PSP 2006 Power System Protection Conference, Bled, Slovenia 6th 8th September 2006

Applying IEC 61850 to Substation Automation

Systems
Peter Rietmann, Petra Reinhardt
ABB Switzerland
Bruggerstrasse 72, CH-5400 Baden Switzerland
[email protected], [email protected]

Abstract Since more than a year, IEC 61850-based

solutions are being supplied to the market. It is now time
to collect and review first experiences as well as to derive
improvements for the entire process chain on the
customers and manufacturers sides.
The paper highlights the features and impacts of the
standard IEC 61850 Communication Networks and
Systems in Substations on possible solutions for
protection and substation automation as well as on
project execution. The authors explain why utilities
today should require that such systems are compliant to
the standard.
Based on experiences in the implementation of
IEC 61850, the authors are presenting a short but
practical overview of how to implement the standard.
The paper indicates the challenges faced by customers as
well as suppliers in applying IEC 61850 and suggests
suitable approaches to take optimal advantage of the
standard.
Index TermsProtection, Specification, Standard
IEC 61850, Substation Automation.

I. INTRODUCTION
IEC 61850 defines strict rules for realizing
interoperability between functions as well as devices
used for protection, monitoring, control and
automation in substations, independent of the vendor.
Interoperability means the capability of two or more
intelligent electronic devices (IEDs) from one or
several vendors to exchange information and to use it
in performing their functions and for correct cooperation. This feature together with the possibility of
free allocation of functions paves the way for a vast
range of possible solutions for Protection and
Substation Automation (SA) systems.
Being a comprehensive standard, IEC 61850 also
covers design aspects, protocol requirements, testing
guidelines, etc. In order to exploit its full benefits in
any specific case, its application requires careful
consideration of both customer requirements and
available equipment.
Even if initiated only by few suppliers and users,
there is an increasing number of commitments by

suppliers to use and offer IEC 61850 in products and

systems. Today, a lot of manufacturers are offering
IEC 61850-compliant products, yet few also offer
complete systems on the market.
Implementation of completely compliant systems
may in a first approach involve more than the standard
appears to suggest. Since many items defined in it still
leave room in the actual implementation of
applications, in products and tools, a system integrator
not only requires expertise and a compliant portfolio,
but should also avail of facilities to conduct extensive
system tests. Such tests serve to prove full system
performance and compliance to IEC 61850 including
that of all products used therein.
To ensure continual improvement and optimal
customer support also after system implementation,
such a verification system shall be constantly
maintained at the manufacturers place. Besides
attesting manufacturer-independent test institutes,
UCA International Users Group also certifies
manufacturers testing institutes. Such verification
facilities provide customers with a guarantee for stateof-the-art system know-how and implementation.
The paper highlights why utilities should require
that protection and substation automation systems
should be compliant to the standard. A very important
aspect is how to specify IEC 61850-compliant systems
for new installations as well as for extensions and
refurbishment projects. The impacts of IEC 61850 on
the entire project execution are analyzed and
recommendations
given
for
engineering,
documentation issues, factory and site acceptance
testing.
II. BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE STANDARD IEC 61850
The general scope of the standard is designed to
support the communication for all functions being
performed in the substation [1]. In addition to its main
goal, the interoperability between devices and tools as
described above, IEC 61850 supports free functional
allocation and any system philosophy. These can
range from a distributed architecture (e.g.
decentralized substation automation) to a centralized
configuration (e.g. RTU-based). The standard

