SUPERVISORY CONTROL AND CARRIER SYSTEMS

2020Handout 1- 1: Pilot Wire Circuits

0.0 Introduction
To control something is to exercise directing influence over something.
To supervise something is to be in charge of something.

Supervisory Control is the general term used for control of many individual
controllers and control loops, whether by human or by an automatic control system
although almost every operating system is a combination of both.
A more specific use of the term is for SCADA systems which refers to the network of
computer processes that provide control and monitoring of a remote mechanical or
electrical operation like management of a power distribution grid or control of a
mechanical process in a manufacturing plant.

A Carrier System in telecommunication refers to a multichannel telecommunication

system in which a number of individual channels (e.g. data, audio, video) are
multiplexed for transmission and the transmission occurs between nodes of a
network.

A data communication signal is any modulated electromagnetic wave, or a digital

pulse, over which data is transmitted from one location to another in a network.

By a Pilot is implied that between the ends of a transmission line there is an

interconnecting channel of some sort over which information can be conveyed.
A Pilot Channel is a means of interconnection between relaying points for the
purpose of protection.

0.1 Need for Carrier-Aided Protection

The main aim of the electrical power system is to maintain uninterrupted supply of
electricity to consumers.
However, electrical faults cause interruption to the supply.

When a fault takes place it is detected by protective relays and the fault current
is interrupted by the circuit breaker.
The maintenance personnel must then rush to the fault location, rectify the fault,
and restore the supply. This applies to permanent faults.

However, there is statistical evidence that about 80% of faults are not permanent
but are transient.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 1
 Fault Statistics
type of fault probability
Transient 80%
Semi-Permanent 10%
Permanent 10%

Transient faults are caused by breakdown of air surrounding the insulator.

These faults can disappear by themselves, if the supply is briefly interrupted and the
arc-path is allowed to de-ionise.
De-ionisation time depends on the system voltage.

Typical De-ionisation Times

system voltage typical de-ionisation time

66 kV 100 milli-seconds
132 kV 170 milli-seconds
220 kV 280 milli-seconds
400 kV 500 milli-seconds

Thus, whenever a fault takes place, we can tentatively assume that a transient fault
has interrupted the supply. We then wait for a short while before switching on the
circuit breaker. This is known as re-closure.

The re-closure can be carried out manually or automatically.

If the fault was indeed a transient one and the interruption was of duration greater
than the de-ionisation time, then the re-closure would be successful, meaning that
there would be no recurrence of the fault.
If the fault is a permanent one, re-closure will be unsuccessful, meaning that the
protective relay would immediately cause the circuit breaker to trip.

Thus, in case of a transient fault, re-closure helps in keeping the downtime to a

minimum and in increasing the availability of supply.

Re-closure has different implications for low/medium voltage (LV/MV) and high or
extra high voltage (HVIEHV) systems.

In low and medium voltage systems, a maximum of three consecutive re-

closures are allowed. If the fault persists even after the third re-closure, meaning
that even the third re-closure fails, then the circuit breaker is locked out and no
more re-closures are allowed.
The multiple re-closures in LV and MV systems help in burning out the object
responsible for the fault, say, a tree branch, and thus in clearing out the fault.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 2
Only one re-closure is allowed in HV/EHV systems because re-closure imposes
arduous duty on the circuit breakers and other elements of the power system as the
fault MVA is very large.
In HV/EHV systems, re-closure, if done sufficiently fast, helps in improving the
stability of the system. This is so because as soon as there is an interruption in the
system, the rotor angles of various generators start drifting apart and if they drift
apart beyond a critical angle, the system loses stability. If, however, the supply is
restored before this critical time elapses, the system can pull together and remain
stable.

Since HV/EHV lines are generally tie lines, there is presence of source at both the
ends.

Thus, in order for the transient fault arc to be quickly quenched, the line must be
instantaneously and simultaneously tripped from both ends, before a re-closure can
be attempted.

The three-stepped distance protection for the entire line length does not
meet the requirement of instantaneous and simultaneous tripping from
both ends. Only about 60%of the length in the middle of the line gets high speed
protection from both ends.

For about 20% of line length, near each end of the line, i.e. a total of 40% of line
length, the protection is instantaneous from the local end but is delayed from the
remote end.

Only 60% of line length in the middle gets high speed protection from both ends

Thus, in order to be able to implement automatic re-closure we need to augment

the distance protection so that instantaneous tripping from both ends for100% of
the line length becomes possible.

Carrier-based schemes help us in achieving this objective.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 3
0.2 Various Options for a Carrier

Protective relays process information contained in the voltage and current at the
local end. The relay, only indirectly infers about the conditions at the remote end
through these signals.
As the fault distance increases, there is always an ambiguity about the exact location
of a remote fault. It becomes impossible to distinguish between a fault just beyond
the remote bus and one just ahead of it.
However, there is no ambiguity about the same fault from the end nearest to the
fault because as the fault moves from just beyond the bus to just ahead of it, there
is an almost 1800 change in the phase of current at the nearest end.
Thus, the nearest end has the clear-cut information which is so difficult to extract
using power, frequency, current and voltage at the remote end.

If we could, somehow pass on this small amount of information from one end to the
other, it would enhance the quality of decision making at both the ends.
We, therefore, need some carrier to carry this information.

