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It is not news that our electric infrastructure is aging and being pushed to do more than it was originally designed to do. Modernizing the grid to make it “smarter,” more resilient and more reliable through the use of cutting- edge technologies, equipment, and controls that communicate and work together seems like a simple approach.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) envisions a modern electric power grid with: • Greater resilience to hazards of all types• Improved reliability for everyday operations• Enhanced security from an increasing and evolving number of threats• A�ordability to maintain our economic prosperity• Superior flexibility to respond to variability and uncertainty• Increased sustainability through additional clean energy and energy-e�cient resources
The challenge is greater than it appears. Delivering electricity more reliably and e�ciently over the years has required the integration of non-harmonized communications technologies ranging from licensed and unlicensed RF to proprietary wireless protocols creates a complex network to upgrade and maintain. Transitioning from the older field area networks (FAN) is an involved task, and having the right plan in place and right technology before deployment can make all the di�erence.
Cellular LTE allows utilities to modernize their Field Area Network (FAN) with a single, standards-based broadband network. Cellular networks provide utilities one option to communicate with devices in the field, and can provide a homogenous network for data transport.
LTE can improve crit ical network capabil it ies and provide well-characterized performance attributes
such as low latency, high reliability, and consistent performance in the presence of well-known interference sources. Plus LTE o�ers high security, high capacity, high throughput, high mobility and interoperability between wireless devices. LTE networks are jumping ahead of the current market confusion about wireless connectivity and are re-defining how value is created from devices and data.
With the continuing growth of the Smart Grid Initiative, many electrical utilities are now looking for new approaches to connect remotely-located substations, renewable energy sources, and their distribution automation equipment onto a secure and common network. Although a fiber-optic communications network is the first choice for connecting substation facilities to a central control and monitoring location, the expense, right-of-way issues, and di�culty of con-structing the fiber infrastructure to distant and widely separated facilities can be prohibitive and impractical.
For many years, utilities have used a combination of fiber, 2.4GHz, and 900MHz as a foundational architecture for communications. Faced with ever-increasing customer service expectations and rising system performance oversight, as well as growing interference issues a�ecting their existing radio and wireless services, many substation SCADA, distribution automation, and remote metering engineers are now viewing cellular routers as a viable alternative to the popular radio links deployed for use in the 900MHz (licensed and license-free service), 2.4, 3.6 GHz, and 5GHz frequency bands, as well as T-1/DS-1 and E-1 wired-telephony or microwave radio links. Furthermore, cellular routers are an attractive, cost- e�ective alternative to the cost of setting up and maintaining private ISM networks for SCADA applications.
A typical power grid can be comprised of hundreds of substations that need to be monitored and controlled. There are approximately 5 5 ,0 0 0 s u b s t a t i o n s i n t h e U.S. today and over 700K transformers according to DOE. Each one of these represents a potential gateway a n d / o r r o u t e r (terminal). Thanks to the rapid growth of computer and commu-nication technology, power substations are becoming more automated and increasingly deploy intelligent devices to monitor and control unmanned facilities.
In summary, ce l lu lar communicat ion routers and modem devices are helping to make the Smart Grid more inte l l igent , more secure, and increas ing i ts coverage area. In addition, upcoming new technologies such as private LTE broadband and LPWA technologies such as LoRa® o�er additional flexibility and provide improved cost e�ciencies. Controlling, securing, and reporting on Distribution Automation has never been more important, nor have there been as many options as there are today. MultiTech has been supplying communication devices for over 48 years by continuing to update their product portfolio with new technology and products. To learn more about how MultiTech i s se rv ing the Energy market , v i s i t us today at multitech.com or multitech.com/energyprogram.
