Generic Object Oriented Substation Event Research Articles

Security Monitoring of IEC 61850 Substations Using IEC 62351-7 Network and System Management

According to the IEC 62351-7 standard, data collection using network and system management (NSM) can be used to support the security monitoring of the smart grid. In this article, an NSM security monitoring platform for a realistic IEC 61850 substation model is developed using the specifications provided in IEC 62351-7. In the developed model, grid measurements are ready to take operative decisions, whereas collected NSM data are leveraged to detect cyberattacks and/or identify anomalies. The model includes power components (e.g., transformers, lines, and generators), controllers (e.g., voltage control), protection devices (e.g., overcurrent, distance, differential, and under/overvoltage), communication protocols (e.g., sampled value and generic object-oriented substation event), and NSM (e.g., agents and managers) applications. Moreover, a two-step deep learning framework is proposed for anomaly detection and cyberattack identification with enhanced accuracy. The first step can apply long short-term memory, recurrent neural network, and gated recurrent units, each in combination with an autoencoder. Then, the ensemble learning technique is used in the second step to augment the outputs of these deep learning models. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed cyberattack and anomaly detection framework, we detail and simulate potential cyberattacks targeting the performance of the IEEE 9-bus system. The proposed anomaly detection scheme can identify these threats using NSM data in a hardware-in-the-loop testbed. Finally, based on our assessment results, recommendations are provided for cybersecurity guidelines concerning IEC 62351-7.

Machine Learning-Based Intrusion Detection for Achieving Cybersecurity in Smart Grids Using IEC 61850 GOOSE Messages

Increased connectivity is required to implement novel coordination and control schemes. IEC 61850-based communication solutions have become popular due to many reasons—object-oriented modeling capability, interoperable connectivity and strong communication protocols, to name a few. However, communication infrastructure is not well-equipped with cybersecurity mechanisms for secure operation. Unlike online banking systems that have been running such security systems for decades, smart grid cybersecurity is an emerging field. To achieve security at all levels, operational technology-based security is also needed. To address this need, this paper develops an intrusion detection system for smart grids utilizing IEC 61850’s Generic Object-Oriented Substation Event (GOOSE) messages. The system is developed with machine learning and is able to monitor the communication traffic of a given power system and distinguish normal events from abnormal ones, i.e., attacks. The designed system is implemented and tested with a realistic IEC 61850 GOOSE message dataset under symmetric and asymmetric fault conditions in the power system. The results show that the proposed system can successfully distinguish normal power system events from cyberattacks with high accuracy. This ensures that smart grids have intrusion detection in addition to cybersecurity features attached to exchanged messages.

Virtual Digital Substation Test System and Interoperability Assessments

Interoperability testing and analysis tools provide a means for achieving and assuring the integrity of multivendor intelligent electronic devices (IEDs) data exchanges. However, the testing and analysis are very time consuming and error prone, and these problems worsen when a substation becomes large and complex during the engineering process, commission, replacement, maintenance, and extension. To address this challenge, this paper presents a virtual digital substation test system (VDSTS) with interoperability analysis tools for assessing and identifying the engineering challenges for the multiple-vendors digital substation. This VDSTS consists of three parts: (i) A virtual digital substation modelling for generating real-time digital substation primary plant operation and fault conditions, (ii) a standard IEC 61850-based substation protection, automation, and control (PAC) system architecture with multivendor IEDs and bay solutions, and (iii) multivendor Substation Configuration description Language (SCL) tools and in-house built data visualisation tool. The study focuses on the interoperability testing of sampled values (SV), generic object-oriented substation events (GOOSE), and manufacturing message specification (MMS) communication services, as defined in IEC 61850. The main issues identified are compatibility issues of SCL tools, protocol implementation issues, different information models, and application limitations. The outcomes will help utilities to reduce the risks associated with the general rollout of digital substations.

Vulnerability and Impact Analysis of the IEC 61850 GOOSE Protocol in the Smart Grid.