0.3 Attributes of an ideal Carrier Channel

1. Delay involved in the communication should be small compared to the time period
of the system frequency. At 50 Hz, the delay should be much less than 20
milliseconds.
2. Since only a small amount of information is to be passed, the carrier channel need
not have very high bandwidth for protection purposes.
3. Faults on the power system should not adversely affect the functioning of the
carrier channel.
4. Carrier channel should be under full control of the utility company.
5. The carrier equipment, such as carrier transmitter and receiver, should be
protected from the high potential of the EHV line.
6. The carrier channel should be economical.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 4
0.4 Available Options for a Carrier Signal
possible carrier description
Leased telephone line from Running cost is very high. Maintenance is a problem and guarantee
the telephone line provider of quality of service may be difficult to obtain.
Terrestrial Microwave Frequency range is between 3 and 30 GHz. The range of
Communication channel communication is line of sight. A large number of antenna towers
(either owned by the utility are required. Therefore, initial investment and maintenance cost are
or leased) both very high. Provides very large bandwidth, which may be shared
with other data communication services.
Satellite Communication via Frequency range is between 3 and 30 GHz. Propagation delays
VSAT terminals using involved are of the order of [2*36000km] / [3*105km/s] =240ms i.e.
geostationary satellite at 12 cycles (50 Hz basis) and this is not permissible for real-time
36, 000 km power system protection. Large bandwidth is available.
Power Line Carrier Most economical, since power line conductor doubles as the physical
communication medium for carrying the carrier signal. The carrier signal is a signal
of much higher frequency, compared to power frequency, which is
coupled to the EHV line. Frequency band allocated to this service is
50-200 kHz. Thus, the carrier signal frequency is just above the
audible frequency range and just below the medium wave radio
broadcast band. Due to moderately low frequency of the carrier, a
small bandwidth is available. However, protective relaying does not
need a large bandwidth. What is important is the delay involved,
which is very small in case of power line carrier, for example, a
1000kmline will cause a delay of 0.33 milliseconds.

0.5 Concept of Supervisory Control and Carrier System

Central Communication Remote

Controlling Site System Controlled Site

Master Terminal Unit Transmitting System Remote Terminal Unit

SCaDA System Receiving System Sensor System
SCaDA System Operator Carrier System Actuator System
Power Line Carrier System
Satellite Technology System
Radio Telemetry System
Fibre Technology System
Copper Cable System

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 5
0.6 Pilot Protection Systems
Concepts Basic to a Protective System: selectivity, reliability, security

1. Selectivity:
1.1 Requires that the protection system be dependable in identifying faults in its
zones of protection
1.2 This is achieved by the relay designer, who uses sound logic for fault
detection and line tripping.

2. Reliability
2.1 Requires that the protection system be operable, meaning that the overall
design will ensure appropriate protective action even if some portion of the
protective apparatus may have failed
2.2 This is achieved by:
1. using equipment of high quality
2. performing routine testing to ensure that the equipment remains operable
3. designing a protective system that has redundancy

3. System Security
3.1 Refers to the capability of the protection system to refrain from operating
when it should not operate
3.2 For the protection system, this means that the relaying system must be
selective and also that precautions are taken to ensure that no operation is
initiated, either by the relay logic or other means, that would cause the
tripping of important lines or other facilities when not absolutely necessary

Pilot Relaying Systems utilise a communications path for sending signals from the
relaying system at one end of the line to that at the other end.

General Pilot Protection System

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 6
Notes
1. The relay systems at each end of the transmission line monitor the local currents
and voltages.
2. These signals, or a derived response, are sent to the local relay equipment only,
where trip signals may be generated and sent to the circuit breakers at the local
relay location (shown by dashed lines).
3. Additional equipment is provided that permits each relay to send signals to the
relay equipment at the remote end of the line.
This provides each relay location with new information regarding the need for
tripping, namely, the view of the disturbance seen from both ends of the line.
Both relays can now operate on the basis of the condition observed from both
relay locations.

The timing of events is important in pilot protection.

The total time for fault clearing is summarised in the table below.

Protection Operating Time Operating Time

Subsystem in milliseconds Cycles, 50Hz Cycles, 60Hz
Protective Relays 8 - 10 0.4 – 0.5 0.5 – 0.6
Circuit Breaker 30 - 50 1.5 – 2.5 1.8 – 3.0
Total Relay & CB 38 - 60 1.9 – 3.0 2.3 – 3.6
Pilot Signals 10 - 30 0.5 – 1.5 0.6 – 1.9
Total 48 - 90 2.4 – 4.5 2.9 – 5.4

There are different physical methods of signalling between the two ends of a
transmission line for protective relaying purposes. These signalling systems are
called pilot systems.

