Re: [smartpower-interest] IP based metering project in Victoria, Australia

["Greg Daley" <[e-mail]>]

Hi Alexandru,  

> -----Original Message-----
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> I haven't been following the smartpower stuff, so this might be a
> >>> naive
> >> question:
> >>> What is the primary perceived relation between smart power and
> >> ietf/networks/routing/etc.?
> >>> - is it the use of networking technology for communication of
> >>> control and management of the power grid?
> >>>
> >>> - or is it going further and thinking of a "power plane" as
> >>> analogous to a "data plane", so that we might end up using
> >>> routing protocols to route electrons rather than just data?
> >
> > [snip]
> >
> >> As an aside, routing electrons using any other protocol than
> >> Physics, is probably out of scope.
> >
> > When I asked that question, it was only half tongue in cheek. It
> > couldn't really be "routing electrons" (there's not much room for
> > addressing in addition to the payload) - it pretty much has to be
> > circuit switching to get the electrons from where they are available
> >  to where they are needed. But I was wondering if routing algorithms
> >  for the power itself was on the table.
> 
> This came up in a recent discussion.  It was mentioned that 
> during power
> failures (as during severe weather) human intervention is 
> needed on some
> trunks ; for humans to climb on poles it is necessary that some
> electricity feeders are cut, which is conceptually similar to a data
> link going down.
> 
> And, in the same vein, electricity must arrive at the destination via
> other ways than the typical trunks.  How is this path set up?
> 
> The growing importance of this problem relates to the growing 
> number of
> electricity suppliers.
> 
> I guess routing algorithms as we know them in link-state/etc can deal
> with it in a scalable manner.

Existing dynamic routing algorithms have been used in establishing 
circuit-oriented communications before now (e.g. ATM/PNNI).  

It may be feasible to treat the high voltage electrical pathways as
similar to the routing paths which we currently route in IP.  That said,

the behaviour of electrons is unlike that of packets:  They will 
load share based on resistance in alternate paths rather than following
shortest path.

So we'd need to determine if the switching models used in IP or in 
(Virtual) Circuit switching environments are even useful before we
looked into
them. Input from Networking and SCADA aware Power Engineers would be
highly valuable.

Feel free to volunteer your friends and associates.

Sincerely,
Greg Daley