Displaying aggregate data, interrelated quantities, and data trends in electric power systems

This paper describes a number of effective techniques for visualizing some of the more complex data relationships that characterize an electric power system in real time. Power systems are large, dynamic physical entities that are constantly changing. While SCADA systems capture the quantitative aspects of these changes, visualizing their magnitudes, pinpointing their locations, and interpreting their collective significance for the current and future security of the interconnection pose tremendous challenges for system operators. This paper describes how advanced visualization techniques such as area tie diagrams, calculated data analogs, historical trend animations, and three-dimensional views clarify the complex relationships, aggregate subsystem characteristics, and emerging trends that describe the current state of the interconnection and help predict its future evolution. The paper provides a number of illustrations that demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed techniques.