Information Inconsistencies in Smart Distribution Grids under Different Failure Causes modelled by Stochastic Activity Networks

Abstract

The ongoing digitalization of the power distribution grid will improve the operational support and automation which is believed to increase the system reliability. However, in an integrated and interdependent cyber-physical system, new threats appear which must be understood and dealt with. Of particular concern, in this paper, is the causes of an inconsistent view between the physical system (here power grid) and the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) system (here Distribution Management System). In this paper we align the taxonomy used in International Electrotechnical Commission (power eng.) and International Federation for Information Processing (ICT community), define a metric for inconsistencies, and present a modelling approach using Stochastic Activity Networks to assess the consequences of inconsistencies. The feasibility of the approach is demonstrated in a simple use case.