J. Luque

Automated Meter Reading and SCADA Application for Wireless Sensor Network

Currently, there are many technologies available to automate public utilities services (water, gas and electricity). AMR, Automated Meter Reading, and SCADA, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition, are the main functions that these technologies must support. In this paper, we propose a low cost network with a similar architecture to a static ad-hoc sensor network based on low power and unlicensed radio. Topological parameters for this network are analyzed to obtain optimal performances and to derive a pseudo-range criterion to create an application-specific spanning tree for polling optimization purposes. In application layer services, we analytically study different polling schemes.

Analytic model of the measurement errors caused by communications delay

The protocols and communication systems used in the control of the electric networks create delays due to various factors such as limitation of the transmission speed, retransfer among nodes, processing time, etc. These delays introduce some errors in the measurements used in the control center, which depend on the magnitude of the delay and the evolution of the measurements. In this paper an analytic model of the relationship between measurement error and delay is presented. The validity of the model is compared with experimental data from an electric network.

A framework for development of integrated intelligent knowledge for management of telecommunication networks

Highlights? We present a new approach for distributed intelligent management networks. ? An intelligent framework and a language for formalizing knowledge management descriptions. ? Distributed intelligent system is designed through the normalization of knowledge management. ? Intelligent knowledge is integrated into the conceptual repository of management information. ? We outline the development of an intelligent system based on our proposed standard. The management of modern telecommunication networks is a complex and intensive task that requires the assimilation of vast amounts of information and knowledge management. The significance of management networks is growing, and more advanced techniques are needed to support these activities. It is necessary to develop new models that offer more possibilities. In this study, we present a new approach for distributed intelligent management networks. The goal of our study is the assignment and dispersed control of proper network resources, pertaining to hardware as well as software, to help operators manage their networks more effectively and also to promote reliability in network services. We propose a new paradigm where intelligent knowledge management is integrated into the conceptual repository of management information. This article presents a technique for the design and implementation of a distributed intelligent system that is designed through the normalization of knowledge management. Our study focuses on an intelligent framework and a language for formalizing knowledge management descriptions and combining them with an existing Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) management model. Further, this work outlines the development of an intelligent system named ScanEXP based on our proposed standard and describes the most important facets, advantages, and drawbacks that were found after prototyping our proposal.

Determining the channel capacity in SCADA systems using polling protocols [power system telecontrol]

This article presents a method for calculating the capacity of a power system telecontrol multi-point communications channel when a polling protocol is used. Both an exact solution and an approximate but easier-to-use solution are obtained. With the results derived here, the number of remote stations that can communicate with the control center over a single channel can be determined. The analytical results are compared to the traffic results measured experimentally.

Using Internet Protocols to Implement IEC 60870-5 Telecontrol Functions

The telecommunication networks of telecontrol systems in electric utilities have undergone an innovation process. This has removed many of their technical restrictions and made it possible to consider carrying out telecontrol tasks with general standard protocols instead of the specific ones that are used currently. These are defined in the standards 60870-5, 60870-6, and 61850 from the International Electrotechnical Commission, among others. This paper is about the implementation, using the services of general standard protocols, of the telecontrol application functions defined by the standard IEC 60870-5-104. The general protocols used to carry out telecontrol tasks are those used in the Internet: the telecommunication network-management protocol SNMPv3 (simple network management protocol version 3), the clock synchronization protocol network time protocol and Secure SHell. With this new implementation, we have achieved, among others, two important aims: 1) to improve performance and, above all, 2) to solve the serious security problems present in the telecontrol protocols currently being used. These problems were presented by IEEE in an article published in the website of the IEEE Standards Association. In this paper, the use of general standard protocols to perform the telecontrol of electrical networks is justified. The development of this paper-its achievements and conclusions and the tools used-is detailed.

Integrating power utility telecommunication networks

Rapid technological advances within the telecommunication sector and the power sectors ever-increasing needs for information and transmission services have led electric utilities to use heterogeneous telecommunication networks, grouping together equipment from various manufacturers and technologies. Management of such networks is difficult and fragmented, often employing proprietary systems. This article takes a look at the reasons why integrated network management is needed, describes aspects of the integration process and the expert system, and points out the most significant elements that make use of internationally accepted standards.

