2011The International Conference on Advanced Power System Automation and Protection

Advanced Protection Relay Test System using a Digital Simulator

Lan HONG, Tokujiro TAKIZAWA, Megumi KURIYAMA
Toshiba Corporation, Tokyo 1058001, Japan;

Abstract: Today, digital type power system simulators are used within many areas of development including protection system
test, in respect of its excellent track record. However, in the protective relaying system test, the operation of the test system
becomes complex because numerous power system parameters and switching conditions need to be set following a predeter-
mined sequence. And professional power system expertise is always required in order to set up the power system simulation
environment. This paper describes the challenge of developing a user-friendly control system for a protection relay panel test-
ing system using an RTDS® simulator. In this system, we have developed user-friendly interface equipment to connect to the
relay system in order to control relay conditions and for recording the output signals of the relay system under test. Dedicated
control software was developed to automatically control the RTDS® equipment, switch protection relay system conditions and
record test results. We also developed an automatic recording and display function for test results . The system has proved to be
an effective test system for the testing of protection relay systems.

Keywords: protection relay panel test, digital simulator, user-friendly interface, automatic recording and display func-
tion

1 Introduction
Power system protective relaying systems play a crucial role
in protecting power systems by isolating faulted parts from
the rest of the electrical network when faults occur in the
power system. The malfunction or failure of a power system
protection to operate during service can result in widespread
disruption, so it is important to test the functionality of the
protection relay system comprehensively to ensure the de-
sired behaviour during service. In addition, the accuracy of
the real time simulation of the power system phenomenon is
required for the test equipments in the protective relaying
system under test.
There are two main types of real time power system
simulator that can be used to faithfully represent power sys-
tem phenomenon. One type is the analog real time power
system simulator, a reduced model for simulating the elec-
trical characteristics of generators, transmission lines and
transformers using analog simulated circuits. These have
played an important role in the performance evaluation of
protection schemes for several decades. However, it lacks
the flexibility to provide all of the types of real time pow-
er system simulation necessary and system expansion is
limited. Some special power systems are difficult to simu-
late using the analog type of simulator. A further drawback
is the enormous amount of space required for setting up the
equipment.
Today, due to advances in computing technology, an-
other type of real time power system simulator, the real time
*Corresponding author (email: lan.hong@toshiba.co.jp)
___________________________________
978-1-4244-9621-1/11/$26.00 ©2011 IEEE
digital simulator has reached maturity. Some types can pro-
vide high-speed simulations, sufficient analog and digital
input and output channels such that it can be used for the
testing of protection and control equipment.
As the technology of protection relay systems
improves and the operation of protection system becomes
more complex, it is not efficient to test the protection sys-
tems using an analog simulator, and advanced protection
relay test systems are required.
This paper describes the challenge of developing a
user-friendly control system for a protection relay panel
testing system using a digital power system simulator. By
adopting a high performance digital power system simulator,
and human interface equipment developed in-house, we
have succeeded in developing an advanced digital protec-
tion relay test system that satisfies the need for us-
er-friendliness, scalability and the small physical space re-
quired to set-up and operate the equipment.
2 System configuration
At the inception of choosing a digital type of power system
simulator for protection relay testing, we made a compre-
hensive study of real time power system simulators includ-
ing a discussion of the possibility of developing our own
equipment. Considering the high reliability and the flexibil-
ity of the simulator to be important, we decided to adopt a
universal digital simulator. We adopted the RTDS® (Real
Time Digital Simulator) from RTDS Technologies as the
APAP2011 www.apap2011.org


 2011The International Conference on Advanced Power System Automation and Protection

power system simulator for our next generation of protec- RTDS®simulator and simulates the power system signals; it
tive relaying system test equipment. This decision was also converts digital signals to low-level analog signals for
based upon our having several years’ experience in using application to current/voltage amplifiers. The output ports
RTDS® equipment for analyzing the performance of protec- of the amplifiers are connected to the protection relay pan-
tion relay units. Our experience has shown that the simula-
tion of power system phenomenon is very realistic and has
RTDSR Monitor Test
the real time performance required due to the high speed RTDS® 䡸䢌 display setting
computing ability. simulator 䠝 data
RTDS® simulator provides dedicated software to set
up simulations, control and to modify system parameters Operation Server
during a simulation. Using the dedicated RTDS simulation LAN
software we can prepare a schematic diagram of the system
to be simulated. For loading, running and controlling the AC signal
simulation the RunTime module is used for which dedicated Amplifier
automated operation software is provided. 䜰 䜰 Interface
However, in the protective relaying system test, the
Amplifier Inteface Amplifier Inteface
operation of the test system becomes complex because nu-
merous power system parameters and switching conditions
need to be set following a predetermined sequence. A de- Relay Panel Relay Panel
tailed knowledge of RTDS® and power system calculations
are essential for the operators for the setting of the condi- Relay panel Relay panel Relay panel Relay panel
tions of the power system and relay panels and for operating
the simulator. In addition, the duplication of manual settings,
operation, visual checks required throughout the test is not 䜰 䜰
efficient and may easily result in human errors. Hence, we
developed the advanced protective relaying system test that Amplifier Inteface Amplifier Inteface

