Time synchronisation in a IEC 61850 based substation automation system

In the past decade, new communication schemes have been designed and retrofitted into substations by utilities to integrate data from relays and intelligent electronic devices (IEDs). The idea of standardising the language of communication between IEDs has evolved as the key for the advancement of connectivity and interoperability within a substation automation system. As a result of the standardization process, one very critical communication standard has evolved, the International electrotechnical commission (IEC) 61850. IEC 61850 describes how devices are to communicate in a substation as well as the related system requirements. Time synchronisation (TS) is the synchronisation of the date and time of all devices in a network. It is crucial in time-sensitive substation applications and its importance has further been clearly acknowledged in the IEC 61850 standard as a requirement. As part of an undertaken project, an object-oriented implementation of the IEC 61850 standard as a concrete application layer protocol was carried out and a message-oriented middleware architecture was proposed as a means of integrating the various functionalities that support the unique behaviour and communication needs of the IEC 61850 standard. This paper focuses on the implementation of a commercial off-the shelf TS protocol and its incorporation into developed communication model.