IEC TC 57 Just Published IEC 61850-90-20 - Guideline to Redundancy Systems

IEC TC 57 Just Published 39 page document 57/2080B/DC

IEC TR 61850-90-20 ED1, Communication networks and systems for power utility automation –
Part 90-20: Guideline to redundancy systems

Excerpt:
Scope
This part of IEC 61850 describes use cases of redundant systems.
The purpose of this document is to suggest how to model redundancy systems within the IEC 61850 domain and provide a guideline on implementation possibilities.
This report considers duplication of function and devices and not systems.
The report is not a guideline on the design of redundancy systems, guidance on designing
redundancy systems can be found in textbooks like

• High Availability and Disaster Recovery: Concepts, Design, Implementation by Kalus Schmidt, ISBN-10: 3540244603
• Blueprints for High Availability: Designing Resilient Distributed Systems by Evan Marcus, ISBN-10: 0471356018

Comments to this draft are due by 2019-04-12 at the latest

IEC TC 57 Just Published Draft IEC 61850-90-20 On Redundancy

IEC TC 57 just published the first Draft IEC 61850-90-20 on System Redundancy:

57/2080A/DC
IEC TR 61850-90-20 ED1
Communication networks and systems for power utility automation –
Part 90-20: Guideline to redundancy systems

Excerpt from the Introduction:

"The paper “CIGRE B5-109: Redundancy challenges on IEC 61850 systems and Migration
Paths for IEC 61850 Substation Communication Networks” introduce redundancy concepts as
follows
“Device redundancy of substation control units may be required in order to increase the availability of the substation automation system at the station level. System level redundancy is achieved by hot-hot or hot-standby configuration of duplicated station units that need to exchange information to ensure data consistency as well as coordinated and safe operation.
IEC 61850 communications in redundant configuration of duplicated clients faces challenges how to ensure that database in both central station control units are synchronized and that no events are lost during the switchover from the primary to secondary IEC 61850 client.”
A proposed redundancy system consists of two IED entities forming a logic IED. One or more lower level IEDs, e.g. merging units or circuit breaker, delivering the input data for the IED entities and getting results from the IED entities. One or more higher level clients receives output data from the IED entities for supervision or HMI.
Additionally, a higher level IED might exist, which supervises the state of the redundant system. In this context this concerns especially the state of the IED entities, so that a failed IED can be detected and repaired before the second IED fails.
The communication between the redundant system application and the lower level IEDs takes place with IEC 61850, mainly based on IEC 61850-8-1(MMS) reporting and commands, for time critical functions with IEC 61850-8-1(GOOSE) and IEC 61850-9-2(SV).
The communication to station level clients based on IEC 61850 is typically MMS based for supervision, commands and settings configuration changes. Since MMS is acknowledged service, server and client are aware of each other and the client supervises the servers. If both redundant system IEDs are hot, the client might select which of them it takes for executing a service request."

The TC57 P-members are invited to submit comments to this draft by 2019-03-29 at the latest.

Please note:
The application domains that need redundant systems may be crucial (for some high voltage systems) but may not be applicable for most systems in the energy delivery domain. This document is really of interest for a small, special group of experts ... not everybody interested in using IEC 61850 for exchanging some signals may need to check that draft document.
One challenge with IEC 61850 is: Which subset out of a big standard series do I need to understand for my application - that means: YOU HAVE TO KNOW YOUR APPLICATION !!

New Part IEC 61850-90-20 proposed - Guideline to Redundancy Systems

IEC TC 57 has proposed a new part for IEC 61850 (57/1766/DC):

Proposal to develop IEC TR 61850-90-20: Communication networks and systems for power utility automation – Part 90-20: Guideline to redundancy systems

As more application domains are added to the IEC 61850, additional modelling, description and functional capabilities need to be added to the “core” of IEC 61850.
One of the missing capabilities is functional redundancy, required by e.g. HVDC, FACTS and industrial applications. Other redundancy systems might also need additions to the standard for correct modelling.
This should be investigated in this work.

