Performance Testing For Feeder Protection Device Based On RTDS

With the rapid increase of operating distance of high-speed railway and the continuous scale expansion of railway network, higher requirements are once again asked for the safe and reliable operation of high-speed railway traction power feeding system. The protection for traction power feeding system has been a hot subject for long, feeder protection, which is a significant part of protection schemes, has been made a priority. Whether the feeder protection device can operate reliably is significantly important for the safety of the whole traction network. So far, a complete and excellent testing and analyzing method for the feeder protection device is still lacking. Therefore, a high-level platform for testing and analyzing feeder protection device is of great significance for the function testing and even the safety of the whole traction power feeding system.To build a testing platform for feeder protection device based on RTDS, the testing needs required by the device should be analyzed first on both hardware and software, and then fundamental conditions asked for testing platform should be cleared. Furthermore, the universal testing platform theory is put forward according to the configuration and performance differences between feeder protection devices. At last, based on the testing requirements proposed above, RTDS system is taken as the study subject and its computational and communicational capability and software system operating mechanism are evaluated, followed by the analysis of applicability and feasibility of building a testing platform based on RTDS.With the use of RTDS library, a universal testing platform for feeder protection device is built by taking AT traction power feeding system as the research object. Traction power feeding system model, typical faults models and communication interfaces are included in the testing platform. Above all, various kinds of conductors can be chosen within the traction network model and the length of it can be easily altered, which contributes to the convenient and quick simulation on feeder faults. What is more, digital feeder protection devices are tested using the platform, including operation correctness, tripping time, time delay, return time and so on, and the testing results are compared and analyzed, which verifies the usability and effectiveness of the testing platform.In the end, automatic testing for the device is realized by programming in Runtime to change the faults positions, transition resistances and faults types, which simplifies the testing process, shortens the research and development cycle and is greatly meaningful to the development of railway industry, besides, it can be referred to regarding the research and improvement of protection devices as well.