Usage of the term Pilot

1. The term pilot is used to clarify the function to be performed as part of the
system protection.
2. The term pilot is used to clarify other protection functions, such as transfer trip
pilot, permissive pilot, or blocking pilot.
3. The term pilot relaying signifies that the relays at the two ends of a
transmission line are in communication with each other.
4. The term pilot signifies a reference to the communications medium, e.g., wire
pilot, microwave pilot, and power-line carrier pilot.
5. These latter terms designate the physical, rather than the functional,
identification of the equipment used in performing the pilot functions.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 7
Equipment used in Pilot Protection

1. The innermost link identifies the physical equipment used for signalling between
the line terminals.
The physical link can be any of the following: telephone line, microwave link,
radio link, or fibre-optic communications system.
For protective relaying the physical link will be a dedicated telecommunications
system, since it is not acceptable that the relay might receive a busy signal when
trying to communicate.
2. The tele-protection equipment level includes the physical link and its terminal
equipment, and also includes hardware, and associated software, at the terminals
that are required to take the relay output data and inject it into the
communications equipment.
This might include coupling equipment, modems, or other devices required to
make this translation from the protective equipment to the telecommunications
equipment.
3. The terminal equipment of the pilot protection system is the protective devices.
This includes transducers required to gather data from the power system, a logic
system to process that data, and determine if a certain signal should be
transmitted to the relay system at the opposite end.

1.0 Pilot Wire Circuits

By completing this unit the reader should be able to do the following things:
1. Identify Pilot Circuit Characteristics
2. Describe Pilot Wire Relay, and Primary Injection
3. State Signal Wire Protection Systems
4. Describe Signal Performance Requirements
5. Identify Signalling through Faults

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 8
Pilot Wire System Classification

An Overall Functional Diagram of Pilot Relaying

1. Fault Detection Method

Directional comparison based on power flow can be further subdivided as follows:
1.1 Pilot Wire
1.2 Single-Phase Comparison Blocking
1.3 Dual-Phase Comparison Unblocking
1.4 Dual-Phase Comparison Transfer Trip
1.5 Segregated Phase Comparison

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 9
2. Phase Comparison based on Relative Phase Angles of the Currents
Wave deflections based on wave deflection at the fault point is relatively a new
technique

3. Current-Based Systems
3.1 Current Differential
3.2 AC Pilot Wire
3.3 Digital Current Differential
3.4 Charge Comparison

4. Directional Comparison Systems

4.1 Directional comparison blocking
4.2 Directional comparison unblocking
4.3 Overreaching transfer trip
4.4 Under-Reaching Transfer Trip— can be Permissive or Non-Permissive

Many pilot schemes are referred to as permissive schemes. This is a general term
which signifies that functional cooperation of two or more relays is required before
control action is taken.

Classification based on
the Consortium for Large Power Systems (CIGRE) Working Group:

pilot
protection systems

non-unit
unit schemes
schemes

phase directional
comparison comparison

pilot wire distance

protection protection

CIGRE—common forms of pilot wire schemes

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 10
Signal Frequencies
The following signal frequencies have been used:

srl frequency type comments

1 direct current not in much use
frequency
2 power frequency sometimes called AC pilot relaying
3 audio Human ear response range: 30 Hz to 20 kHz.
frequencies Telephone industry equipment operates in this frequency range and can be
used for control signalling in power systems.
4 power line carrier A communication system that couples the high frequency carrier signal onto
frequencies power conductors.
Frequency range: 30 kHz to 600 kHz or lower
4 radio frequencies Range: 10 kHz to 100 GHz.
This medium is seldom selected because of the possibility of interference
and requirements for licensing.
5 microwave Applied to frequencies from 1000 MHz upward.
frequencies Characterised by line-of-sight requirement between microwave antennae.
6 fibre optics Visible spectrum of light range: 0.4 to 0.7 μm.
frequencies Practically, 0.3 to 30 μm range is used.

Guidelines for Pilot Communications Selection

There are no rigid rules that dictate the choice of the communications method for
pilot relaying. However, there are some characteristics that can be stated as general
guidelines.

method Used where:

pilot wire 1. Distance range: 10 – 25 km
2. The pilot wire consists of metallic wires
3. The line should remain a two-terminal line
4. If it is a three-terminal line, each leg should be less than 4 km
power line carrier 1. transmission line is too long to consider wire pilot
2. fibre-optic systems are unavailable or too expensive
3. data communication is not required
microwave 1. protection of long transmission lines, where power line carrier does not
have enough channel capacity or a backup to power line carrier
2. continuous monitoring is required
3. voice or data communication is required
fibre optic 1. transmission line is relatively short since fibre-optic repeaters must be
installed every 50 - 100 km.
protection of short transmission lines, depending on fibre type,
multimode or single mode, and also data transmission protocols
2. there is inadequate carrier spectrum available for power line carrier
3. continuous monitoring is required
4. voice or data communication is required
5. a fibre-optic cable is available for relay communications
6. ground mat potential differences are not a problem
7. economics for using fibre optics is favourable

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 11
The term pilot means that between the ends of the transmission line there is an
interconnecting channel of some sort over which information can be conveyed.

Pilot Relaying is an adaptation of the principles of differential relaying for the

protection of transmission-line sections.

Differential Relaying is not used for transmission-line protection because the

terminals of a line are separated by too great a distance to interconnect the CT
Secondaries.
Pilot Relaying provides primary protection only. Backup protection must be provided
by supplementary relaying.
Pilot communications can take several forms in terms of the technology used for the
transfer of information.