PSP 2006 Power System Protection Conference, Bled, Slovenia 6th 8th September 2006
separates the functionality, data model and
communication services from the communication
implementation. This makes it future-oriented,
considering that developments in the communication
technology are generally faster than those of
functionality in the field of protection and substation
automation.
III. ADVANTAGES FOR USERS
A. Investment into the future
The system engineering done and documented
with the help of the substation configuration
description language (SCL) provided in the part 6 of
the standard (IEC 61850-6) can be re-used later for
system extensions or replacement of system
components and even the complete system once it has
reached the end of its lifetime [2]. Re-use of the SCLfiles is also possible if the communication technology
used becomes obsolete and a mapping of the data
model and services to a new communication
technology is defined in a part of IEC 61850 to be
added in the future.
As IEC 61850 covers all communication needs
within a substation, it also defines the communication
to and from the process level, especially the
transporting of samples (process bus). At the time
being, most products available on the market cover the
station bus only (all communication functions
without the transfer of samples), but products
supporting the process bus will be available soon.
Therefore, choosing IEC 61850 as communication
standard means for the user to also keep the options
open for further optimization possibilities like usage
of unconventional CTs and VTs.
B. Higher flexibility
The possibility of free allocation of functions as
provided by IEC 61850, leaves the system architecture
open for optimization to suit customers needs.
Considerations in terms of architecture are driven by
the users availability and performance requirements
as well as by the functional capabilities of products
used in a system solution. The IEC 61850 standard
does not impose any restrictions on the architecture at
all.
Further flexibility for the user is achieved by the
defined interoperability, being the main goal of
IEC 61850. Whereas interoperability also forms the
basis for interchangeability, the latter is outside the
scope of the standard. Therefore, a device A can be
replaced by a device B from the same or another
manufacturer only as long as device B provides the
same non-standardized functionality and also supports
the same standardized data and services according to
IEC 61850 as device A.

C. Higher integration
In comparison to previous standard protocols such
as IEC 60870-5-103, the IEC 61850 standard defines
much more data than only basic protection
information. Thus it allows to completely integrate
any IEC 61850-compliant 3rd party device into a SA
system, whereby no difference between the various
devices will be visible to the user at station level. By
comprising not only the communication between the
station and bay level, but also between the bay and
process level, the standard is prepared to allow the
next step of integration by introducing serially
connected sensors and actuators. This leads to the
further reduction in costs of cabling and an increase in
the level of integration.
D. Common understanding
The function-related modeling of all data in a
substation automation system is described in Part 7 of
IEC 61850. This is complemented by a hierarchical
plant designation scheme as in IEC 61346. Since the
standard is globally accepted, it prevents differences
between the ANSI and IEC worlds. By introducing
this kind of global language or semantics for all data
to be exchanged in substations, IEC 61850 helps users
in improving the understanding of designs and
reducing differences in interpretations between the
parties involved in projects.
IV. IMPACTS ON SPECIFICATIONS
The standard has an impact on all activities related
to the field of protection and substation automation.
How users in utilities and industry can specify
protection and substation automation systems and how
manufacturers can implement the standard in practice
are main issues to be considered.
As described in [3], specifications for such
systems should preferably be based on functionality
rather than on specific devices.
The first specification step refers to the
functionality, that is based on the single line diagram
as well as control and protection functions needed (see
Figure 1). All requested functionality is specified
without reference to any possible implementation.
This is the condition to be respected in order to allow
the system integrator to elaborate an optimal solution,
also taking into consideration other aspects such as the
performance and constraints of the system, which are
described below in more detail.

PSP 2006 Power System Protection Conference, Bled, Slovenia 6th 8th September 2006
specification based on SCL, can directly be taken into
the design and engineering tools of the system
designer and integrator.

