Power grid topology inference using power line communications

Abstract

Power line communications (PLC) is one of the communication methods currently deployed and developed further to support smart grid applications. While the fact the PLC signals travel through power lines makes reliable communication more challenging than for other wired media, it also provides one distinct advantage: PLC signals can be used to learn about the grid status. In this paper, we exploit this “through the grid” property of PLC for the purpose of inferring the topology of the power grid to which a PLC network is deployed. In particular, we present a topology estimation algorithm that only requires PLC signaling between the end points of a grid, such as between meters and data concentrator in an advanced meter management system. Our methodology is alike network tomography used to infer internal properties of a communication network based on end-to-end measurements, and we refer to it as tomography-based topology inference.