Information Technology, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Smart Grid – Performance Comparison between Topology Identification Methodology and Neural Network Identification Methodology for the Branch Number Approximation of Overhead Low-Voltage Broadband over Power Lines Network Topolog

Broadband over Power Lines (BPL) networks that are deployed across the smart grid can benefit from the usage of machine learning, as smarter grid diagnostics are collected and analyzed. In this paper, the neural network identification methodology of Overhead Low-Voltage (OV LV) BPL networks that aims at identifying the number of branches for a given OV LV BPL topology channel attenuation behavior is proposed, which is simply denoted as NNIM-BNI. In order to identify the branch number of an OV LV BPL topology through its channel attenuation behavior, NNIM-BNI exploits the Deterministic Hybrid Model (DHM), which has been extensively tested in OV LV BPL networks for their channel attenuation determination, and the OV LV BPL topology database of Topology Identification Methodology (TIM). The results of NNIM-BNI towards the branch number identification of OV LV BPL topologies are compared against the ones of a newly proposed TIM-based methodology, denoted as TIM-BNI.