Autonomous Self Aware

Acquisition (SCADA), voltage regulation equipment, power

quality monitors and protection stations and equipment.

Living Grid The control systems such as relays, programmable logic

controllers (PLC), advanced metering equipment and
Michael Swearingen, IEEE, Senior Member synchrophasors act as the intelligence of the operating
Lubbock, Texas USA equipment. These systems can provide coordinated operations
[email protected] individually or can be controlled by SCADA. SCADA acts as a
central operating center that allows system operators to control
all the intelligent devices within the utilities grid.
Abstract - For over two decades the development of the Smart Grid
has evolved through new technologies and their applications to Relays, PLC’s, advanced metering equipment and
create an intelligent power grid. In that time the term “Smart synchrophasors require programming to define the criteria under
Grid” has come under scrutiny in determining the components
which they will operate. This programming is done so that all
within a power grid needed in order for it to be classified as a Smart
Grid.
these intelligent devices will operate in a coordinated manner that
fits the operation of the system in which they are installed.
This paper provides the complete framework for an intelligent Engineers and technicians design logic diagrams that define how
power grid that can evaluate its condition, determine its needs and the intelligent devices will operate the equipment they control
operate itself autonomously with limited to no intervention by and the way they will coordinate with each other to achieve the
utilities except to build new lines as needed or serve as an emergency
desired operation of the grid. As the requirements of the grid
operator when all other redundancies have failed. As a result, the
changes the intelligent equipment’s logic will be modified by
Autonomous Self Aware Living Grid (ASALG) provides a more
resilient and reliable national generation and transmission grid and engineers and technicians to meet the new requirements of the
fulfills the goals of a smart grid. grid.

Keywords – Autonomous, Operational Envelops, Decision Trees, II. GENERATION AND TRANSMISSION IN THE
Transmission System, Transmission Interchange, Generation, Logic, AUTONOMOUS SELF AWARE LIVING GRID
Distribution Systems, Sets, Engineering Analysis, Relays, PLC,
Control Systems, Cybersecurity With the advent of intelligent devices for the electric grid the grid
can be seen as a giant neural network that can acquire
I. INTRODUCTION information and evaluate the information in an intelligent manner
based on operational envelopes, based on the NERC Reliability
The operation of generation and transmission in the current grid
Standards [1] and IEEE Standards, that allow the electric grid to
is defined by operation contingencies such as capacity of
adjust its configuration to avoid comprised reliability or potential
transmission lines, the ability of generation units to meet the
outages.
current load requirements and market requirements. Factors such
as load curves, generation capacity, transmission capacity and To accomplish this transmission interchanges can be used as
economic factors all contribute to the flow of power through intelligent nodes that conduct the evaluation of generation and
today’s grid. To accomplish the balance needed to fulfill the transmission facilities interconnected to the interchange. These
power requirements of the nation’s power grid system operators transmission interchanges throughout the national grid will
must consider not only capacity but frequency stability, voltage communicate with each other acting as automated Balancing
stability, synchronization of generators, maintenance schedules, Authorities (BA) to determine the generation needed and the
contract requirements and regulatory requirements. manner in which the power will flow to meet the load and
reliability needs of the national grid. The state and condition of
The operation factors mentioned are controlled by Balancing
every segment is contained in Critical System Information Sets
Authorities (BA) and their operations centers. In some cases, the
(CSIS) that is evaluated by the Computer Intelligence and
Regional Transmission Organizations (RTO) and Independent
Analysis System (CIAS).
System Operators (ISO) operate under what is known as a
Consolidated Balance Authority (CBA) where the RTO’s and The CSIS contains the state and condition of each segment
ISO’s directly control the operation of all generation and including protective equipment relays, voltage measurements,
transmission operations in cooperation with the utilities that own load current, Var measurements, capacitor control information,
the equipment. Under this operation structure the RTO’s and voltage regulation equipment, control systems, conductor
ISO’s assume the regulatory responsibilities. Other RTO’s and capacities, power quality measurements and connectivity of the
ISO’s have multiple BA’s with defined territories agreed upon by transmission line being evaluated. The CSIS for generation
the utilities operating as the BA. facilities contain the state and condition of the generation units
within the generation facilities to include unit availability,
To accomplish this momentous task within the national grid
generation capacity, maintenance schedules, fuel availability,
several technologies are used such as generation facilities,
estimated unit commitment and current economics of generation
transmission interchanges, AC/DC tie stations, distribution
operation. The
substations, control systems, Supervisory Control and Data
The information of the CSIS is contained in a data platform to be end to end operation test of the control systems, as shown in
used by the CIAS software that includes economic analysis, figure 3, of the interchanges that are a part of the partial system
reliability analysis and engineering analysis. This real time isolation. The results of end to end operation tests will be sent to
analysis combined with predictive analysis and game theory the appropriate op-center and system operators. The timing
principles determines the best system configuration needed and information from the synchronized clocks within the facilities
through automated SCADA operation issues the necessary isolated will be transmitted in a log and coordinated in real time
commands to meet the optimal system configuration. with the op-centers and system operators.

