This chapter shows a methodology to accomplish the real‐time reconfiguration of distribution networks considering distributed generation in normal operating conditions. The availability of the wind power generation, solar photovoltaic power generation, and hydroelectric power generation is considered in the reconfiguration procedure. The real‐time reconfiguration methodology is based on the branch‐exchange technique and assumes that only remote‐controlled switches are considered in the analysis. The multicriteria analysis, analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method, is used to determine the best switching sequence. The developed algorithms are integrated into a supervisory system, which allows real‐time communication with the network equipment. The methodology is verified in a real network of a power utility in Brazil with different typical daily demand curves and distributed generation scenarios.
Part of the book: Real-time Systems
This chapter aims to provide an overview of the plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) charging and discharging strategies in the electric power system and the smart cities, as well as an application benefiting both consumers and power utility. The electric vehicle technology will be introduced. Then, the main impacts, benefits and challenges related to this technology will be discussed. Following, the role of the vehicles in smart cities will be presented. Next, the major methods and strategies for charging and discharging of plug-in electric vehicles available in the literature will be described. Finally, a new strategy for the intelligent charging and discharging of electric vehicles will be presented, which aims to benefit the consumer and the power utility.
Part of the book: Smart Cities Technologies
This chapter provides an overview of the reliability of electricity distribution networks, and its evaluation that is linked with the protection system. In this way, the characteristics of network protection are presented, along with the peculiarities in coordination and device selectivity adjustments. For the assessment of the reliability, we have the methodology of logic-structural matrix (LSM) that integrates the constitution of the network with historical data of faults, so that with this, a model can be elaborated that can evaluate the impact of changes in the system directly on the reliability indicators.
Part of the book: System Reliability
Whenever there are extreme weather events, electric power distribution systems are generally affected largely because they are highly subject by their constructive nature: overhead networks. In this context, the management of maintenance actions is generally referred to as emergency service order, usually associated with a lack of supply and requiring human intervention. The key issue for the resource planning refers to an estimation of service time that allows for more assertive planning possible. This chapter proposes a predictive modelling of emergency services for resource planning when considering the geographic dispersion of such services and also the time windows that comprise the amount of service time demanded. After presenting the methodological procedures, a case study depicts the application of the proposed method in order to support proactive service routing.
Part of the book: System Reliability
This chapter aims to present the design and development of a decision support system (DSS) for the analysis, simulation, planning, and operation of maintenance and customer services in electric power distribution system (EPDS). The main objective of the DSS is to improve the decision‐making processes through visualization tools and simulation of real cases in the EPDS, in order to allow better planning in the short, medium, and long term. Therefore, the DSS helps managers and decision‐makers to reduce maintenance and operational costs, to improve system reliability, and to analyze new scenarios and conditions for system expansion planning. First, we introduce the key challenges faced by the decision‐makers in the planning and operation of maintenance and customer services in EPDS. Next, we discuss the benefits and the requirements for the DSS design and development, including use cases modeling and the software architecture. Afterwards, we present the capabilities of the DSS and discuss important decisions made during the implementation phases. We conclude the chapter with a discussion about the obtained results, pointing out the possible enhancements of the DSS, future extensions, and new use cases that may be addressed.
Part of the book: System Reliability
This chapter aims to present the fundamentals of the design of wireless communication links for networked robotics applications. First, we provide an overview of networked robotics applications, motivating the importance of the wireless communication link as an enabler of these applications. Next, we review the wireless communication technologies available today, discussing the existent tradeoffs between range, power, and data rate, and introducing the main concepts regarding the design of wireless communication links. Finally, we present a design example of a wireless communication link and the results obtained. We conclude the chapter with a discussion of the results and the challenges faced in the design of wireless communication links for networked robotics.
Part of the book: Service Robots