Controller Hardware-in-Loop Simulation of a Multi-Machine System using an Educational Real-time Simulator

Abstract

A controller, which is to be integrated into a complex power system, can be tested before integration under near realistic conditions using controller hardware-in-loop (CHIL) simulation. This paper employs CHIL on IEEE 3-generator 9-bus system, in which the excitation system of one of the generators is considered as the controller under test. The controller is implemented on delphino micro-controller with the rest of the 3-generator system simulated in real-time on the educational simulator. Results obtained from CHIL simulation are validated with offline and real-time simulation results. The dynamic response of the excitation system to changes in $V_{ref}$ is also demonstrated experimentally. The maximum permissible step size which does not cause numerical instability is determined experimentally. The computation time required by the educational simulator is also determined. The capabilities of the real-time simulation platform are assessed.