Sources:
“Wireless Field Area Network”http://www.electricenergyonline.com/energy/maga-zine/774/article/Wireless-Field-Area-Networks.htm
“U.S. Electricity Industry Primer”https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2015/12/f28/united-states-electricity-industry-primer.pdf
“Energy Delivery Systems, Cybersecurity Roadmap”https://www.nerc.com/news/Headlines%20DL/Energy%20Delivery%20Systems%20Cybersecurity%20 Roadmap_finalweb.pdf#searchField%20Area%20 Networks
LTE Cellular Networksfor the Smart Grid
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It is not news that our electric infrastructure is aging and being pushed to do more than it was originally designed to do. Modernizing the grid to make it “smarter,” more resilient and more reliable through the use of cutting-edge technologies, equipment, and controls that communicateand work together seems like a simple approach.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) envisions a modern electric power grid with: • Greater resilience to hazards of all types• Improved reliability for everyday operations• Enhanced security from an increasing and evolving number of threats
• A�ordability to maintain our economic prosperity• Superior flexibility to respond to variability and uncertainty
• Increased sustainability through additional clean energy and energy-e�cient resources
The challenge is greater than it appears. Delivering electricity more reliably and e�ciently over the years has required the integration of non-harmonized communications technologies ranging from licensed and unlicensed RF to proprietary wireless protocols creates a complex network to upgrade and maintain. Transitioning from the older field area networks (FAN) is an involved task, and having the right plan in place and right technology before deployment can make all the di�erence.
Cellular LTE allows utilities to modernize their Field Area Network (FAN) with a single, standards-based broadband network. Cellular networks provide utilities one option to communicate with devices in the field, and can provide a homogenous network for data transport.
LTE can improve crit ical network capabil it ies andprovide well-characterized performance attributes
such as low latency, high reliability, and consistent performance in the presence of well-known interferencesources. Plus LTE o�ers high security, high capacity, high throughput, high mobility and interoperability between wireless devices. LTE networks are jumping ahead of the current market confusion about wireless connectivity and are re-defining how value is created from devices and data.
With the continuing growth of the Smart Grid Initiative, many electrical utilities are now looking for new approaches to connect remotely-located substations, renewable energy sources, and their distribution automation equipment onto a secure and common network. Although a fiber-optic communications network is the first choice for connecting substation facilities to a central control and monitoring location, the expense, right-of-way issues, and di�culty of con-structing the fiber infrastructure to distant and widely separated facilities can be prohibitive and impractical.
For many years, utilities have used a combination of fiber,2.4GHz, and 900MHz as a foundational architecture for communications. Faced with ever-increasing customer service expectations and rising system performance oversight, as well as growing interference issues a�ectingtheir existing radio and wireless services, many substationSCADA, distribution automation, and remote metering engineers are now viewing cellular routers as a viable alternative to the popular radio links deployed for use in the 900MHz (licensed and license-free service), 2.4, 3.6 GHz, and 5GHz frequency bands, as well as T-1/DS-1 and E-1 wired-telephony or microwave radio links. Furthermore, cellular routers are an attractive, cost- e�ective alternative to the cost of setting up and maintaining private ISM networks for SCADA applications.
A typical power grid can be comprised of hundreds of substations that need to be monitored and controlled. There are approximately 5 5 ,0 0 0 s u b s t a t i o n s i n t h e U.S. today and over 700K transformers according to DOE. Each one of these represents a potential gateway a n d / o r r o u t e r (terminal). Thanks to the rapid growth of computer and commu-nication technology, power substations are becoming more automated and increasingly deploy intelligent devices to monitor and control unmanned facilities.
In summary, ce l lu lar communicat ion routers and modem devices are helping to make the Smart Grid more inte l l igent , more secure, and increas ing i ts coverage area. In addition, upcoming new technologies such as private LTE broadband and LPWA technologies such as LoRa® o�er additional flexibility and provide improved cost e�ciencies. Controlling, securing, and reporting on Distribution Automation has never been more important, nor have there been as many options as there are today. MultiTech has been supplying communication devices for over 48 years by continuing to update their product portfolio with new technology and products. To learn more about how MultiTech i s se rv ing the Energy market , v i s i t us today at multitech.com or multitech.com/energyprogram.
Sources:
“Wireless Field Area Network,” EE Online
“U.S. Electricity Industry Primer,” Energy.gov
“Energy Delivery Systems, Cybersecurity Roadmap,” North American Electric Reliability Corporation
Trademarks and Registered Trademarks: MultiTech and the MultiTech logo: Multi-Tech Systems, Inc. All other products and technologies are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Features and specifications are subject to change without notice.
2018-07 • 86003003 • © 2018 Multi-Tech Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.
Power substations play a critical role in transporting electricity from power plants to homes, businesses and factories.
