Topology of the generator bus in a warship integrated power system

Future naval platforms will feature an integrated power system (IPS) that provides power for all ship systems, including propulsion, combat systems, ship service loads and, ultimately, weapons. It is naturally a requirement that the power system be highly reliable and one of the benefits of the all-electric concept is that reliability in general and, specifically, survivability in battle are enhanced by the ability to reassign power components and network paths to dynamically reconfigure the system in response to events. Much research is being directed at the question of how best to reconfigure a system when portions are damaged: this includes choosing the optimal reconfiguration possible in the system, evaluating the effect of transients introduced by the damage and the switching in and out of parts of the network, etc. Little attention has been focused, however, on the how much reconfiguration is possible in a given network, particularly in the event of multiple faults. After all, if there is no alternative path available between source and load, there can be no reconfiguration. Alternatively, little attention has been given to the question of how to design the network so as to give maximum survivability. These questions are vital, regardless of what reconfiguration strategy is chosen.