Communication network modeling for real-time HIL power system protection test bench

The aim of this paper is to present a communication network emulator based hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) real time test bench. The emulator is used together with Opal-RT simulator to build up the test bench for testing of power system protection applications. The emulator enables us to model and vary new network properties and communication services that can have effect on protection system applications. With the aid of power system protection testing based on IEC 61850, this paper demonstrates how this test bench can be set up. Case studies of how the network emulator can be used to model communication properties and how it has satisfactory performance comparable to practical network switches are presented and discussed. In addition, the flexibility and capabilities of the emulator switch on implementation of router functions for management and control to support IEC 61850 Ethernet network communication have been examined.