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Karsai, Gabor

Publications and source records attributed to Karsai, Gabor.

Peer-to-Peer Communication Trade-Offs for Smart Grid Applications: Preprint

Peer-to-peer energy management systems for smart grids require developers to consider the trade-offs between the amount of communication traffic generated and the quality and speed of convergence of the control algorithms that are deployed. Employing a fully connected communication causes messages to scale exponentially with the number of nodes, while using a sparse connectivity causes less information dissemination leading to degradation of the algorithm performance. The best communication topology for a particular application lies somewhere in between and often requires empirical evaluation by application designers. Existing methods do not put focus on the needs for smart grid applications, which is information dissemination throughout the network and they do not provide a flexible solution for application developers to prototype and deploy different topologies without modifying the application code. This paper introduces a configurable virtual communication topology framework TopLinkMgr, allowing users to specify any chosen communication topology and deploy peer-to-peer applications using it. It also introduces a self-adaptive, fault-tolerant topology management algorithm, Bounded Path Dissemination that can ensure the dissemination of information to all peers within a specified threshold for a sparsely connected topology. Experiments show that the algorithm improves on convergence speed and accuracy over state-of-the-art methods and is also robust against node failures. The results indicate the possibility of achieving a close-to optimal convergence without overloading the network allowing the realization of peer-to-peer control platforms covering larger and more complex power systems.

Bounded Path Dissemination↗

Resilient Information Architecture Platform for Smart Grid (RIAPS)

A number of emerging trends will substantially alter the operation and control of the electric grid over the next several decades. These trends include ensuring resiliency under severe weather events, increasing integration of renewable electricity generation, supporting changing electricity demand patterns, and the improving cost effectiveness of distributed energy resources. To address these challenges, the future “Smart Grid” management will need to transition from centralized to coordinated distributed control paradigm. Reliable operation of the Smart Grid depends on distributed intelligence realized through software applications that run on distributed computing devices attached to the power system to collect data and collaboratively manage resources. However, much of the existing software for Smart Grid-enabled devices is either proprietary or developed with custom solutions, which limits interoperability among the heterogeneous devices and hinders the ability to manage system-level reliability, security, and resiliency requirements. Additionally, this approach makes Smart Grid applications hard to maintain, evolve, verify, and replace; resulting in high development and deployment costs. Further development of the Smart Grid requires a reusable software base-layer to move from hard-coded functionality to a plug-and-play architecture capable of managing system-level objectives and constraints in addition to providing consistent common services across heterogeneous devices and applications. Vanderbilt University, in collaboration with North Carolina State University and Washington State University has developed a foundation ‘software platform’ for developing and deploying robust, reliable, effective and secure software applications for the Smart Grid. The Resilient Information Architecture Platform for the Smart Grid (RIAPS) provides core services for building effective and powerful smart grid applications. It offers unique services for real-time data dissemination, fault tolerance, and coordination across apps distributed over the network.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Designing a decentralized fault-tolerant software framework for smart grids and its applications

The vision of the ‘Smart Grid’ anticipates a distributed real-time embedded system that implements various monitoring and control functions. As the reliability of the power grid is critical to modern society, the software supporting the grid must support fault tolerance and resilience of the resulting cyber-physical system. This paper describes the fault-tolerance features of a software framework called Resilient Information Architecture Platform for Smart Grid (RIAPS). The framework supports various mechanisms for fault detection and mitigation and works in concert with the applications that implement the grid-specific functions. The paper discusses the design philosophy for and the implementation of the fault tolerance features and presents an application example to show how it can be used to build highly resilient systems.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Resilient Information Architecture Platform for the Smart Grid (RIAPS): A Novel Open-Source Platform for Microgrid Control

Microgrids are seen as an effective way to achieve reliable, resilient, and efficient operation of the power distribution system. Core functions of the microgrid control system are defined by the IEEE standard 2030.7; however, the algorithms that realize these functions are not standardized, and are a topic of research. Furthermore, the corresponding controller hardware, operating system, and communication system to implement these functions vary significantly from one implementation to the next. In this paper, we introduce an open-source platform, Resilient Information Architecture Platform for the Smart Grid (RIAPS), ideally suited for implementing and deploying distributed microgrid control algorithms. RIAPS provides a design-time tool suite for development and deployment of distributed microgrid control algorithms. With support from a number of run-time platform services, developed algorithms can be easily implemented and deployed into real microgrids. To demonstrate the unique features of RIAPS, we propose and implement a distributed microgrid secondary control algorithm capable of synchronized and proportional compensation of voltage unbalance using distributed generators. In conclusion, test results show the effectiveness of the proposed control and the salient features of the RIAPS platform.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Model-based System Health Management and Contingency Planning for Autonomous UAS

Safe autonomous operations of an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) requires that the UAS can react to unforeseen circumstances, for example, after a failure has occurred. In this paper we describe a model-based run-time architecture for autonomous on-board diagnosis, system health management, and contingency management. This architecture is being instantiated on top of NASA's Core Flight System (cFS/cFE) as amajor component of the on-board AutonomousOperating System (AOS). We will describe our diagnosis and monitoring components, which continuously provide system health status. Automated reasoning with constraint satisfaction form the core of our decision-making component, which assesses the current situation, aids in failure disambiguation, and constructs a contingency plan to mitigate the failure(s) and allow for a safe end of the mission. We will illustrate our contingency management system with two case studies, one for a fixed-wing aircraft in simulation, and one for an autonomous DJI S1000+ octo-copter.