Signal Transmission Media

The transmission media used for the transmission of protection signals can be
summarised as follows.

transmission media description

wire pilot A pilot protection system in which an auxiliary metallic circuit is used as
protection the communication mechanism between the relays at the circuit
terminals
power line carrier A form of pilot protection in which the communication mechanism
pilot protection between relays is a pilot signal that is superimposed on the power
transmission conductor(s)
microwave pilot A form of pilot protection in which the communication mechanism
protection between relays is a beamed microwave-radio channel.
The relay pilot channel is multiplexed with other channels for voice or
data transmission.
fibre-optic pilot A form of pilot protection in which the communication mechanism
protection between relays utilises a digital fibre-optic light pulse form of
transmission

The foregoing classifications of transmission media separate the pilot systems into
significantly different physical systems. The methods of signal conditioning and
transmission may be any number of different types.
In power system protection communications, the signalling applications have
traditionally been analogue transmission in any of these media, although digital
systems may predominate in the future as digital systems become available at
reasonable costs.

It is not clear whether future protection signalling will ever be performed using the
integrated services digital networks (ISDN), which are planned
telecommunications systems that utilise digital transmission and switching
technologies to support voice, data, text, and image transmission.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 12
Such future systems may offer higher reliability for protection functions, because of
their inherent multiple redundancies, but at the expense of not having dedicated
facilities, which are defined as facilities for only a particular function. It would not be
satisfactory, for example, for a protective system to receive a busy signal indicating
that all available channels are in use.

The ISDN system may, however, offer a very reliable redundant channel for relaying
purposes.

Types of Pilot Systems

1. Wire Pilot Protection System
2. Carrier-Current Pilot Protection System
3. Microwave Pilot Protection System

1.0 Wire Pilot Protection System

Wire Pilot consists of a two-wire telephone-line like circuit of either open wire or
cable.

Wire pilot relaying systems have been used for many years to protect transmission
lines, but these schemes are limited in their application.

1. this technique is limited to lines that are short enough to justify the cost of the
installation or leasing of separate pilot circuits for relaying.
A Wire Pilot is generally economical for distances of up to 15 or 20 km.

2. the pilot wires are themselves a transmission line, with the usual series resistance
and inductance and shunt capacitance per unit of length.
As the pilot transmission lines become long, the pilot line requires special tuning
to optimise signal transmission, and this is usually feasible only at the two
terminals rather than being distributed along the circuit.
This also limits the use of wire pilot to relatively short transmission lines.

Wire pilot schemes are divided into two basic types.

The first type is called a circulating current scheme for pilot protection.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 13
 schematic of a circulating-current wire pilot system

Note that a current balance relay is used at each end of the line. The currents shown
in the figure represent the normal condition, with current entering one end of the
line and leaving the other end. Under this condition, the CT secondary currents flow
in the restraint windings of each relay and no current flows through the operate
windings.

If a fault occurs on the line, the currents at the right-hand end of the line will
reverse, which will cause currents to flow in the operate windings of both relays.
Note that the pilot wires are an exact low-voltage replica of the transmission line.

The second type is the voltage balance system, or opposed-voltage system

schematic of a voltage balance wire pilot system

In this system, the pilot wires are crossed and no current flows in the pilot wires
under the normal condition shown in the figure, which forces the currents to flow
through the restraint windings of each relay.

For both of the wire pilot schemes illustrated, only the currents of one phase are
shown in the diagrams to reduce on cost and complexity.
In practice, the three-phase currents are combined in various ways to provide
correct relay action for all types of faults.

One method of combining the phase currents into one signal is shown below, where
the transformer is a kind of summing system for the three-phase currents.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 14
 sequence filter used for a pilot wire relay system

The secondary current is connected to the pilot system

In many cases, the pilot channels are leased from a common carrier telephone
company, with restrictions on the voltages that can be tolerated on the telephone
circuits.

Even if the pilot system is owned by the electric utility, there may be problems with
induced voltage from a parallel power transmission line, especially under faulted
conditions. This requires care in the installation of the pilot circuit. The pilot wires
must also be protected from lightning, which may cause considerable damage to the
terminal equipment. Moreover, the metallic connection between remote high-voltage
stations may introduce problems due to the possibly large difference in ground
potential at the two ends of the line during fault conditions.

2.0 Carrier-Current Pilot Protection System

(Power Line Carrier Pilot System)
A Carrier-Current Pilot for protective-relaying purposes is one in which low-voltage,
high-frequency currents are transmitted along a conductor of a power line to a
receiver at the other end with the earth and ground wire generally acting as the
return conductor.

transmission relaying using power line carrier pilot

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 15
A Carrier-Current System is economical for distances beyond 20 km.
In this type of pilot relaying, the coupling to the power line is by means of a line
tuner and a coupling capacitor voltage transformer (CVT), with impedance matching
performed by a hybrid (HYB), which is a transformer arrangement that permits the
transmitted and received signals to be separated and also directs the output of the
transmitter to the line rather than entering the receiver.

The relays at each end of the line are assumed to have distance measuring
capability. A close-in fault at either end would be positively detected by the relay at
that end, but the relay at the opposite end would have difficulty discriminating
between faults on the protected line and those beyond the protected line. However,
if the relay close to the fault sends confirmation that the fault is indeed on the
protected line, then the opposite-end relay may be permitted to trip without delay.
This is termed permissive tripping. It has the capability of preventing long delays
in tripping faults on the protected line that might otherwise be necessary.