can automatically execute complex test sequences and pro-

vide results in a customized report based on the automated
operating software for the RTDS. It also provides a us-
er-friendly interface for operation , which can be mastered Relay panel Relay panel
Relay panel Relay panel
by everyone involved.
Previously, most of the work in the test concentrat- Fig.1. Test system configuration
ed on a comprehensive test, setting-up of the test environ-
ment and wiring checks. In the comprehensive test, manual
setting, test control and visual checks were repeated for
each test case. With regard to setting-up the test environ-
ment, this step always takes a lot of time because
point-to-point wiring must be connected. Regarding the
wiring check, wiring to the wiring test equipment and re-
moval after the check is complete is necessary. As a preven-
tive measure, an operating system, with interface equipment
developed in-house, is used to automatically control the
RTSD® simulator, switch the conditions of the protection
relay panels under test and automatically record the test
results. To reduce human errors that may occur during wir-
ing connection, we have also integrated a wiring test func-
tion to the interface equipment to avoid repeating wiring
tasks.
Figure 1 shows the test system configuration for a
2-terminal, 2 transmission line protection system with 2 Fig.2. Power system configuration using RTDS software
relay panels at each terminal. The test system consists of an
RTDS® simulator, an operation server, a display monitor,
voltage/current amplifiers, interface equipment and relay
panels. The power system to be simulated is constructed
using RTDS® dedicated CAD software as shown in Figure 2.
The control server for the test system is connected to the


 2011The International Conference on Advanced Power System Automation and Protection
els, so that the amplified signals from the amplifiers can be
applied to the protection relay panels under test. In this sys-
tem, we have developed interface equipment to connect the
relay panels via a LAN in order to monitor operation of
the relay panels and record the output signals of the relay
panels under test. The LAN is used to connect the interface
equipment and the RTDS to the operation server so that all
operations and recording for the relay panels and power
system can be remotely controlled during the test. In addi-
tion, all of the test setting data is saved in the database and
can be renewed in real time. The monitor can display the
dynamic power system diagram with voltage, current and
CB conditions. For factory acceptance tests, it is possible to
connect the monitor to a large screen display for the con-
venience of the witness.
3 System features
As outlined in chapter 2, a lot of work is repeated during the
comprehensive test, setting-up of the test environment and
the wiring check. In order to develop a very efficient ad-
vanced protection relay test system having a user-friendly
operation interface, in the development we concentrated
upon the following three points.
Fig. 3. Operation screen for protection relay panel test system

(1) User-friendly operation server
As the dedicated control software of the RTDS equipment is
difficult to use for people without specialist training, the
operation server for the test system was developed to oper-
ate the RTDS® equipment automatically, switch protection
relay system conditions and record test results. We devel-
oped an operation server based on the script file facility
available within RTDS®, which can operate the RTDS®
simulator automatically through programming script com-
mands according to the predetermined sequence of relay
condition reset, power system set, relay conditions set, test
start, RTDS operation, test finish, test result collect and
save.
Using Visual Basic, we constructed a visual power
system operation server, which can read and overwrite the
setting and operation of the RTDS in real time. All of the
operations are concentrated in the operation server and so
there is a large amount of transmitted and received infor-
mation that must be processed in real time and sometimes
there are conflicts. We made an effort to establish a priority
order for settings and implement a proper waiting time to
ensure that the execution of all operations follow a prede-
termined sequence. Although there are a lot of setting and
control items, we only listed the setting items in the opera-
tion server requiring change each time in order to simplify
 2011The International Conference on Advanced Power System Automation and Protection

the test operation. interface equipment.

We developed a user-friendly power system operation By transmitting this information via a LAN, it is pos-
server interface as shown in Figure 3. On the left hand-side sible to review the test results on the display monitor. Figure
of the operation server interface we display a simplified 4 shows relay panel operations including operation time,
power system diagram in accordance with the power system relays operated and test evaluation. All of the results are
simulated using the RTDS®. Any change in power system compared with the test specification saved in the database,
conditions can be reflected in real time on the power system and evaluations of the test results e.g. pass/fail can be in-
diagram. On the right hand-side of the server interface is formed directly as shown in Figure 4. Figure 5 shows the
the operation panel for test operation. When the operator external indications for the relay panels. When relays do not
selects the Case No, the corresponding power system setting operate as designed, the evaluation, ‘fail’ is shown col-
can be read and the power system diagram on the left is or-coded in red as shown in Fig.5. It is possible to save all
renewed. All of the default power system setting data for
each the test case can be displayed in the operation panel so
that operators can check whether the settings are correct,
then depressing the start pushbutton, the test will start
following the predetermined test sequence. When the start
button has been depressed, the server will automatically
execute relay panel setting, RTDS operation etc. A fault is
initiated by depressing a pushbutton to apply the fault,
simulated faults will be executed, during faults the power
system and relay conditions will be collected and a results
record can also be saved. If necessay, fault and power sys-
tem conditions can be changed by selecting options and
input values on the operation panel of the test operation
sever, such as faulted phase, fault location, phase angle and
frequency etc. Operation to commence the start of the test,
test stop and applied faults can be executed by pushbuttons.
Whether or not to save test results can also be selected by a Fig.4. Test result display screen
pushbutton on the operation server. If the save pushbutton is
chosen, all of the results can be overwritten in the specified of the tests results as desired; a certificate is automatically
space of the database for the test. generated for the test including all of the test cases in the
In all, we have succeeded in developing a format specified.
user-friendly operation server interface for operating the
relay test system so that any operator can master the
operation of the test system very quickly.

