Real-time grid awareness can help avert disaster, firm says

A firm based in California says it’s developed a software designed to make it easier for utilities to assess the performance of the electricity grid using large volumes of data from multiple sources.

Created to accommodate the microsecond measurements recorded by synchrophasors — devices used to measure the state and quality of the power system — the new software from Space-Time Insight aims to provide control room operators with timely information needed to make instant decisions that impact grid stability and availability.

Synchrophasors measure voltages and currents at different locations on a power grid. By measuring and comparing the flow of electricity at multiple points on the grid at the same time, utility operators can assess the condition of the system. However, as utilities across the globe incorporate synchrophasors into their networks to improve grid reliability, they face a new challenge: how to manage and interpret the huge volumes of data being generated.

Synchrophasors “read” the grid 30 times per second. While their readings can provide visibility into potential problems that could take hours to unfold, rapid insight into the data is critical for averting blackouts and other disaster scenarios.

Space‐Time Insight has added new capabilities to its visual analytics and geospatial software to provide better Wide Area Situational Awareness (WASA). Its software can now:

• Perform real‐time comparison calculations across any synchrophasor combination on a grid;
• Proactively and promptly address outages and looming crises courtesy of dynamic displays that deliver operational alerts through multiple channels, including SMS, email, and visual and audible alarms, and threshold violation benchmarks;
• Provide a 360‐degree view of the grid ecosystem in real time through overlays of weather and environmental event feeds and any number of additional data sources;
• Set up monitoring policies and define new business rules and equations through natural language, reducing dependence on IT.

“The deployment of synchrophasors is a critical step towards ensuring large‐scale rolling blackouts do not occur,” said Krishna Kumar, CTO and founder of Space‐Time Insight. “Just as critical is the ability to understand and quickly act on the data those synchrophasors report.”