A wave trap is used at both ends of the protected line to prevent the carrier
frequency signals from spreading to other circuits and possibly causing false tripping
of those circuits.

3.0 Microwave Pilot Protection System

A Microwave Pilot System is an ultra-high frequency radio system operating above
900 MHz. Microwaves are used when the number of services requiring pilot channels
exceeds the technical or economic capabilities of Carrier-Current.

Transmission relaying using microwave pilot protection

The signalling for system protection may also be provided using microwave
communications between the two ends of the transmission line, with equipment
arranged as shown above.
In this arrangement, audio tone signals pass through the microwave modulator -
demodulator equipment before being transmitted at microwave frequencies to the
other end of the line.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 16
Usually this arrangement is called a permissive scheme since the audio-tone
signals permit the line relays at the opposite end of the line to trip when a fault is
detected.

The microwave path between the two ends of the transmission line shown above
may be quite different from the physical path of the high-voltage circuit.

Microwave systems utilise repeater stations that are almost always located at points
of the highest terrain. This permits longer "hops" between repeaters, and lower
overall cost of installation. In many cases, the intermediate stations are located on
mountain tops, or even in high-rise buildings. This may mean that the route of the
microwave signal travels much farther than the route of the transmission line being
protected. This greater length of communications travel will usually cause no
difficulty in the relaying, as long as the time delay of the signal is known and is
constant.

Some microwave systems are operated as a loop telecommunications system, with

the ability of switching from a normal, say, clockwise direction of signal direction
around the loop to an emergency counter-clockwise direction of signal transmission.
This type of system can cause difficulty in relaying if the resulting distance in the
communications path between the two ends of the power transmission line changes
due to the microwave switching. This will cause different time delays in the signals
between the two ends of the line, which may cause failure of certain kinds of relay
logic.

Directional comparison schemes can be used in microwave pilot systems with little
concern for differences in propagation delay.

Microwave systems have a unique characteristic that can be a significant problem in

applications such as protection that require very high system reliability. This is the
failure of transmission due to atmospheric fading of the signal, which occurs during
certain atmospheric conditions, such as periods of high atmospheric water vapour.
Signal loss due to fading is greatly improved by the use of space diversity, where
two receiving antennas are used, with the antennas separated vertically on the
receiving tower by 10 meters or so. This greatly improves the probability of correct
reception of the transmitted signal. Other methods are also used to provide reliable
transmission and reception of microwave signals. These special techniques may
require careful investigation by the relay engineer, to ensure proper reliability of the
pilot protection system.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 17
4.0 Fibre-Optic Pilot Systems

Transmission relaying using fibre-optic pilot protection

Fibre optics is assumed to be embedded in the shield wire(s) of the transmission

line. The system would be no different if the optical fibres were part of a separate
communications system, or embedded in the high-voltage transmission conductors.

Power-line Carrier-Current, Microwave, and Fibre Optics, all share the characteristic
of providing a communications path between the relay sets at the two ends of the
transmission line. The physical apparatus and signalling equipment vary according to
the communications technology used to transmit the information. Many relays are
not affected by the method of communications and can be connected to any of the
three types of systems. The choice of pilot system used will depend on several
factors, such as the availability of fibre-optic or microwave paths, cost, reliability,
and the type of relay scheme.

There are no rigid rules that dictate the choice of communications method for pilot
relaying.

Wire Pilot
Wire pilot systems are generally applicable under the following conditions:
1. A pair of metallic communication wires is available.
2. The wire pilot pair is less than 14.5 km long.
3. The protected line is two terminal and likely to remain so, or if three terminal
each leg is less than 3.7 km long and the total line length is less than 11.1 km.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 18
Power Line Carrier
Power line carrier is generally applicable under the following conditions:
1. The transmission line is too long to consider wire pilot.
2. Fibre-optic systems are unavailable or too expensive.
3. Data communication is not required.

Microwave
Microwave communication is used in the protection of long transmission lines where
power line carrier does not offer enough channel capacity, or as a second
communications path in addition to power line carrier.

The following general conditions apply:

1. There is inadequate carrier spectrum available for PLC.
2. Continuous monitoring is required.
3. Voice or data communication is required.

Fibre Optics
Fibre-optic communication is used in the protection of short transmission lines
where PLC is not suitable, or as an alternate communications path in addition to
other communications.

The following general conditions apply:

1. The transmission line is relatively short since fibre-optic repeaters must be
installed every 50 - 100 km.
2. There is inadequate carrier spectrum available for PLC.
3. Continuous monitoring is required.
4. Voice or data communication is required.
5. A fibre-optic cable is available for relay communications.
6. Ground mat potential differences are not a problem.
7. Economics for using fibre optics is favourable.

Why Current-Differential Relaying is not used

1. There be too many interconnections between Current Transformers (CTs) to make
Current-Differential Relaying economical over the usual distances involved in
transmission-line relaying.

Example:
For a three-phase line, six pilot conductors would be required, one for each phase
CT and one for the neutral connection and two for the trip circuit.
On this basis alone, Current-Differential Relaying with six pilot wires would be
limited to very short lines.