Bay Controller
B0SIMG

Q8_CILO

Q8_CSWI

Q8_XSWI

Q9_CILO

Q9_CSWI

Q9_XSWI

Q8

Q51_CILO

Q51_CSWI Q51_XSWI

Q9

Q0_CILO

Q0_CSWI

Q51

Q52_CILO

Q52_CSWI Q52_XSWI

Q0

Q1_CILO

Q1_CSWI

Q52

B1SIMG
Relay X
PTRC

1PDIS
2PDIS

T1A_TCTR
T1B
T1C TCTR
TCTR

RSYN

T1A_TVTR
T1B
T1C TCTR
TCTR

Q0_XCBR

Relay Y

I>PTOC

PTRC

I>>PTOC

T1A_TCTR
T1B
T1C TCTR
TCTR

Q0_XCBR

MMXU

Q0_XCBR

Q1_XSWI

T1A_TVTR
T1A_TCTR
T1B
T1C TCTR
TCTR T1B
T1C TCTR
TCTR

T1
Q1

Figure 1 - Modeling example of one feeder

Specifying systems in accordance with the
standard IEC 61850 means that the whole
functionality is split into Logical Nodes (Figure 1)
with their corresponding data, i.e. with the established
common naming of the function-related signal names.
If the specification does not already provide this, the
system integrator has to do it. All persons involved in
the project execution, i.e. in design, engineering,
testing, FAT, commissioning, SAT, operation, etc.,
will once have to learn this common but simple
language. From now on, it is advantageous for any
user to achieve as much and as fast as possible
compliance with the standard.
IEC 61850 indicates mandatory and optional data
(see Figure 2). It is recommendable to check the old
signal lists and to evaluate which signals are really
needed, what purpose they have and which functions
they belong to. This is especially important since they
may be optional or extended data according to
IEC 61850.

Since IEC 61850 does not define the quality of

functions, each device manufacturer is free to
determine the functions provided in a device, the
algorithms and performance used as well as the setting
information required by the appertaining tool. Users
therefore still need to stipulate the quality of functions
and their allocation to devices in the specification. In
this particular respect, there is thus no change as
compared to previous specifications for substation
automation.
The standard defines certain response times for
various data exchange scenarios, but not the complete
system
performance.
Users
are
therefore
recommended to outline the system performance in
the specification by defining the minimum response
times for transmission of commands and receipt of
process data. Especially for bigger systems,
acceptable transmission times during a defined
avalanche condition should be included as well.
The design of a suitable system architecture is
strongly influenced by the users availability
requirements. These should be specified either directly
in figures or, perhaps more conveniently, by defining
failure scenarios with accepted and non-accepted
losses.
With the basic features of the specification
mentioned so far, the system designer has a lot of
freedom in respect of function allocation and
communication. Several constraints may restrict this
choice, however, with the main factors influencing the
system design being:
- Geographical arrangement of the SA equipment, e.g.
decentralized kiosks, centralised rooms for the
whole secondary equipment; requirements for
decentralised busbar protection scheme, in the
station
- Existing or homologated devices to be used
- Inclusion of 3rd party equipment such as for Main 1
or Main 2 being of different manufacture

Common Data Class

Data Name

Description

Mandatory/Optional

Figure 2 - Data of the Logical Node for a circuit

breaker
An important advantage of employing the standard
configuration description language (SCL) is that the
integrity of data is warranted through single data
entries. The information contained, e.g. in a

- Requirements defined by operation and maintenance

philosophies or dedicated practices. Examples are
the levels of functional integration allowed or
disallowed: Main 1 and 2 placed in same or separate
cubicles, auto-recloser integrated in the control
terminal being acceptable or not, ditto for
integration of control and bay protection functions
in one single device per bay
- Indications as to the use of serial communication
being intended or imposed for all possible levels:

PSP 2006 Power System Protection Conference, Bled, Slovenia 6th 8th September 2006
process bus, between bays for signal exchange (e.g.
for station interlocking), for signal exchange
between devices inside a bay (e.g. between distance
protection and recloser), for distributed functions
such as synchrocheck or breaker failure protection.
For refurbishment projects, further important
requirements need to be specified and considered like:
- Strategy for the refurbishment: in one step meaning
interruption of service or step-by-step supporting
migration with almost no service interruption
- Maximum acceptable interruption time for migration
to the new system
- Adaptation resp. interfacing to parts of existing
equipment, which are retained.
All these factors strongly influence the choice of
the optimal solution. Figure 3 shows a typical solution
for a transmission substation with completely
independent station level devices for HMI resp.
telecontrol and separate networks for the high and
medium voltage IEDs.