It is intended to write a Technical Report.

IEC 61850-90-4 Network Engineering – Just Published

IEC just published a crucial document on network engineering:

IEC/TR 61850-90-4 ed1.0
Communication networks and systems for power utility automation -
Part 90-4: Network engineering guidelines

Congratulation to the editors of this great technical report – worth to study in detail!

IEC/TR 61850-90-4:2013 is intended for an audience familiar with network communication and/or IEC 61850-based systems and particularly for substation protection and control equipment vendors, network equipment vendors and system integrators. This Technical Report focuses on engineering a local area network focused on the requirements of IEC 61850-based substation automation. It outlines the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches to network topology, redundancy, clock synchronization, etc. so that the network designer can make educated decisions. In addition, this report outlines possible improvements to both substation automation and networking equipment. This Technical Report addresses the most critical aspects of IEC 61850, such as protection related to tripping over the network. This Technical Report addresses in particular the multicast data transfer of large volumes of sampled values from merging units. It also considers the high precision clock synchronization and "seamless" guaranteed transport of data across the network under failure conditions that is central to the process bus concept.

This 250+ page report could be used as a compendium of solutions for the various applications found in power automation systems. The communication infrastructure is one of the crucial aspects of the future energy delivery system – in the electric power world, gas delivery, heating and cooling systems as well as in E-Mobility. The recommendations given in this new part of IEC 61850 could be applied in many application domains even outside the energy world.

As you may have seen, network infrastructure vendors like MOXA and Kyland have integrated IEC 61850/MMS in their infrastructure.

Click HERE to download the preview of IEC/TR 61850-90-4 ed1.0
Click HERE if you want to buy the report.

IEC 61850: Phoenix Contact offers special Ethernet Ring Solution

Phoenix Contact (Germany) published a paper “IEC 61850 verknüpft Energie- und Automatisierungsnetz” (IEC 61850 connects Energy Networks and Automation Networks) in the latest issue of the Magazine Computer & Automation (July 2013).

IEC 61850 is understood as a huge benefit in the energy delivers system because it is accepted globally.

Phoenix Contact offers special Managed industrial Ethernet switches that combine extensive network performance and security features with complete IEEE redundancy (STP/RSTP/MST) and 15 ms recovery time extended ring redundancy.

The extended ring redundancy is offered as a cost-effective redundancy solution – compared to solutions based on PRP and HSR.

Click HERE for further information on the IEC 61850-3 compliant Ethernet Switches.

Tissue Database for IEC 62439-3 PRP and HSR

Please not that the tissue database for the following standards is open for posting technical issues (tissues):

PRP (Parallel Redundancy Protocol) is a data communication network standardized by the International Electrotechnical Commission, Geneva, as IEC 62439-3 Clause 4

HSR (High-availability Seamless Redundancy) is a data communication network standardized by the International Electrotechnical Commission, Geneva, as IEC 62439-3 Clause 5

Access for the tissue database.

Draft IEC 61850-90-4 – Network engineering guidelines

IEC has published the following draft for ballot (57/1238/DTR):

IEC 61850-90-4 TR Ed.1:
Communication networks and systems for power utility automation –
Part 90-4: Network engineering guidelines for substations

The ballot closes on 2012-06-22.

Please contact your national committee to get a copy of this crucial document.

This 192 page Technical Report provides definitions, guidelines, and specifications for the network engineering of IEC 61850 based (substation and other) automation.
It addresses issues such as Ethernet technology, network topology, redundancy, traffic latency and quality of service, traffic management by multicast and VLAN, network-based clock synchronization and testing of the network.

Siemens Industry offers PRP Ethernet Redundancy Products

Ethernet is obviously to become the number ONE solution for almost all automation domains – just a few experts expected this success some 20 years ago. Even one of the serious supporters of Fieldbusses (Siemens) is supporting this trend by offering new Ethernet products.