2. The likelihood of improper operation owing to CT inaccuracies under the heavy

loadings that would be involved

3. The effect of charging current between the pilot wires

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 19
4. The large voltage drops in the pilot wires requiring better insulation

5. The pilot currents and voltages would be excessive for pilot circuits rented from a
telephone Company.

Purpose of Pilot Wire

The pilot wire scheme is a form of phase comparison system.
Pilot Protection is a form of line protection that uses communication channels as a
means of comparing electrical conditions at the terminals of the line.

The Pilot Wire is used for the transmission of pilot signals that are used to provide
the protective devices with information that can be used to determine the need for
tripping the line.

Example:

transmission-line sections for illustrating purpose of a pilot

1. This is an example of a one-line diagram of a transmission-line section connecting

stations A and B, and showing a portion of an adjoining line section beyond B.

2. Assume that you were at station A, where very accurate meters were available for
reading voltage, current, and the phase angle between them for the line section
AB.

3. Knowing the impedance characteristics per unit length of the line, and the
distance from A to B, you could, like a distance relay, tell the difference between
a short circuit at C in the middle of the line and at D, the far end of the line.
But you could not possibly distinguish between a fault at D and a fault at E just
beyond the breaker of the adjoining line section, because the impedance between
D and E would be so small as to produce a negligible difference in the quantities
that you were measuring.
Even though you might detect a slight difference, you could not be sure how
much of it was owing to inaccuracies, though slight, in your meters or in the
current and voltage transformers supplying your meters. And certainly, you would
have difficulties if offset current waves were involved.
Under such circumstances, you would hardly wish to accept the responsibility of
tripping your circuit breaker for the fault at D and not tripping it for the fault at E.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 20
4. But, if you were at station B, in spite of errors in your meters or source of supply,
or whether there were offset waves, you could determine positively whether the
fault was at D or E.
There would be practically a complete reversal in the currents, or, in other words,
approximately 1800 phase-angle difference.

5. What is needed at station A is some sort of indication when the phase angle of
the current at station B (with respect to the current at A) is different by
approximately 1800 from its value for faults in the line section A B.

6. The same need exists at station B for faults on either side of station A.
This information can be provided either by providing each station with an
appropriate sample of the actual currents at the other station, or by a signal from
the other station with its current phase angle using pilot circuits.

Characteristics of Pilot Circuits

DC Wire-Pilot Relaying

1. Tripping Pilot
If one end cannot trip without receiving a certain signal or current sample from
the other end, the pilot is said to be a tripping pilot.
DC Wire-Pilot has advantages where the distances are short and where a line may
be tapped to other stations at one or more points.
DC Wire-Pilot Relaying is now used in very special applications.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 21
 Schematic illustration of a DC wire-pilot relaying equipment:
D = voltage-restrained directional (mho) relay
O = over-current relay
T = auxiliary tripping relay
S = auxiliary supervising relay
PW = pilot wire

1. Over-current Relay at the station nearest to the fault will pick up if a fault occurs
in the external line circuit, but the directional relay will not close its contact
because of the direction of current flow, and the circuit will be open at that point,
thereby preventing tripping at the other stations.
2. If an internal fault occurs for which there may be no short-circuit current flow at
one of the stations, the over-current relay at that station will not pick up.
However, pilot-wire current will flow through the supervising auxiliary relay
(whose resistance is equal to that of the tripping auxiliary relay), and tripping will
still occur at the other two stations.
(The supervising relays not only provide a path for current to flow so that tripping
will occur as just described but can also be used to actuate an alarm should the
pilot wires become open circuited or short circuited.)
3. This arrangement has the characteristics of a blocking pilot where the blocking
signal is an interruption of current flow in the pilot.
However, if the over-current and the supervising relays were removed from the
circuit, it would be a tripping pilot, because tripping could not occur at any station
unless all the directional relays operated to close their contacts, and tripping
would be impossible if there was no flow of short-circuit current into one end.

2. Blocking Pilot
If the relaying equipment at one end of the line must receive a certain signal or
current sample from the other end in order to prevent tripping at the one end, the
pilot is said to be a blocking pilot.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 22
 Schematic illustration of a DC wire-pilot scheme where information is transmitted over
the pilot:
D = voltage-restrained directional (mho) relay
B = auxiliary blocking relay
O = over-current relay
TC = trip coil
PW = pilot wire

1. The Directional Relay at each station is arranged to close its contact when short-
circuit current flows out of the line as to an external fault.

For an external fault beyond any station, the closing of the directional-relay
contact at that station will cause a d-c voltage to be impressed on the pilot that
will pick up the blocking relay at each station.

The opening of the blocking relay B contact in series with the trip circuit will
prevent tripping at each station.

For an internal fault, no directional relay will operate, and hence, no blocking
relay will pick up, and tripping will occur at all stations where there is sufficient
short-circuit current flowing to pick up the over current relay.

2. Whenever tripping by a relay at one station has to be blocked by the operation of

a relay at another station, the blocking relay should be more sensitive than the
tripping relay.

The reason for this is to be certain that any time the tripping relay can pick up for
an external fault the blocking relay will be sure to pick up also, or else undesired
tripping will occur.

