1
Internet Addressing
The continuous increase of substation
protection, automation and control systems
based on a local area network, and especially
the success of IEC 61850 has resulted in a huge
number of devices with Ethernet interfaces to be
used in such applications. This is making many
protection specialists setting the IP address of
the relays to allow each device to talk to its peers
over the substation LAN. Probably many people
don’t know that an IP address (32 bits or 4 bytes,
for example 192.168.1.25), is actually an IPv4
address. And that there is a problem because we
are running out of them.
Since IP v4 was first standardized in 1981, at the
time no one could predict the explosion of devices
with networking capabilities – just look at all the
mobile phones around. Because of that, experts
in the communications industry estimate that
some time in 2010 we are going to run out of IPv4
addresses available from IANA (Internet Assigned
Numbers Authority). They are locally registered
by RIRs (Regional Internet Registers). Different
solutions to this problem have been discussed
for years, but there is a lot more work to be done.
More than 10 years ago IETF (Internet Engineering
Task Force) decided to replace the IPv4 addressing
scheme with a 128-bit addressing scheme in
IPv6. Other benefits that IPv6 provides include
built-in security with IPsec and autoconfiguration
of devices. Until recently there has not been
any significant increase in the use of this new
addressing scheme, but this is to change soon. A
memorandum for the Chief Information Officers
of all US government agencies issued about
three years ago, set June 2008 as the deadline for
transition from IPv4 to IPv6.
The time has come for the PAC industry to start
not only discussions, but taking measures for the
transition to the IPv6 in order to ensure that all
new exciting applications based on IEC 61850
and other communication protocols can keep
working in the future.
technology news
15
IPv6 provides
a significant
increase in
addresses
32 - bit IPv4 address
Parts of the
IANA
yyyI yyyI yyyI yyy
address space
are allocated
Regional Internet
Registries
RIR
RIR
to various
registries to
manage for
ISP/LIR
(ARIN, APMIC,
RIPE NCC,
plus possible future RIR's)
NIR
National Internet
Registries
(APNIC region)
ISP/LIR
Local Internet
Registries
(ISP's)
EU
End Users
yyy
= 8 bits
(Resulting in 4,294,967,296 unique IP addresses )
128 - bit IPv6 address
Network prefix
(Describes network location)
Interface ID
(Provides unique identifying number)
xxxx I xxxx I xxxx I xxxx I xxxx I xxxx I xxxx I xxxx
particular
purposes or
regional areas
EU(ISP)
EU
xxxx
= 16 bits
(Resulting in 340,282,366,920,938,463,374,607,432,768,211,456 unique IP addresses )
Registry example
Simplified comparison of IPv4 and IPv6 address sheme
of the world.
I yyy I
I xxxx I
3 dot.decimal digits are used in 4 groups to form the 32 - bit IPv4 address
4 hexadecimal digits are used in 8 groups to form the 128 - bit IPv6 address
PAC.SUMMER.2008
IPv6 uses
hexadecimal
digits
consider future applications
technology news
16
2
BigDog
The alpha male of a robot family
Our industry is moving
forward in an effort to address
the numerous challenges
it faces. New technologies,
specifically multifunctional
Intelligent Electronic Devices
and advanced high-speed
broadband communications,
help in improving the security
of the electric power system
under different system
conditions.
But it is also always a good
idea to have a look outside,
in other domains, and see
if there is something that
we can use, instead of
re-inventing it ourselves. One
of these things is BigDog.
When you look at it and
what it does, maybe it
looks more like a mule
than a dog. Actually, it is a
robot developed by Boston
Dynamics. The research
is funded by the Defense
Advanced Research Project
Agency (DARPA).
As described on the
company web site http://
www.bostondynamics.com/
BigDog is “…a quadruped
robot that walks, runs, and
climbs on rough terrain and
carries heavy loads. BigDog
is powered by a gasoline
engine that drives a hydraulic
actuation system. BigDog's
legs are articulated like an
animal’s, and have compliant
elements that absorb shock
and recycle energy from one
step to the next. BigDog is
the size of a large dog or small
mule, measuring 1 meter
long, 0.7 meters tall and 75 kg
weight.
BigDog has an on-board
computer that controls
locomotion, servos the
legs and handles a wide
variety of sensors. BigDog’s
control system manages
the dynamics of its behavior
to keep it balanced, steer,
navigate, and regulate
Testing the
robots plays
an important
role in their
development
Watch the video at::
PAC.SUMMER.2008
energetics as conditions
and see if we can use them to
vary. Sensors for locomotion
maintain the electric power
include joint position,
joint force, ground
contact, ground
load, a laser
gyroscope, and
a stereo vision
system. Other
sensors focus
on the internal
state of BigDog,
monitoring
the hydraulic
pressure, oil
temperature,
engine
temperature,
rpm, battery
charge and
others.
In separate trials,
BigDog runs at 4
mph, climbs slopes
Image: courtesy of Boston Dynamics
up to 35
degrees,
walks across rubble, and
system balance under any
carries a 340 lb load.” If we
abnormal and suddenly
think about the capabilities of
changing conditions.
BigDog, we can definitely see
it as an alternative to deliver
equipment at difficult to
reach sites of transmission
line towers. But much more
exciting is seeing in the video
on the company’s web site
how well it handles the
different conditions and
manages to keep its balance
when hit by an unexpected
kick or slipping on an icy
surface. Maybe we need to
Boston Dynamics
look in the methods and
algorithms used to maintain
Company' web site:
the balance based on the
http://www.bostondynamics.com/
information from its sensors
http://www.bostondynamics.com/content/sec.php?section=BigDog
3
technology news
17
Solar Tree
energy sollutions
The move towards use of green energy
resources is met with many mixed feelings. On
one hand people understand that we can not
continue producing electric power using fossil
fuels, while at the same time they suffer of the
NIMBY (not in my backyard) syndrome. To a
great extent this is because people don’t like the
way transmission towers or wind turbines look.
A good example of how this perception can
be changed is the Solar Tree. It is the idea of Peter
Noever, the Director of the Austrian Museum
for Applied Arts in Vienna and was realised by a
British designer - Ross Lovegrove, in cooperation
with Artemide (company specialized in designer
lighting systems) and the world's largest producer
of photovoltaic cells - Sharp Solar.
Each solar tree has branches with a total of ten
solar lamps. One lamp has 36 solar cells feeding
rechargeable batteries and is controled by an
electronic system. A sensor measures the amount
of light and turns on and off the LED based solar
lamps.
The fact that about 10 percent of electric power
in Europe is used for street lighting demonstrates
the great potential that changing conventional
lamps with efficient and nice looking ones will
have not only on the environment, but on the
acceptance of DER by the public. Lovegrove is
Solar Tree in Vienna, Austria
The ten lamps on
tree branches also
already working on the second generation Solar
Tree - the "Adaptive Solar Tree". It will follow the
sun to optimize sun light collection and respond
to different weather - for example the branches
will come together if the wind is too intense.
When the sun goes down it will return to its
original position to give off a full spectrum of light
to the street and pedestrians below. The designer
also hopes to integrate an air purification bubble
into the new trees, enabling them to clean the air
around them like a real tree.
collect solar energy
"The light
looks pretty
good when
it's off. Most
of the other
lights out
there have no
life in them
when they are
off ."
Ross
Lovegrove.
Photovoltaic cells are
produced by Sharp
Solareditor@pacw.org
PAC.SUMMER.2008