The process of system evaluation occurs on a continual basis to

maintain system reliability. The determination of what is
acceptable operations is determined by defined Operational
Envelopes (OE) based on past performance and taking into
consideration the best operational practices defined in standards
and criteria used within the industry.

A part of the evaluation includes predictive analysis based on

capacity, system configuration and reliability analysis that
determines the need for additional future transmission facilities,
generation facilities and location of construction within the
system, which is determined by evaluation of the Graphical
Information System (GIS). This information along with the time
frames for each facility to be constructed is communicated to the
appropriate RTO for evaluation and construction. Figure 1 Cut Out Section of Transmission Grid and Generation

III. DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM ROLE

The ASALG operates distribution systems like micro-grids

which it will isolate from SCADA control whenever it deems
that the distribution system will have an adverse effect on the
ASALG system’s resiliency and reliability. Should an isolation
from SCADA control be necessary the distribution systems will
still be provided with the necessary generation needed to operate
but the distribution systems substations and associated control
systems will be isolated from ASALG and under the control of
the responsible distribution utility.

IV. ANALOG BACKBONE CONTIGENCY

The operation of the ASALG will not eliminate the op-centers,

system operators and the SCADA of the utilities currently
operating their system. The op-centers will simply be regulated
to a monitoring system of the ASALG until the ASALG Figure 2 Isolated Section of Associated Facilities for Interchange 2 After ASALG
Determined Isolation Needed
determines that the grid needs to be reconfigured due to potential
system breakdown due to cyber-attacks, cyber-intrusions,
physical attacks or some other system irregularity. Should the
ASALG determine that a reconfiguration and partial system
isolation be needed it will send a notification to the local op-
center responsible for the isolated section of the grid that a
change of command and control needs to occur and send
calculations to appropriate system operators concerning the
system balancing, regulation and generation needs based on
current NERC Reliability Standards.