3. With this scheme, the over-current relay must be given sufficient time delay to
make this a safe race.
An ingenious scheme can be used to avoid the necessity for adding time delay.

4. Some pilot-relaying equipment utilising the blocking-and-tripping principle must

have additional provision against improper tripping during severe power swings or
loss of synchronism.

AC Wire-Pilot Relaying
AC Wire-Pilot Relaying is very much similar to Current-Differential Relaying.
However, in modern ac wire-pilot relaying, the magnitude of the current that flows
in the pilot circuit is limited, and only a two-wire pilot is required.
These two features make ac wire-pilot relaying economically feasible over greater
distances than current-differential relaying.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 23
 schematic illustration of the circulating-current principle of AC wire-Pilot Relaying

Circulating-Current means that current circulates normally through the terminal

CTs and the pilot.

Opposed-Voltage means that current does not normally circulate through the
pilot.

Adaptation of the Current-Differential type of Relaying

The only reason for having a relay at each end is to avoid having to run a tripping
circuit the full length of the pilot.

schematic illustration of the opposed-voltage principle of AC wire-Pilot Relaying

1. A current-balance type of relay is employed at each end.

The CTs are connected in such a way that the voltages across the restraining coils
at the two ends of the pilot are in opposition for current flowing through the line
section as to a load or an external fault.
Consequently, no current flows in the pilot except charging current if we assume
that there is no imbalance between the CT outputs.

2. The restraining coils serve to prevent relay operation owing to imbalance currents.

3. Should a short circuit occur on the protected line section, current will circulate in
the pilot and operate the relays at both ends.

Current will also flow through the restraining coils, but, this current will not be
sufficient to prevent relay operation

The impedance of the pilot circuit will be the governing factor in this respect.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 24
Short circuits or open circuits in the pilot wires have opposite effects on the two
types of relaying equipment.

effect of shorts effect of open-circuits

opposed-voltage cause tripping block tripping
circulating-current block tripping cause tripping

Where it is indicated that tripping will be caused, tripping is contingent on the

magnitude of the power-line current being high enough to pick up the relays.

Both the opposed-voltage and the circulating-current principles permit tripping at

both ends of a line for short-circuit current flow into one end only.

The application of either principle may involve certain features that provide tripping
only at the end having short-circuit-current flow.

The feature that makes AC Wire-Pilot Relaying economically feasible, for the
distances over which it is applied, is that only two pilot wires are used.

In order to use only two wires, some means are required to derive a representative
single-phase sample from the three-phase and ground currents at the ends of a
transmission line.

Advantages of AC over DC Wire-Pilot Equipment

1. Certain problems in connection with DC Wire-Pilot Relaying are not associated
with the AC type.
2. Since separate blocking and tripping relays are not used, the problem of different
levels of blocking and tripping sensitivity are avoided.
3. Problems associated with contact racing and ground preference do not exist.
4. AC Wire-Pilot Relaying is inherently immune to power swings or loss of
synchronism.

Limitations of AC Wire-Pilot Equipment

1. Both the circulating-current and the opposed-voltage types are not always
applicable to tapped or multi-terminal lines, because both types use saturating
transformers to limit the magnitudes of the pilot-wire current and voltage.
2. The non-linear relation between the magnitudes of the power-system current and
the output of the saturating transformer prevents connecting more than two
equipment in series in a pilot wire circuit except under certain restricted
conditions.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 25
Supervision of Pilot-Wire Circuits

The automatic equipment superimposes direct current on the pilot circuit.

Trouble in the pilot circuit causes either an increase or a decrease in the DC
supervising current, which is detected by sensitive auxiliary relays.
The automatic equipment can be arranged not only to sound an alarm when the
pilot wires become open-circuited or short-circuited but also to open the trip circuit
so as to avoid undesired tripping. In such cases, it may be necessary to delay
tripping slightly.

Remote Tripping over the Pilot Wires

Should it be desired to trip the remote breaker under any circumstance, it can be
done by superimposing direct current on the pilot circuit.
If automatic supervising equipment is in use, the magnitude of the DC voltage
imposed momentarily on the circuit for remote tripping is higher than that of the
continuous voltage used for supervising purposes.
Parts of the automatic supervising equipment may be used in common for both
purposes.
A disadvantage of this method of remote tripping is the possibility of undesired
tripping if, during testing, one inadvertently applies a DC test voltage to the pilot
wires. To avoid this, tones have been used over a separate pilot.

Pilot-Wire Requirements
Because Pilot-Wire circuits are often rented from the local telephone company, and
because the telephone company imposes certain restrictions on the current and
voltage applied to their circuits, these restrictions effectively govern wire-pilot-
relaying-equipment design.
The AC equipment that have been described are suitable for telephone circuits since
they impose no more than the permissible current and voltage on the pilot, and the
wave forms are acceptable to the telephone companies.
The equipment that have been described operate without special adjustment over
pilot wires having as much as approximately 2kΩ DC loop resistance and 1.5µF
distributed shunt capacitance.
However, one should determine these limitations in any application.