IEC 61850 is one of the most prominent communication standards adopted by the smart grid community due to its high scalability, multi-vendor interoperability, and support for several input/output devices. Generic Object-Oriented Substation Events (GOOSE), which is a widely used communication protocol defined in IEC 61850, provides reliable and fast transmission of events for the electrical substation system. This paper investigates the security vulnerabilities of this protocol and analyzes the potential impact on the smart grid by rigorously analyzing the security of the GOOSE protocol using an automated process and identifying vulnerabilities in the context of smart grid communication. The vulnerabilities are tested using a real-time simulation and industry standard hardware-in-the-loop emulation. An in-depth experimental analysis is performed to demonstrate and verify the security weakness of the GOOSE publish-subscribe protocol towards the substation protection within the smart grid setup. It is observed that an adversary who might have familiarity with the substation network architecture can create falsified attack scenarios that can affect the physical operation of the power system. Extensive experiments using the real-time testbed validate the theoretical analysis, and the obtained experimental results prove that the GOOSE-based IEC 61850 compliant substation system is vulnerable to attacks from malicious intruders.

Research on Distributed Feeder Automation Communication Based on XMPP and GOOSE

In the application process of distributed feeder automation (FA) that is based on peer-to-peer exchange of measurement and control data between smart terminal units (STUs), there is an urgent need for standardized communication interaction and necessary security protection. This paper proposes an IEC 61850 communication mapping scheme using built-in secure extensible messaging and presence protocol (XMPP) and the generic object oriented substation event based on the user datagram protocol (GOOSE over UDP) and a security protection scheme based on hash to obtain random subsets (HORS); one-time signature algorithm is used to ensure the communication safety of GOOSE messages. The agent-based distributed FA test system is developed with the STUs. The test results show the scheme can meet the requirements of the quick distributed feeder automation.

Implementation of Resilient Self-Healing Microgrids with IEC 61850-Based Communications

Due to the high penetration of distributed energy resources (DER) and emerging DER interconnection and interoperability requirements, fast and standardized information exchange is essential for stable, resilient, and reliable operations in microgrids. This paper proposes fast fault detection, isolation, and restoration (F-FDIR) for microgrid application with the IEC 61850 Generic Object Oriented Substation Event (GOOSE) communication considering the communication/system failure. GOOSE provides a mechanism for lightweight low latency peer-to-peer data exchange between devices, which reduces the restoration time compared to conventional client-server communication paradigm. The proposed mitigation method for the communication/system failure can find an available restoration scenario and reduce the overall process time. Hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testbed is designed and implemented with real time digital simulator, microgrid control system, and protection and control intelligent electric devices (IEDs) for the validation. The experimental results show that the proposed F-FDIR and IEC 61850 models can enhance the reliability and interoperability of the microgrid operation and enable self-healing microgrids.

A Fixed-Latency Architecture to Secure GOOSE and Sampled Value Messages in Substation Systems

International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 62351-6 standard specifies the security mechanisms to protect real-time communications based on IEC 61850. Generic Object Oriented Substation Events (GOOSE) and Sampled Value (SV) messages must be generated, transmitted and processed in less than 3 ms, which challenges the introduction of IEC 62351-6. After evaluating the security threats to IEC 61850 communications and the state of the art in GOOSE and SV security, this work presents a novel architecture based on wire-speed processing able to provide message authentication and confidentiality. This architecture has been implemented and tested to evaluate its performance, resource usage, and the latency introduced. Other proposals in the scientific literature do not support real-time traffic, so they are not suitable for GOOSE and SV messages. Whereas the others exceed the target latency of 3 ms or do not comply with the standards, our design authenticates and encrypts real-time IEC 61850 data in less than 7 μs-predictable latency-, and complies with IEC 62351:2020.

Real-Time Hardware-in-the-Loop Testing of IEC 61850 GOOSE-Based Logically Selective Adaptive Protection of AC Microgrid

The real-time (RT) hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulation-based testing is getting popular for power systems and power electronics applications. The HIL testing provides the interactive environment between the actual power system components like control and protection devices and simulated power system networks including different communication protocols. Therefore, the results of the RT simulation and HIL testing before the actual implementation in the field are generally more acceptable than offline simulations. This paper reviews the HIL testing methods and applications in the recent literature and presents a step-by-step documentation of a new HIL testing setup for a specific case study. The case study evaluates real-time implementation of previously proposed communication-dependent logically selective adaptive protection algorithm of AC microgrids using HIL testing of IEC 61850 generic object-oriented substation event (GOOSE) protocol. The RT model of AC microgrid including the converter-based distributed energy resources and battery storage along with IEC 61850 GOOSE protocol implementation is created in MATLAB/Simulink and RT-LAB software using OPAL-RT simulator platform. Local area network (LAN) at the laboratory acts as IEC 61850 station bus for exchanging GOOSE Boolean signals between the RT target and the actual digital relay. The evaluation of the round-trip delay using the RT simulation has been performed. It is found that the whole process of fault detection, isolation and adaptive setting using Ethernet communication is possible within the standard low voltage ride through curve maintaining the seamless transition to the islanded mode. The signal monitoring inside the relay is suggested to avoid false tripping of the relay.