High Availability Seamless Redundancy (HSR) and Parallel Redundancy Protocol (PRP) are the latest additions to the IEC 62439 Standard for High Availability Industrial Ethernet Networks. Designed for mission critical and time sensitive applications such as those found in Electric Utility protection and control applications (referenced by IEC 61850-8-1). Below is an excerpt of the TCP/IP Profile (PRP1 and HSR are also contained in the GOOSE and SV profiles):

Siemens offers IEC 62439-3 PRP compliant Ethernet products (SCALANCE X204RNA).

Click HERE for information on SCALANCE X204RNA in English
Click HERE for information on SCALANCE X204RNA in German
Click HERE for Manuals and further information

Click HERE for further information on the concepts [ppt presentation]
Click HERE for other IEC 62439 products [Hirschmann]

Details of NEW Hirschmann RSP and Embedded Switches With IEC-Standard Redundancy and IEEE 1588 disclosed

The recently announced new Ethernet Switches from Hirschmann that support redundancy protocols are now officially disclosed.

With Hirschmann™ RSP Switches, Which Support the New IEC-Standard Redundancy Protocols (PRP, HSR), Networks Can Now be Built for the First Time With Genuinely Uninterrupted Data Communication.

The Advantages at a Glance

• Extensive range of redundancy methods: PRP, HSR, PRP/HSR Red Box, MRP, Fast MRP, RSTP
• Precise synchronization compliant with IEEE 1588v2
• Enhanced security mechanisms: authentication, radius, role based access, port security, SSHv2, HTTPS and SFTP, plus others currently in preparation.
• Fast device replacement, comprehensive logging and storage of all configuration data, plus operating software updates via SD card
• High level of vibration resistance
• Broad immunity to electrostatic discharges and magnetic fields
• Temperature range from -40°C to +70°C
• Power supply 24/36/48 V DC or 60/120/250 V DC and 110/230 V AC
• Strong and compact metal housing

Click HERE for the technical Brochure [pdf, English]
Click HERE for the technical Brochure [pdf, Deutsch]

The New Embedded Ethernet EES20 and EES25 Switches from Hirschmann™ Combine the Functional Scope of a Powerful Managed Switch With Interruption-free Redundancy Protocols and Precise Synchronization.

• This module allows automation equipment to be extended to include state-of-the-art switch technology with very little effort
• The additional network functionality gives the equipment sustained competitive
  advantages
• Development process and time-to-market are significantly shortened thanks to
  Embedded Ethernet

Click HERE for the technical Brochure [pdf, Englich]
Click HERE for the technical Bochure [pdf, Deutsch]

NEW Hirschmann Ethernet Switches for Substations and other Critical Applications

Hirschmann is (to my knowledge) the leading manufacturers of Ethernet Switches for mission critical industrial applications. Hirschmann is also quite active in the domain of substations (IEC 61850, …). The following new products offer standardized features like RSTP (Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol), PRP (Parallel Redundancy Protocol) and HSR (High-availability Seamless Redundancy).

With these components there is sufficient timeliness guaranteed in mission critical substation protection and automation systems. This is far above the old “yellow cable” Ethernet of the 80s and 90s.

Hirschmann™ presents switches from its new RSP family Redundancy with zero switchover time:
Click HERE for further information (English)
Click HERE for further information (German)

Hirschmann™ once again demonstrates its market leadership in Industrial
Ethernet Hirschmann™ switches support seamless redundancy. The new PRP (Parallel Redundancy Protocol) and HSR (High-availability Seamless
Redundancy) protocols are two newly developed redundancy methods that significantly increase the availability and reliability of network connections:
Click HERE for further information (English)
Click HERE for further information (German)

Hirschmann™ markets new Embedded Ethernet components Module with the functional scope of a standalone switch:
Click HERE for further information (English)

White Paper on Media Redundancy Concepts - High Availability in Industrial Ethernet:
Click HERE for further information (English)

Two Are Better Than One – An Old Wisdom

King Salomon wrote some 3,000 years ago about redundancy:

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12: “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow; but woe to him that is alone when he falleth, and hath not another to lift him up. …. and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”

It would be very helpful in the future electric power delivery system if a higher degree of redundancy would be implemented! There is still a lot … but it is degrading in many places all over.