Evaluation of MPEG-7-Based Audio Descriptors for Animal Voice Recognition over Wireless Acoustic Sensor Networks

Environmental audio monitoring is a huge area of interest for biologists all over the world. This is why some audio monitoring system have been proposed in the literature, which can be classified into two different approaches: acquirement and compression of all audio patterns in order to send them as raw data to a main server; or specific recognition systems based on audio patterns. The first approach presents the drawback of a high amount of information to be stored in a main server. Moreover, this information requires a considerable amount of effort to be analyzed. The second approach has the drawback of its lack of scalability when new patterns need to be detected. To overcome these limitations, this paper proposes an environmental Wireless Acoustic Sensor Network architecture focused on use of generic descriptors based on an MPEG-7 standard. These descriptors demonstrate it to be suitable to be used in the recognition of different patterns, allowing a high scalability. The proposed parameters have been tested to recognize different behaviors of two anuran species that live in Spanish natural parks; the Epidalea calamita and the Alytes obstetricans toads, demonstrating to have a high classification performance.

Modelling of long-term and short-term mechanisms of arterial pressure control in the cardiovascular system: An object-oriented approach

A mathematical model that provides an overall description of both the short- and long-term mechanisms of arterial pressure regulation is presented. Short-term control is exerted through the baroreceptor reflex while renal elimination plays a role in long-term control. Both mechanisms operate in an integrated way over the compartmental model of the cardiovascular system. The whole system was modelled in MODELICA, which uses a hierarchical object-oriented modelling strategy, under the DYMOLA simulation environment. The performance of the controlled system was analysed by simulation in light of the existing hypothesis and validation tests previously performed with physiological data, demonstrating the effectiveness of both regulation mechanisms under physiological and pathological conditions.

Datacab: a geographical-information-system- based expert system for the design of cable networks

Abstract: Telecommunication networks have evolved over time as a result of technological advances, andnetworktopologiesandequipmenthavebecomeincreasinglycomplex.Expertsystemsarebeingsuccessfullyappliedtothemanagementoftelecommunicationnetworks.Howev er,applyingexpertsystemstonetworkdesignisanotherespecially beneficial yet still not very common approach. Inthispaper we proposea rule-based expertsystem calledDatacab.DatacabwasdevelopedatEnditelEndesaincollaborationwiththeElectronicTechnologyDepartmentoftheUniversity ofSeville, fortheautomatic design ofhybridfibre coax(HFC) cable networks. Usingdatafroma geographical information system as input, it automatically generates viable HFC network designs.Keywords: telecommunication networks, expert system, HFC network, GIS 1. IntroductionAs a result of the great technological evolutionthat has taken place in telecommunications, it ispossible to communicate and access informa-tion rapidly, via telephony and communicationnetworkssuchastheInternet.Telecommunica-tion networks have evolved over time to satisfythe demands of different communication ser-vices, continuously requiring greater band-width and a better quality of service. Networktechnology has increased in complexity, gener-ating the need for a better administration ofthe resources of these systems, which has fos-tered the evolution of network managementsystems.On the other hand, research carried out in thefieldofartificialintelligencehasledtoimportantadvances in the treatment, storage and exploit-ing of knowledge. These advances include thefieldofknowledge-basedexpertsystems(Bucha-nan & Duda, 1982; Liebowitz, 1998; Ignizio,1991;Awad,1996;McGraw&Harbison-Briggs,2002).Expert systems are being successfully appliedto the realization of diverse tasks (interpreta-tion, prediction, diagnosis, design, planning,instruction, control etc.) in multiple fields suchas medicine, geology, chemistry and engineering(Liebowitz, 1998). Expert systems may alsobe applied to the field of telecommunicationnetworks, because many of the previously

The role of medium access control protocols in SCADA systems

This paper deals with the influence of the medium access control (MAC) protocol in the performance of the communication channels used in power system SCADA systems (supervisory control and data acquisition). Three types of MAC protocols are presented and analyzed: polling, CSMA/CD (carrier sense multiple access with collision detection), and token bus. The simulation of each one of these protocols allows us to quantify its performance and establish certain criteria in order to be able to compare them. As a result of the analysis, the use of a MAC protocol is proposed for SCADA systems.