Should the ASALG determine a reconfiguration and partial

system isolation, as shown in figure 2, is needed all automated
adjustments to the control systems will be stopped and the
Figure 3 Protection Zone Tests in End to End Test by ASALG After Isolation
current configuration will be sent to the appropriate op-center
and system operators. In addition, the ASALG will conduct an
When the ASALG isolates a partial part of the system it will send according to the Analog Backbone of the ASALG and with the
the information on the condition and state, through the CSIS, that help of the RTO or ISO responsible for the footprint in which
required the partial system isolation and any information and each facility resides and until it can be determined that the
analysis that the Active Scan Analysis Threat Evaluation and compromise has been corrected by the responsible utilities, ISO
Attack System (ASATEAS) found including all possible or RTO.
solutions to eliminate the threat. The ASALG will return the
isolated locations within the grid, using the GIS for physical C. Command and Control Units (CCU)
location and the SCADA one-line for electrical system location, The CCU consists of relays, PLC’s, synchrophasors, GIS,
where the operational issues have occurred. The responsible op- SCADA and satellite synchronized clocks. The ASALG
center will proceed with the necessary corrections to the isolated SCADA system acts according to the output of CIAS and
system as determined from the best solutions sent by the provides the necessary commands to the control systems and
ASATEAS and physical and electrical examination conducted by their equipment. In the case where system reconfiguration is
the utility. The information of the progress of all corrections will needed the ASALG SCADA system is capable of
be communicated in real time to the Command Center of the reprogramming the necessary control systems with the logic
ASALG to allow the proper integration and coordination of the provided by the CIAS. To determine the new logic will work
restored system to the ASALG. according to the desired goal the CIAS will perform a simulated
V. COMPONENTS OF THE AUTONOMOUS SELF AWARE end to end analysis of the new configuration before it is sent to
LIVING GRID the ASALG SCADA system. In cases where a partial system
isolation is conducted by the ASALG any logic changes will be
A. Control Systems in an Autonomous Self Aware Grid halted and the current state of the CCU logic diagrams,
programming and end to end test results, as shown in figure 3,
As described the control systems of the transmission will be sent to the appropriate op-center and system operators.
interchanges serve as the system intelligence center of the neural
network of the Autonomous Self Aware Living Grid. The The satellite synchronized clocks ensure that CIS, CCU and
process of analysis and command control of the grid is CIAS operate in sync with each other. The CIAS constantly
accomplished with the Communication Interface System (CIS), evaluates the satellite synchronized clocks to determine that they
the Command and Control Unit (CCU) and the Computer remain within sync with each other and within a tight and well
Intelligence and Analysis System (CIAS). defined margin of error. Should the satellite synchronized clocks
within a facility fall outside the margin of error the system will
B. Communication Interface System (CIS) be reconfigured so that the facility where the timing error occurs
The CIS is controlled by a joint unit developed by FERC, DOE, operates independently, according to the Analog Backbone of the
DOD and the U.S. Cyber Command to ensure centralized control ASALG, of the grid until the error is corrected.
of the national grid communication due to the grid being a D. Computer Intelligence and Analysis System (CIAS)
national security asset. The CIS sends and receives information
from other transmission interchanges, generation facilities and The CIAS uses game theory, decision trees, Ant Colony
equipment on the national grid in real time. This information is Optimization (ACO) [2], reliability analysis and predictive
processed by the CCU and CIAS and the information is acted analysis to determine the state and condition of the facilities and
upon by the grid through a collaborative effort with the CIS, equipment within the national grid.
CCU and CIAS of the other transmission interchanges within the
system where the information is maintained in a data platform. The CIAS uses OE’s that define the accepted normal operational
The communication systems of the utilities and RTO’s and ISO’s parameters of the grid based on current NERC Reliability
will operate as a standby system to be used in coordination with Standards [1] and IEEE Standards. The OE’s are used to define
the ASALG Command Center when the Analog Backbone of the the normal range and operation of conductor capacities, reactive
ASALG determines a change of command and control is needed. components, voltage levels, power flow, protection parameters,
equipment state, equipment temperature, conductor temperature,
This parallel processing of information ensures that the ambient temperature, power factor and power quality values.
transmission interchanges maintain the continuity of grid These operation ranges are defined by IEEE, IEC and accepted
operation and provides confirmation of analysis. Should one or industry practices. The OE’s form the foundation of how the
multiple transmission interchanges disagree in their analysis grid is evaluated by the CIAS.
operation will be determined by polling of the transmission
interchanges to determine the scale of the indifference in the
analysis and action will be taken based on the majority consensus
of the transmission interchanges. Should the polling determine a
majority non-consensus of the transmission interchanges then the
grid will determine there is a compromise due to cyber-attack,
physical attack or large scale malfunction of the grid at which
point the grid will reconfigure itself to operate the transmission
interchanges and associated generation facilities independently
 The CIAS uses the CSIS information in the data platform to
process decision trees as a part of the CIAS. Game theory and
predictive analysis is used to find potential solutions to the
condition and states of the grid.