(2) Automatic recording of test results

The indicators for recording the operating and recovery
times and the external indications of the protection relay
panels was previously necessary and it was also necessary
to visually confirm the test results.
To operate and monitor the relay panel from the oper-
ation server, we developed interface equipment between the
relay panels and the operation server. Thus it is possible to
send operation commands from the operation server to the
relay panels and to collect and transfer relay panel condi-
tions back to the operation server. Combined with the fea-
tures of the operation server and interface equipment, we
Fig. 5. External indication of test results – failures shown in red
developed a feature for the automatic recording of test re-
sults and a demonstration function for the operation server.
For the comprehensive tests, we replaced all of the indica-
tors and now all of protection relay panel outputs can be (3) High efficiency for test connections
collected and displayed in the test operation server via the


 2011The International Conference on Advanced Power System Automation and Protection
The wiring connections between the relay panels and test
equipment is more than 100 points, the connections must be
terminated point-by-point so that more than one day is re-
quired. As an alternative measure, we have developed a 16
points/set one-touch connection for the interface equipment
to reduce repetitive wiring connection work and lower the
possibility of wiring errors. Figure 6 shows how we ap-
proached the application of a one-touch connection to the
interface. As shown on the left diagram, we can connect the
wiring between relay panels and the interface equipment by
inserting one-touch connectors to the terminal blocks with
no need for the use of a screwdriver. It significantly im-
proved the efficiency of the wiring connections.
Because the I/O for each point of the relay panel ter-
minal blocks is fixed in accordance with end-user require-
ments, we adapted an I/O board that can switch the I/O set-
ting using software to control the input/output signals in
order to make the interface equipment suitable for different
relay panel terminal block arrangements. This ensures that
the wiring to the test equipment does not need to be
changed every time.
In the past, it was necessary to reconnect wiring ter-
mination points as part of the overall test process, the inter-
nal wiring connection test function for the protection relay
panels was also relocated to the human interface equipment
as s further measure. By using the interface equipment to
connect to the protection relay system I/O circuitsand by
setting the I/O signals of the interface equipment using the
Fig.6. Wiring connection of interface equipment
Previous Wiring test device Indicator Analog simulator
wiring wiring
Wiring Functional
test test
Connection Remove Connection Connection
Integration of the function of
Now
wirng test device & indicator
Digital simulator
(including wiring test & indication function)
wiring
Wiring Functional
test test
Connection
Non-reconnection
Fig.7. Comparison of test setup process
㻰㼕㼓㼕㼠㼍㼘㻌㼟㼕㼙㼡㼘㼍㼠㼛㼞
㻯㼡㼞㼞㼑㼚㼠㼂㼛㼘㼠㼍㼓㼑㻌㻭㼙㼜㼘㼕㼒㼕㼑㼞㻌
㻻㼜㼑㼞㼍㼠㼕㼛㼚㻌㼟㼑㼞㼢㼑㼞
㻵㼚㼠㼑㼞㼒㼍㼏㼑㻌
㼐 㼕
Fig.8. Appearance of test equipment
operation software, the internal wiring connectionsfor the
protection relay system can be tested directly without mak-
ing changes to wiring connections; this increases the effi-
ciency of the test programme.After the wiring check, we
commence with the comprehensive test simply by setting
the I/O signal arrangement in software without any wiring
reconnection as shown in Figure 7. Furthermore, the neces-
sary steps in previous method of using wiring connections
for indicators is not needed as the function of the indicator
has been added to the human interface as described in (2).
The comparison of the test setup process is illustrated in
Figure 7. It is only necessary to undertake wiring connec-
tions once from the beginning to the end of the test, the in-
tegration of the wiring test function can identify any errors
in the wired connections.
4 Conclusion
The appearance of the protective relaying panel test system
is shown in Figure 8. The space required for this system is
reduced to 30% of that required for the analog protective
relaying panel test system.
The development of a 2-terminal transmission line protec-
wiring
tion system and a 12-line busbar protection system is com-
Comprehensive
shipping
plete. These test systems have been applied in protection
test
relay panel testing. A 3-terminal transmission line protection
Remove
system and transformer protection system is now under de-
velopment.
The improvement in operability and the recording
function have been proven to good effect in terms of im-
provements in efficiency, the total man-hours required for
protection relay panel tests can be decreased by 70%. We
Comprehensive
test shipping also expect that it will contribute to an improvement in the
t
Remove reliability of protection relay panels.

 2011The International Conference on Advanced Power System Automation and Protection

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