Controller Hardware-in-the-Loop Testing of an IEC 61850 GOOSE Based Control for Seamless Transition of a Microgrid Between Island and Grid-Connected Modes

This article demonstrates development of a controller hardware-in-the-loop test system for validating microgrid control schemes. The investigation also proposes and analyzes the performance of an IEC 61850 generic object-oriented substation event protocol (GOOSE) based control strategy for managing the transition of a microgrid test model from grid-connected mode to islanded mode. The test model contains a single inverter-interfaced distributed energy resource (DER). The inverter controls allow the DER to regulate its output during grid-connected operation and regulate the microgrid voltage and frequency when separated from the Area electric power system. The test model, inverter, and microgrid controllers are simulated using RTDS Technologies' real-time digital simulator. A digital protection relay is used in the hardware loop to provide I/O to the simulated controllers via GOOSE messaging. The results of the investigation illustrate the benefits of IEC 61850 standard for integration of controller hardware in a microgrid control scheme as well as the suitability of GOOSE messaging for seamless transitioning between microgrid operating modes.

An Adaptive Protection for Radial AC Microgrid Using IEC 61850 Communication Standard: Algorithm Proposal Using Offline Simulations

The IEC 61850 communication standard is getting popular for application in electric power substation automation. This paper focuses on the potential application of the IEC 61850 generic object-oriented substation event (GOOSE) protocol in the AC microgrid for adaptive protection. The focus of the paper is to utilize the existing low-voltage ride through characteristic of distributed generators (DGs) with a reactive power supply during faults and communication between intelligent electronic devices (IEDs) at different locations for adaptive overcurrent protection. The adaptive overcurrent IEDs detect the faults with two different preplanned settings groups: lower settings for the islanded mode and higher settings for the grid-connected mode considering limited fault contributions from the converter-based DGs. Setting groups are changed to lower values quickly using the circuit breaker status signal (XCBR) after loss-of-mains, loss-of-DG or islanding is detected. The methods of fault detection and isolation for two different kinds of communication-based IEDs (adaptive/nonadaptive) are explained for three-phase faults at two different locations. The communication-based IEDs take decisions in a decentralized manner, using information about the circuit breaker status, fault detection and current magnitude comparison signals obtained from other IEDs. However, the developed algorithm can also be implemented with the centralized system. An adaptive overcurrent protection algorithm was evaluated with PSCAD (Power Systems Computer Aided Design) simulations, and results were found to be effective for the considered fault cases.

Detection of DoS Attacks Using ARFIMA Modeling of GOOSE Communication in IEC 61850 Substations

Integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in modern smart grids (SGs) offers many advantages including the use of renewables and an effective way to protect, control and monitor the energy transmission and distribution. To reach an optimal operation of future energy systems, availability, integrity and confidentiality of data should be guaranteed. Research on the cyber-physical security of electrical substations based on IEC 61850 is still at an early stage. In the present work, we first model the network traffic data in electrical substations, then, we present a statistical Anomaly Detection (AD) method to detect Denial of Service (DoS) attacks against the Generic Object Oriented Substation Event (GOOSE) network communication. According to interpretations on the self-similarity and the Long-Range Dependency (LRD) of the data, an Auto-Regressive Fractionally Integrated Moving Average (ARFIMA) model was shown to describe well the GOOSE communication in the substation process network. Based on this ARFIMA-model and in view of cyber-physical security, an effective model-based AD method is developed and analyzed. Two variants of the statistical AD considering statistical hypothesis testing based on the Generalized Likelihood Ratio Test (GLRT) and the cumulative sum (CUSUM) are presented to detect flooding attacks that might affect the availability of the data. Our work presents a novel AD method, with two different variants, tailored to the specific features of the GOOSE traffic in IEC 61850 substations. The statistical AD is capable of detecting anomalies at unknown change times under the realistic assumption of unknown model parameters. The performance of both variants of the AD method is validated and assessed using data collected from a simulation case study. We perform several Monte-Carlo simulations under different noise variances. The detection delay is provided for each detector and it represents the number of discrete time samples after which an anomaly is detected. In fact, our statistical AD method with both variants (CUSUM and GLRT) has around half the false positive rate and a smaller detection delay when compared with two of the closest works found in the literature. Our AD approach based on the GLRT detector has the smallest false positive rate among all considered approaches. Whereas, our AD approach based on the CUSUM test has the lowest false negative rate thus the best detection rate. Depending on the requirements as well as the costs of false alarms or missed anomalies, both variants of our statistical detection method can be used and are further analyzed using composite detection metrics.