Figure 4 Graphical representation of Operational Envelops

The CIAS uses the equipment on the grid to evaluate real time
condition and state of all components on the grid. Due to the
vast amount of information contained on the grid the CIAS uses Figure 7 Analysis Process
Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) [2] to find only those points
outside the OE’s parameters. Set members in the CSIS act as The CIAS provides the potential re-configuration of the grid by
producing solution sets Sn. These solution sets are calculated
pheromone trails for connectivity. This information is provided
against the ideal solution for the grid based on the optimal
to the data platforms used by the CIAS at the transmission
condition and state of the grid segments being evaluated. Since it
interchanges.
is the case that most operational solutions to weak points in the
grid usually require accepting acceptable but not ideal grid
conditions it is necessary to find the solution of all solutions that
is closest to the ideal solution. To accomplish this a recursive
relation is done of the calculation of potential solutions Sn against
the ideal solution I to determine the smallest deviation Ԑn which
represents the best solution Sbest. The best solution is what is
used in reconfiguring the grid.

Figure 5 Critical System Information Set

Figure 8 Solution Sets

Figure 6 Decision Trees

[S1][I]= Ԑ1

[S2][I]= Ԑ2

[Sn][I]= Ԑn
Figure 9 Calculation of Ԑn Best Solution
 VI. ACTIVE SCAN ANALYSIS THREAT EVALUATION to reconfigure the necessary equipment of the ASALG and any
AND ATTACK SYSTEM operational approach in order to harden the grid against future
cyber-attacks.
The ASATEAS is new form of cybersecurity developed to
protect the Autonomous Self Aware Living Grid. Within the VII. CONCLUSIONS
CIAS the ASATEAS module uses the system information from
the data platform to create an active cybersecurity framework The Autonomous Self Aware Living Grid is not the next logical
step for the advancement of the smart grid. It represents the next
The ASATEAS creates a virtual system that appears like the generation in how the nation’s smart grid will operate. The
Autonomous Self Aware Living Grid. However, the system technology available has reached the point where this next
actively seeks threats and create an environment of surface generation grid can become a reality.
exposure to promote a cyber-attack. Once the cyber- attack
happens it immediately evaluates every aspect of the attack and The realization of the Autonomous Self Aware Living Grid
returns the information to the system through a Threat requires a massive paradigm shift in the nation’s grid operation,
Assessment Matrix (TAM). federal regulations and economics and investment needed to
make this possible. The national grid is no longer a system to
provide service to homes and business but rather the grid has
grown into a national security asset that has a much value to the
nation’s defense as the military and the nation’s nuclear arsenal.
The ASALG in its resiliency and reliability will create a national
grid that fulfills its role as a national security asset.

At the turn of the century it took the vision of Nikola Tesla and
others to create the equipment needed to create an electric system
that could provide electric service on a national scale. The
Autonomous Self Aware Living Grid is the ultimate continuation
of the amazing vision first started by Tesla.

REFERENCES
[1] NERC, United States Mandatory Standards Subject to Enforcement, 2018.
[Online].
Figure 10 ASATEAS Diagram
http://www.nerc.com/pa/stand/Pages/ReliabilityStandardsUnitedStates.aspx?juris
diction=United%20States
Software written for the purpose of cyber-attack, cyber intrusions
and cyber control of grid infrastructure are complicated and [2] M. Dorigo, T. Stützle, Ant Colony Optimization, MIT Press, 2004.
sophisticated which creates problems in solving the software’s
intentions and purpose. However, the cyber software, whether
compiled or command line in its design, must be translated in to
machine logic or machine code to command the actual digital
components and registers within the system under attack. If we
look at the written code as a set of commands the set containing
the code at the level written would represent a set of commands
so large it would be hard to evaluate mathematically. Let’s
represent this set of commands as SCC (Set of all Current
Commands). However, mathematically there is a set of
commands that could be considered as a subset of SCC that
represents the machine code logic. This subset SMC (Set of all
Machine Code) that contains a more finite set of commands that,
while large in data, can be evaluated, as to its intentions, by the
SMC direct effect on the system logic, registers and components.

ASATEAS would return the SMC for evaluation by the TAM

which would then be simulated as to the direct effect on the VS N
and compared to other results stored within the ASATEAS for
similar results or in determining if the current cyber code is
unique.

Once the TAM evaluates the information the virtual grid

reconfigures itself and eliminates the point of attack. The
information reviewed with the other SMC allows the system to
learn from the different forms of attack and use the information