Visibility representation of distribution system one-line diagrams

Abstract

An novel method of generating one-line diagrams of radial distribution systems in the form of a visibility graph is proposed. An algorithm that automatically generates an aesthetically 'pleasing' and 'readable' visibility diagram is presented. In addition to the basic property of a visibility graph that nodes and edges be represented by axis-parallel horizontal and vertical lines, respectively, a new set of layout specifications (aesthetic criteria) suitable for easy visualization of the distribution system have been proposed. This work is based on the premise that, in general, the network data of distribution systems does not contain any geographical information of node locations. Therefore the algorithm assumes that only the identity of the terminal nodes of all the edges are known. The proposed algorithm automatically determines node positions such that the specified aesthetic criteria are satisfied.