A Method for Achieving Confidentiality and Integrity in IEC 61850 GOOSE Messages

IEC 62351-6 standard stipulates the use of digital signatures for ensuring integrity and authenticity in IEC 61850 Generic Object-Oriented Substation Events (GOOSE) message exchanges. Yet, it does not specify any method for ensuring confidentiality in GOOSE messages. With rapid growth of IEC 61850 from substation automation to power management domain, sensitive data that requires privacy is carried over GOOSE messages. In this letter, a novel method employing Authenticated Encryption with Associated Data (AEAD) algorithms is proposed to achieve both confidentiality and integrity of GOOSE messages. Further, lab tests are run to observe the timing performance and applicability of these algorithms to GOOSE messages with strict timing requirements.

Network traffic prediction for detecting DDoS attacks in IEC 61850 communication networks

This article presents the development of a Generic Object Oriented Substation Event (GOOSE) message traffic prediction system using a Nonlinear Autoregressive Model with Exogenous Input (NARX) input. An Artificial Neural Network was adopted to detect Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks in networks using the IEC-61850 protocol. The system uses the OpenFlow protocol to split the multicast groups of GOOSE messages, in which each transmission is analysed separately. The implemented intelligent system used 62 prediction steps with a percentage relative error of up to 5%. The system was embedded in the ZYBO development platform with the OpenMul controller. The results showed that the percentage relative error of each sample presents a determinant signature for classifying the state of operation of the electrical system, making it possible to identify DDoS attacks in communication networks for electric power substations.

Event-Based Simulation of a Decentralized Protection System Based on Secured GOOSE Messages

A new simulation library is developed on OMNeT++ to model faults in distribution systems. The proposed library makes it possible to calculate the status of lines and busbars from the point of view of a protection system, enabling the modeling of overcurrents, power outages and fault passage indicators. The library is applied to model a decentralized protection system based on the exchange of IEC 61850 Generic Object Oriented Substation Events (GOOSE) messages between intelligent electronic devices responsible for the operation of circuit breakers and disconnectors. The time needed to secure and transmit GOOSE messages over the Internet is characterized and included in the model. Several studies are carried out to analyze the effect of different parameters, such as GOOSE retransmission times and failure rates of switching devices and communication channels, on the performance of the protection system.

Analysis of GOOSE message and the engineering application for GOOSE message in the intelligent substation

Generic Object Oriented Substation Event (GOOSE) message reflects the transmission of information between many intelligent electronic devices, which is more reliable as original data. The communication Ethernet opaque also leads to a big problem of information extraction analysis, limiting the development of state maintenance and other techniques. This study describes the process equipment and the network transmission technology of the intelligent substation and analyses the specified message format of IEC61850. The study then compares it with the characteristics of the typical intelligent substation message and gives the analysis method and the meaning of each byte in the actual message frame, making the communication network in the process layer more transparent and giving a clear direction of information acquisitions and analysis. It also provides some reference meanings to the intelligent substation communication and the equipment status analysis.

New Method for OC Relay Coordination

Protection relays design and manufacture have arrived to a new level of advancement; hence, numerical relays have appeared recently. They combine all the functions of monitoring, control, and protection in one device. Also these relays have the ability to communicate with each other to share statuses and orders using GOOSE (generic object‐oriented substation events) messages based on communication protocols such as IEC61850. In this paper, a proposed method for overcurrent (OC) relay coordination has been introduced based on numerical relay features of several setting groups and communication capability. This work supposes that the coordination between feeder, bus section, and incomer protection relays, in a substation of single busbar configuration with bus sectionalizer (i.e., bus section), depends on the status of the bus section circuit breaker (CB) as a criterion for determining active relay setting group, to achieve a faster tripping action. ETAP has been used as a simulation software environment. And the simulation results show the advantages of the proposed method in reducing the time needed by the relay to clear the electrical fault. Siemens SIPROTEC series have been used as an example of numerical relays, specifically 7SJ64 as OC relay, which exists in the ETAP library.