Hardcopy
Printer

Event
Printer

Additional
W orkstation

GPS

Station
Computer
/ HMI

Station
Alarm
Device

Telecommunication

Remote
Access

Gateway

SNTP

breaker failure protection, station-wide interlocking

and load shedding have to be designed very carefully
in order to ensure seamless interoperability.
As already stated in CIGRE Colloquia and
Symposia such as the Plenary Session in 2004, it is
advantageous to place the functions as close as
possible to the primary process. Considering all these
requirements, only a system integrator with
comprehensive experience will be able to elaborate
such an optimized solution and to exploit all the
benefits of IEC 61850 for the user.
B. Engineering
The informal specification information needs
translating into a formal description using SCL by
either the user/author or the system integrator. This
formal description warrants high quality of work as
well as integrity and consistency throughout the
implementation process, i.e. from general system
design to final commissioning, and facilitates
corresponding checks in each step of the project
execution.
Finally, the complete substation automation
system is formally documented using SCL in line with
IEC 61850. This ensures that all engineering work is
memorized and allows reuse for adaptations,
extensions and also refurbishment at any time.

Dedicated Station Level Ethernet (TCP/IP)

IEC61850-8-1

IEC61850-8-1

C ontrol and protection IEDs

High Voltage Level

LAN 1

LAN 2

Control and protection IEDs

Medium Voltage Level

Figure 3 Typical SA system configuration for a

transmission substation
V. IMPACTS ON SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION AND
PROJECT EXECUTION

Following the examination of the impacts of

IEC 61850 on the specification, we analyze those on
the project execution chain from design and
engineering to commissioning and taking the system
into operation.
A. General system design
Based on the specification, a solution concept
needs to be elaborated. As mentioned above, the
standard IEC 61850 allows free functional allocation.
Owing to the split into functional nodes, the system
designer is free to distribute the functions respecting
any constraints as imposed by the specification.
Especially distributed functions like busbar protection,

C. Compliance to IEC 61850

The use of components, which are proven to be
compliant with IEC 61850, is a prerequisite for proper
project execution. The framework for such
compliance testing is provided by part 10 of the
standard and is being detailed by user organizations
and test bodies. Each component has to be
accompanied by a test certificate. The main
compliance features are the data model in accordance
with the implemented functions as well as the proper
running of all needed and specified services. In
addition, each compliant IED has to be supplied with
a formal data sheet, the so-called ICD file being the
SCL description of the device capabilities.
Practical experiences have shown that compliance
tests according to IEC 61850-10 do not suffice from a
system integrators point of view. The test cases
described therein focus merely on a box approach and
do not consider system-relevant items like stationwide functions or system performance.
Thus in addition to device certification, detailed
type testing of the IED within a complete system
environment is strongly recommended and shall be
performed by the supplier/system integrator.

PSP 2006 Power System Protection Conference, Bled, Slovenia 6th 8th September 2006
D. Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT)
The FAT serves to prove that the complete system
meets the properties specified in the supply contract
prior to delivery. Missing parts such as switchgear,
NCC, etc. need to be simulated. Therefore, IEC 61850
is tested implicitly on system level.
The FAT can be divided into two essential parts,
i.e. testing of bay solutions (cubicles), and testing of
the complete system based on typical or all bays
connected to the station level. IEC 61850 simplifies
the FAT since data consistency has already been
verified by formal checks in the design phase and by
testing against the SCL-based system configuration
description file (SCD).
E. Site Acceptance Testing (SAT)
The SAT serves to prove that the complete system
fulfils the properties specified in the supply contract
prior to being put into service. Since usually all parts
are available on site, no simulation is needed. The
SAT may be split into two important steps, i.e. testing
of the correct connection to the primary gear and
correct data transfer to remote locations such as
NCCs.
IEC 61850 simplifies the SAT since by assuring a
correct connection of all external interfaces, the data
consistency and the logical behavior of the functions
cannot deviate from the known FAT state. Only the
overall performance of some functions may be
impacted by the connection to the external equipment.
Again, the SCD-file can support the test procedure.
F. Operation
The operation via station HMI deals with the
visual part as well as the operational rules and these
have to perform as specified and like in systems with
proprietary
communication
protocols.
The
standardized object-oriented data model and services
simplify the design of the station HMI and support the
equal appearance of all devices for the operator.
Domain-specific features of IEC 61850 like the direct
support of the select-before-operate mode improve
inherent security. The use of the substation section in
the SCD-file facilitates the design of any kind of
sequences and station-wide automatics. The clientserver relation between the station HMI and the
operated and supervised devices allows adding
multiple workplaces to the system wherever needed.
G. Maintenance
The object-oriented data model with its
standardized services provides very easy access to all
data in the system and prevents misunderstandings
about their semantic meaning. The SCD-files provide
a much clearer guideline for searching and fixing

failures in the system than any printed description.

