifying comprises interfacing with at least one monitoring device of at least one of a substation, a transformer, and a residential smart meter.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said identifying comprises using a time series of end-to-end power-flow measurements for common time intervals at the source and receiver meters in a smart grid.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said identifying comprises collecting periodic synchronous measurements to compute a power-flow for each of multiple time intervals.

9. The method of claim 1, comprising ranking links according to loss.

10. The method of claim 1, comprising sending end-to-end loss rate measurement messages to a server for processing.

11. The method of claim 1, comprising using meters at a subset of the links in the smart grid.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein said identifying comprises using a system of at least one linear equation.

13. The method of claim 1, comprising continuously monitoring total power losses occurring on each link in the smart grid.