Pilot Wires and their Protection against Over-voltages

1. Insulating transformer offer protection against high voltages.
2. Pilot wires exposed to lightning over-voltages must be protected with lightning
arresters.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 26
Secondary Injection Tests
Secondary Injection Tests are conducted before the Primary Injection Tests.
It is essential that the pilot wires are connected correctly and the remote end relay is
de-energised, as would be the case with an isolated feeder.
If, during maintenance tests, it is impracticable to de-energise the line, Secondary
Injection Testing can only be carried out provided the secondaries of both groups of
line-end CTs are terminated, and the relay summation transformer input of the
remote-end relay left open-circuit.

The following tests assume initial commissioning tests are being carried out on a de-
energised feeder.

1. Adjustment of pilot-padding resistance

The pilot padding resistance of both line-end relays must first be set to the ohmic
value determined as below.

1000–pilotloopresistance
pilot padding resistance = ohms
2

The padding resistance is adjusted at the front of the relay by a potentiometer-

type control that is calibrated directly in ohms.

2. Check on Open-Circuit Pilot Sensitivity

Temporarily open-circuit the pilots and inject current.
Slowly increase the level until the output relay operates.
Note the pick-up current level with a tolerance of 10%.
Remove the open circuit from the pilots.

3. Electrical Check on Correct Pilot Polarity

With Current Injection but with pilots connected, connect an AC milli-ammeter in
the pilot circuit to monitor the pilot current.
Increase the current until the local relay just operates noting both the injected
level and pilot currents: these should be nominally 0.235A (1.18A, 5A relay) and
8.2mA respectively, but will increase with high capacitance pilots.
Temporarily reverse the pilot connections and increase the injected current,
repeating the above.
The pick-up current should be typically 90-95% of the previous reading, but the
pilot current should be higher and in the order of 10mA.
These results confirm that the correct pilot polarities had been selected.
Return the pilot connections to normal.

4. Record of Pick-Up Settings

Note the desired CT neutral tap setting.
A table of nominal pick-up currents for each phase-to-phase and phase-to-neutral
connection must be given together with a guide to expected tolerances.
Inject A to neutral current and note the local end pick up level.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 27
5. Insulation Resistance Tests
With the pilots isolated from the relay circuits at both ends of the feeder, measure
the insulation resistance between both pilot wires and between each pilot wire
and earth.
Measurements will depend on pilot length and type, but a figure in excess of 1MΩ
at 500V would normally be accepted as satisfactory.
Lower insulation results should be compared with insulation data for the type of
cable used.

6. Pilot Loop Resistance

Short the remote end of the pilot wires together by removing the insulated card
from the remote relay case and measure the pilot-loop-resistance with an
ohmmeter.
Note the reading for future reference.

7. Identification of Pilots for Relay Connections

It is essential for correct relay operation that each pilot is connected to the same
terminal number on both local and remote relay.
With isolated pilots, short the remote end of one pilot to earth.
At the local end measure the resistance of each pilot to earth.
The pilot wire giving the lower of the two readings corresponds to that earthed at
the remote end.

Primary Injection Tests

This type of test involves the entire circuit

Current transformer primary and secondary windings, relay coils, trip and alarm
circuits, and all intervening wiring are checked.
The drawback of such tests is that they are time consuming and expensive to
organise.

Primary injection testing is, however, the only way to prove correct
installation and operation of the whole of a protection scheme.

Primary Injection Tests are always carried out after Secondary Injection
Tests, to ensure that problems are limited to the VTs and CTs involved, plus
associated wiring, all other equipment in the protection scheme having been
proven satisfactory from the Secondary Injection Tests.
Therefore, primary injection is usually carried out bt means of a Portable Injection
Transformer.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 28
These are connected in series or in parallel according to the current required and
the resistance of the primary circuit. Outputs of 10V and 100A can be obtained.
Alternatively, modern PC-controlled test sets have power amplifiers capable of
injecting currents up to about 200A for a single unit, with higher current ratings
being possible by using multiple units in parallel.

Types of Primary Injection Test

1. CT Ratio Check

Connect ammeters as shown below and apply a known level of current (say 50-
100% of CT rating) through the A phase CT.
Current is passed through the primary conductors and measured on the test set
ammeter, A1 in the figure below.
The secondary current is measured on the ammeter A 2 or relay display, and the
ratio of the value on A 1 to that on A2 should closely approximate to the ratio
marked on the current transformer nameplate.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 29
2. CT Polarity Check

If the equipment includes directional, differential or earth fault relays, the polarity
of the main current transformers must be checked.
It is not necessary to conduct the test if only overcurrent relays are used.
The circuit for checking the polarity with a single-phase test set is shown in figure
below.
A short-circuit is placed across the phases of the primary circuit on one side of the
current transformers while single-phase injection is carried out on the other side.
The ammeter connected in the residual circuit, o relay display, will give a reading
of a few milliamperes with rated current injected if the Current Transformers are of
correct polarity.
A reading proportional to twice the primary current will be obtained if they are of
wrong polarity.

3. Primary Pick-Up Sensitivity

Connect the primary injection test set across the A phase CT primary.
Monitor the CT secondary current into relay terminal.
Increase the injected current until the local relay operates

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 30
Record both primary and secondary pick up levels.

4. Trip and Alarm Circuit Functional Check

With the DC trip circuit links/fuses replaced, the circuit breaker should be tripped by
actuating the relay.
This can be done by carefully actuating the output relay.

AUTHOR: UCHIYABU 31