The major power outage in the San Diego region two weeks ago caused a failure in “a portion of the “north loop” of San Diego County’s Regional
Communications System (RCS) experienced a major failure when the county-wide power outage hit on September 8, 2011. This was the second major outage for the redundant 800 MHz RCS that was designed to carry public safety communications without the need for a backup system. …”

Accountants may say: The backup costs a lot of money … ;-)

Yup!

Click HERE to read the full report.

I have seen communication “boxes” for wind turbines that offer three communication channels … just in case! TCP/IP over Ethernet, GPRS, and Satellite. That should work highly reliable and offer a high availabilty.

IEC 61850-9-2 FDIS of Edition 2 open for Ballot

The IEC 61850-9-2 Edition: Communication networks and systems for power utility automation – Part 9-2: Specific communication service mapping (SCSM) – Sampled values over ISO/IEC 8802-3

is open for FDIS ballot until 2011-07-29.

Changes comprise:

• Addition of an optional Link redundancy layer
  Link Redundancy:
  Parallel redundancy protocol and high availability seamless ring
  IEC 62439-3, Amendment 1
• Redefinition of “reserved” fields in link layer
• USVCB and MSVCB components
• Encoding for the transmission of the sampled value buffer

Does IEC 61850 require special Ethernet Switches?

NO and Yes! It depends which services you are looking for. The communication profiles for client/server and GOOSE messaging are defined in IEC 61850-8-1.

The services and protocols for client/server communication are defined in the "TCP/IP T-Profile":

This table shows that the mandatory services and protocols are "standard" Ethernet ... you may purchase in a shop round the corner. There is no need for a special Switch etc.

In case you want to run GOOSE (or sampled values) messages, this requires IEEE 802.1Q (VLAN and Priority Tagging):

DataLink: Priority Tagging/ VLAN IEEE 802.1Q  (mandatory)

Ethernet Switches for rugged applications in substations have also to conform to IEC 61850-3 (EMC, EMI, Temp range, ...).

For applications outside substations you may use "standard" Ethernet switches.

Redundant Ethernet for Communication in Substation Automation Systems according to IEC 61850

The High-availability Seamless Redundancy protocol (HSR) was designed to meet the highest availability requirements of industrial applications (such as substation automation or motion control) with an Ethernet based communication infrastructure. IEC 61850-90-4 "Network Engineering Guidelines" recommends to use HSR for particular applications.

In the context of the project supported by the Swiss innovation promotion agency CTI, ZHAW is evaluating the feasibility of HSR. Project partners are ABB, Hirschmann, and Siemens. These companies have demonstrated the new solution during the recent Cigré Exhibition in Paris (end of August 2010).

Click HERE for a report in English.
Click HERE for a report in German.

IEC 61850-3 compliant Gigabit Ethernet Switch from Hirschmann

Hirschmann goes Gigabit for substation and other applications. The new Ethernet Switch offers 16 Gigabit Ethernet combination ports (1000 BASE-TX) that will also connect SFP fiber optical transceivers (100/1000 BASE-FX/SX/LX/LH). All ports support version 2 of the Precision Time Protocol (IEEE 1588 V2) as well as optionally Power over Ethernet (IEEE 802.3af).

Further characteristics include an operating temperature range of -40 to +70 °C, high resistance to jarring, and extensive insusceptibility to electrical discharge and magnetic fields. Passive cooling (no fans) and a redundant power supply add to ensure high operational safety. Furthermore, the new Hirschmann™ Gigabit Ethernet switch meets the standards and approval requirement of IEC 61850, IEEE 1613, EN 50121-4, EN 50155, cUL 508, cUL 1604 C1 Div2 and GL.