Schumann, Johann M.↗

Design Considerations for a Variable Autonomy Executive for UAS in the NAS

This paper describes research targeted towards an autonomy executive (AOS) for UAS in the National Air Space (NAS). The project goal is to incrementally provide the knowledge and intelligence onboard a UAS to safely fly in the National Air Space, eventually autonomous from remote human ground crews and communicating directly with air traffic control. Longer-term, the goal is to provide the capability for pilotless air vehicles such as air taxis that will be key for new transportation concepts such as air mobility-on-demand. For both of these targeted applications, AOS is incorporating artificial intelligence capabilities that operationally meet human pilot competencies. Even when autonomy is achieved from a remote human ground crew, AOS will have variable degrees of autonomy with respect to air traffic control (ATC), just as human pilots do now. AOS has the capability of interacting in natural language with ATC, as well as through data link protocols. AOS can adapt to varying levels of autonomy and control directed by ATC in standard and relaxed FAA phraseology- from being vectored moment by moment, to accepting broad directives such as following a specified aircraft or sighting and avoiding traffic. AOS can autonomously manage contingencies such as vehicle systems degradations and failures. It incorporates a decision maker that takes information from multiple diagnostic reasoners, disambiguates (if needed) sensor results to specific failures using active mode changes, then projects forward the impact of the degradation on the nominal plan. If the nominal plan is no longer viable, then alternative plans are formulated, and subsequently selected and executed, including abort options.

Lowry, Michael↗

Autonomy Operating System for UAVs: Pilot-in-a-Box

The Autonomy Operating System (AOS) is an open flight software platform with Artificial Intelligence for smart UAVs. It is built to be extendable with new apps, similar to smartphones, to enable an expanding set of missions and capabilities. AOS has as its foundations NASAs core flight executive and core flight software (cFEcFS). Pilot-in-a-Box (PIB) is an expanding collection of interacting AOS apps that provide the knowledge and intelligence onboard a UAV to safely and autonomously fly in the National Air Space, eventually without a remote human ground crew. Longer-term, the goal of PIB is to provide the capability for pilotless air vehicles such as air taxis that will be key for new transportation concepts such as mobility-on-demand. PIB provides the procedural knowledge, situational awareness, and anticipatory planning (thinking ahead of the plane) that comprises pilot competencies. These competencies together with a natural language interface will enable Pilot-in-a-Box to dialogue directly with Air Traffic Management from takeoff through landing. This paper describes the overall AOS architecture, Artificial Intelligence reasoning engines, Pilot-in-a-box competencies, and selected experimental flight tests to date.

Lowry, Michael↗

Goal Structuring Notation in a Radiation Hardening Assurance Case for COTS-Based Spacecraft

A systematic approach is presented to constructing a radiation assurance case using Goal Structuring Notation (GSN) for spacecraft containing commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) parts. The GSN paradigm is applied to an SRAM single-event upset experiment board designed to fly on a CubeSat November 2016. Construction of a radiation assurance case without use of hardened parts or extensive radiation testing is discussed.

Witulski, Arthur↗

Goal Structured Notation in a Radiation Hardening Safety Case for COTS-Based Spacecraft

A systematic approach is presented to constructing a radiation assurance case using Goal Structured Notation (GSN) for spacecraft containing COTS parts. The GSN paradigm is applied to an SRAM single-event upset experiment board designed to fly on a CubeSat November 2016. Construction of a radiation assurance case without use of hardened parts or extensive radiation testing is discussed.

Assurance Case↗

Model Based Analysis and Test Generation for Flight Software

We describe a framework for model-based analysis and test case generation in the context of a heterogeneous model-based development paradigm that uses and combines Math- Works and UML 2.0 models and the associated code generation tools. This paradigm poses novel challenges to analysis and test case generation that, to the best of our knowledge, have not been addressed before. The framework is based on a common intermediate representation for different modeling formalisms and leverages and extends model checking and symbolic execution tools for model analysis and test case generation, respectively. We discuss the application of our framework to software models for a NASA flight mission.

Pasareanu, Corina S.↗

Robot graphic simulation testbed

The objective of this research was twofold. First, the basic capabilities of ROBOSIM (graphical simulation system) were improved and extended by taking advantage of advanced graphic workstation technology and artificial intelligence programming techniques. Second, the scope of the graphic simulation testbed was extended to include general problems of Space Station automation. Hardware support for 3-D graphics and high processing performance make high resolution solid modeling, collision detection, and simulation of structural dynamics computationally feasible. The Space Station is a complex system with many interacting subsystems. Design and testing of automation concepts demand modeling of the affected processes, their interactions, and that of the proposed control systems. The automation testbed was designed to facilitate studies in Space Station automation concepts.

Cook, George E.↗

An automation simulation testbed

The work being done in porting ROBOSIM (a graphical simulation system developed jointly by NASA-MSFC and Vanderbilt University) to the HP350SRX graphics workstation is described. New additional ROBOSIM features, like collision detection and new kinematics simulation methods are also discussed. Based on the experiences of the work on ROBOSIM, a new graphics structural modeling environment is suggested which is intended to be a part of a new knowledge-based multiple aspect modeling testbed. The knowledge-based modeling methodologies and tools already available are described. Three case studies in the area of Space Station automation are also reported. First a geometrical structural model of the station is presented. This model was developed using the ROBOSIM package. Next the possible application areas of an integrated modeling environment in the testing of different Space Station operations are discussed. One of these possible application areas is the modeling of the Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS), which is one of the most complex subsystems of the station. Using the multiple aspect modeling methodology, a fault propagation model of this system is being built and is described.

Cook, George E.↗