IEC 61850 is a modern communications standard that enables advanced applications to access and
process information from substations. This standard defines digital communications protocols and models
for application functional information in protective relays and other intelligent electronic devices used in
substations.
Authors: Sylvain Clermont, Dominic Gauthier, Juergen Holbach, Eric Udren, Solveig Ward, David G.Hart: Protection, Automation and Control Systems, Hydro-Québec, Montreal, Quebec, Canada: Protection and Control, Quanta Technology, Raleigh, NC, USA
Intro:
In today’s conventional discrete design, an engineer will select IEDs and discrete devices, study and map
the device interconnections, hand-configure interface settings to match the map, configure communications
points one-by-one, replicate the exact maps in substation and control center systems, install IEDs and
devices; wire every point in the substation and switchyard, configure application settings, and commissiontest every wire and point. The utility will also periodically perform complete maintenance testing on every
critical function.