EPRI (Electric Power Research Institute) tested 10 Megabit Shared Ethernet for UCA 2.0 (Utility Communication Architecture) in the mid nineties. I remember when we had some 25 PCs connected to test UCA communication services. EPRI called me during these days to come to Los Angeles to give a presentation on the performance of Ethernet compared to Profibus DP. At that time many experts already believed that Ethernet is a serious option for Substation automation. Nowadays almost all experts are supporting Ethernet - some people that just know the old Shared Ethernet of the eighties don't believe that this is the right solution. After some explanation they change their mind - usually.

Click HERE for product information.
Click HERE for a paper published in 1991-11 on the use of Ethernet instead of Token passing [PDF, 720 KB] - at that time the author did not know about Gigabit Ethernet.
Click HERE for a paper published in 1991-03 on the use of Ethernet as a fieldbus [PDF, 720 KB].

Q&A on IEC 61850 from attendees of seminar in Moscow

The attendees of the IEC 61850 seminar held in Moscow (Russia) recently provided more than 10 questions on IEC 61850 that have been answered in written form [pdf, 47 KB] ... the questions have been discussed during the class. Usually attendees provide questions prior to the classes.

IEC 61850 in action - overview on 12 projects by Siemens

Siemens has published very interesting brief descriptions of successfully installed substation automation and protection systems with IEC 61850 conformant devices (IEDs):

• Aare-Tessin Ltd. for Electricity (Atel), Olten, Switzerland
• East China Power Grid Company, Shanghai, China
• RWE Power, Garzweiler, Germany
• RUSAL, Sayanogorsk, Russia
• CADAFE, Caracas, Venezuela
• Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA), Caracas, Venezuela
• Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (POWERGRID), New Delhi, India
• NUON, Alkmaar, Netherlands
• Statnett SF, Oslo, Norway
• Electrificadora del Meta S.A. (EMSA), Meta/Bogotá, Colombia
• Réseau de Transport d‘Electricité (RTE), La Défense Cedex, France
• Eólicas de Portugal / EDP RENOVÁVEIS, Lisbon, Portugal

All brief project descriptions are contained in a 66 page document [pdf, 3.3 MB]

Want to know what IEC 61850 is all about? Brief introduction [1 page].

Redundancy - IEC 61850 to refer to IEC 62439?

IEC TC 57 WG 10 considers to use in IEC 61850 the results of the edition 2 of the following standard developed by IEC TC 65C:

IEC 62439: Industrial communication networks: high availability automation networks

The CDV has been published November 21, 2008 (Document 65C/519/CDV); the ballot closes 2009-04-24.

The redundancy is intended to be handled in the link layer ... so that the higher layers do not need to be doubled! Be aware, there are several redundancy concepts in IEC 62439 ... you need to know which concept you want to choose before implementing the redundancy software.

IEC 61850 is likely to reference to Part 3 (PRP).
The IEC 62439 (2nd edition CDV) comprises the following solutions:

• IEC 62439-1 Ed1.0, Industrial communication networks high availability automation networks -Part 1: general concepts and calculation methods (Including RSTP)
• IEC 62439-2 Ed1.0, Industrial communication networks high availability automation networks -Part 2: Media Redundancy Protocol (MRP)
• IEC 62439-3 Ed1.0, Industrial communication networks high availability automation networks -Part 3: Parallel Redundancy Protocol (PRP) and High availability Seamless Ring (HSR)
• IEC 62439-4 Ed1.0, Industrial communication networks high availability automation networks -Part 4: Cross-network Redundancy Protocol (CRP)
• IEC 62439-5 Ed1.0, Industrial communication networks high availability automation networks -Part 5: Beacon Redundancy Protocol (BRP)
• IEC 62439-6 Ed1.0, Industrial communication networks high availability automation networks -Part 6: Distributed Redundancy Protocol (DRP)

Very good introduction to standard redundancy concepts, rationale, IEC 62439, etc. by Professor Hubert Kirrmann (ABB Switzerland) [PPT, 2 MB].