Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

As utilities move towards more intelligent and autonomous networks, there is increased requirement for the analysis of how these changes will affect network operations and performance. Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs) can be integrated into a network for the analysis and identification of bad data. As PMUs contain a Global Positioning System (GPS) chip, it is possible for them to determine their own location when connected to a network. By creating a Common Information Model (CIM) network model in the cloud, with embedded geographical data, the PMU would be able to connect to this and determine what it is connected to and where in a network it is located. Network data could then be collected and analysed to help identify any points of bad data. Challenges to be overcome include the building of the network model from the available geographical data, the automatic integration of the PMU with the network, and the authentication of the data.