Data-Centric Communication Framework for Multicast IEC 61850 Routable GOOSE Messages over the WAN in Modern Power Systems

In this paper, a data-centric communication framework is proposed for multicast routable generic object-oriented substation event (GOOSE) messages (MRGM) over the wide area network (WAN) for effective substation-to-substation (SS2SS) and substation to control center (SS2CC) communications. In this structure, the IEC 61850 GOOSE message is transmitted over the WAN using the data distribution service (DDS) as a fast, reliable, and secure data-centric communication middleware. The main feature of this framework is its multicast capability, where several authorized subscribers can receive a published message simultaneously. This can significantly improve the system monitoring and control of the protection systems in modern smart grids, where intelligent schemes can be applied. The effectiveness of the proposed platform, in terms of total end-to-end delay between participants, is evaluated through experimental results obtained from the actual hardware-based test setup developed at the Florida International University (FIU) smart grid testbed. The results demonstrate that the latency between sending and receiving a GOOSE message among participants is within its maximum time span defined by the IEC 61850-90-5 working group for communications over the WAN.

Real-Time Modeling and Testing of Distance Protection Relay Based on IEC 61850 Protocol

This article contributes to the evaluation of the performance and the precision of the IEC 61850 protocol implementation for real-time simulation. The importance of this study stems from two facts. First, the simulation is a required stage of any design process including that of an IEC 61850 model of utilities, which may include an automation system from two or more vendors. Second, verification of the vendor’s claim to be compliant with a specific edition of IEC 61850 relies in part on the simulation. We validate the interfacing of the IEC 61850 generic object-oriented substation event (GOOSE) and sampled value (SV) packets through the I/O modules of the simulation environment. In addition, this protocol interfacing is applied to validate a distance protection relay model using the IEC 61850 modules of GOOSEs and SVs in the HYPERSIM real-time simulator taking advantage of an SGI parallel supercomputer. The distance protection relay is implemented in Simulink, tested and validated with MATLAB Simscape Power Systems and imported into HYPERSIM via the HYPERLINK module. The simulation result has been evaluated in terms of reliability and time delay which plays an important role for the communication and cyber systems in smart grids. This real-time simulation setup is valuable for prototyping, analysis, and validation of control algorithms compliant with IEC 61850.

High-reliability optical process level network in smart substation

A novel scheme for high-reliability optical process level network (OPLN) with all-optical passive edge nodes in smart substation is first proposed, supporting both sampled value and generic object oriented substation event services with multicast traffic pattern. The edge node consists of n passive optical distribution modules and one arrayed waveguide grating, realizing the all-optical interconnection inside bays to reduce the optical-electrical and electrical-optical processes. A software defined network based center switch schedules all intelligent electrical devices in the network using multi-point control protocol. The analytical model for the OPLN reliability is established based on fault tree analysis. The results show that the OPLN can achieve almost two-fold mean-time-between-failure as compared to the Ethernet switch based network. Moreover, 99.99% availability can be obtained when network scale is up to 24 bays under dual-network redundancy.

Doubly-Fed Induction Generator Coordination Control Strategy Compatible with Feeder Automation

To solve the problem of incompatibility and mutual repulsion between a distribution network (DN) and distributed generation (DG), this paper first analyzes the conflicts between current feeder automation (FA) and doubly-fed induction generation (DFIG). Then, a DFIG coordination control strategy compatible with FA is proposed to cause the DFIG operating continuously during fault isolation and power supply recovery. The strategy consists of three aspects: (1) a DFIG islanding active synchronization control technology to support islanding and distant presynchronization control; (2) DFIG senses the status of circuit breakers/tie-switch through generic object oriented substation event (GOOSE) messages to achieve rapid switch of control modes and distant synchronization; (3) tie-switch senses the status of DFIG through GOOSE messages for closing. Finally, the effectiveness of the strategy is validated by multiple sound and detailed time-domain simulation cases. This study indicates future possible development trends and provides a simple and effective strategy for researches in the field of smart grid DN–DG compatibility.