They may be reused at any time for the engineering of
adaptations, extensions and also future refurbishment
as long as not only the IEDs but also the tools remain
compliant with IEC 61850.
VI. USER CONSIDERATIONS FOR THE
INTRODUCTION OF IEC 61850
As mentioned in [4], a reduction in project cycle
times can be achieved through the simplification of
processes on the users and manufacturers side.
Pre-defined solution concepts with a choice of
functionality and hardware architectures designed for
various availability requirements are offered by some
manufacturers to support users with the efficient
introduction of IEC 61850-based systems in their
organizations.
Several additional benefits may be derived from
the use of such type-tested, modular and scalable
solutions like:
- obtaining optimal designs fulfilling all requirements
in terms of functionality in less time
- efficiency improvements
commissioning

from

tendering

to

- highest degree of device integration and use of

device capabilities
- optimal performance
- better support
- high functionality, value and quality
- interfaces solved (internally as well as to other
systems)
- increased reliability and dependability.
Suppliers with scalable and modular solutions offer
the additional advantage of using pre-tested functional
packages that can be put together to build the optimal
solution fulfilling the customers requirements. As
there are always some special requirements from
customers sides, this kind of solutions shall allow
adding those requirements to the predefined packages.
The customer does not need to think about the
equipment inside the solution packages but can select
the appropriate functions for each particular solution.
VII. CONCLUSION
The standard IEC 61850 provides not only a
powerful methodology to reach interoperability, but
also supports its practical application for Substation
Automation Systems. The examples analyzed and the
recommendations proposed can be used as guidance.
The specification has to follow certain rules in
order to allow the system designer to fully exploit the

PSP 2006 Power System Protection Conference, Bled, Slovenia 6th 8th September 2006
benefits of IEC 61850 for the user. The use of
manufacturers pre-defined solutions based on
IEC 61850 could help to improve both the
implementation time and quality as well as satisfy all
functional requirements of the customer.
Highly qualified system integrators have their own
system verification facilities and are capable of
performing extensive and systematic integration tests
for any device used and the complete system.
Experiences have shown that this is currently a must
as the standard still leaves room for interpretation.
Preferably, the system integrators verification
facilities are also certified by UCA International Users
Group to minimize the risks on customers side.
VIII. REFERENCES
Papers presented and published:
[1] K.P.Brand, C.Brunner, W.Wimmer,
Design of IEC 61850 based Substation Automation
Systems according to Customer Requirements,
CIGRE Plenary Meeting, Paris, 2004, Session of
SC B5, Paper B5-103
[2] M. Hyvrinen, P. Laakso
Comparison of the Life Cycle Costs of Conventional
and Numerical Secondary Systems,
CIGRE Plenary Meeting, Paris, 2002, Session of
SC 34, Paper 34-104
[3] K.P.Brand, M.Janssen,
The Specification of IEC 61850 based Substation

Automation Systems,
Paper presented at DistribuTech 2005, January 25-27,
San Diego
[4] P.Rietmann, B. Reimann,
Handling of users' requirements in Substation
Automation (SA)
Paper presented at CIGRE Study Committee B5
Colloquium 2003, September 30 to October 1,03,
Sydney
IX. BIOGRAPHIES

Peter Rietmann was born in 1969 in

Switzerland. He received the B. Sc. diploma in
electrical engineering from the Zurich University
of Applied Sciences in 1992. In the same year he
joined ABB where he worked in different
positions in the area of substation automation
and protection. Currently he is working as
Product Manager for Substation Automation
with ABB Switzerland Ltd., Power Systems,
Baden/Switzerland.
Petra Reinhardt is working as Marketing
Communication Manager with ABB Switzerland
Ltd., Power Systems, Baden/Switzerland after
having gained several years experience in
substation automation and protection in
Switzerland and South Africa where she has
been working as sales engineer and key account
manager.