Multiple merging unit testing system
AssigneeSchweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Inc.
InventorsEdmund O. Schweitzer, III, David E. Whitehead, Krishnanjan Gubba Ravikumar, Austin Edward Wade
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Systems and methods testing a power protection relay include a merging unit to receive signals from an electric power delivery system. The merging unit includes a test signal input to receive test signals from a testing device, a relay output to output at least one of the test signals to a power protection relay, a distribution output to output at least another of the test signals to one or more additional merging units, and a switch subsystem to route the test signal to the relay output or the distribution output.
Claims20
A system to test a protection relay for use in an electric power system, comprising:
- a first merging unit to receive electric power system signals from an electric power delivery
- system, the first merging unit comprising:
- a test signal input to receive a plurality of test signals;
- a protection relay output to communicate a first subset of the plurality of test signals to the protection relay;
- a distribution output to communicate a second subset of the plurality of test signals;
- and
- a switch subsystem to selectively route the test signals to the relay output or the distribution output;
- and
- a second merging unit in communication with the first merging unit via the distribution output to receive the second subset of the plurality of test signals.
A system to test a protection relay for use in an electric power system, comprising:
- a first merging unit to receive electric power system signals from an electric power delivery system, the first merging unit comprising:
- a test signal input to receive a plurality of test signals;
- a protection relay output to communicate a first subset of the plurality of test signals to the protection relay;
- a distribution output to communicate a second subset of the plurality of test signals;
- and
- a switch subsystem to selectively route the test signals to the relay output or the distribution output;
- a signal conversion subsystem comprising one or more analog-to-digital (A/D) converters to convert the test signals from the testing device from an analog signal to a digital signal;
- and
- a packetizing subsystem to group at least some of the test signals after being converted by the signal conversion subsystem.
A system to test a protection relay, comprising:
- a test device comprising phase outputs to transmit a plurality of phase test signals;
- a first merging unit in communication with the test device, the first merging unit comprising:
- a first test signal input to receive the plurality of phase test signals;
- a first protection relay output to communicate a first subset of the phase test signals to the protection relay;
- and
- a first distribution output to communicate a second subset of the plurality of phase test signals;
- a second merging unit in communication with the first distribution output of the first merging unit, the second merging unit comprising:
- a second test signal input to receive the second subset of the plurality of phase test signals from the first distribution output of the first merging unit;
- and
- a second protection relay output to communicate the second subset of the plurality of phase test signals to the power protection relay.
A method of testing a protection relay of an electric power delivery system, the method comprising:
- receiving a plurality of test signals with a first merging unit from a testing device;
- directing a first subset of the plurality of test signals through a switch subsystem of the first merging unit to the protection relay;
- directing a second subset of the plurality of test signals through the switch subsystem of the first merging unit to a second merging unit;
- directing the second subset of the plurality of test signals through the second merging unit to the protection relay;
- converting the test signals from analog signals to digital signals with one or more analog-to-digital converters of the first merging unit;
- and
- bypassing an analog-to-digital converter in the second merging unit when supplying at least some of the test signals from the first merging unit.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.