Welcome. After last week's break to discuss National Energy policy, we return to our quest to overview and understand Special NIST Document 1108, the NIST Framework and Roadmap for Smart Grid Interoperability Standards. This week, YHA (your humble author) will walk the ISGO (interested Smart Grid observer) through Chapt 5, the Roadmap to Interop's Priority Action Plans, or PAPs.
A couple of blogs ago, we reviewed the 31 standards adopted as part of the Roadmap. We also talked about the 46 standards that were considered but not adopted yet, and the fact that there are still gaps in the standards that will require work to be closed. And that's where the PAPs come in. Through the NIST workshop process, a set of topics and working groups to address them were organized.
But first, it is probably worth brief interlude to put to rest any anxiety that YHA might stoop to a cattle analogy here. It is true that in addition to Priority Action Plans, PAP could also stand for Pulmonary Arterial Pressure, which is a measure of how well the cardio-pulmonary system of a bovine will operate at higher elevations. And it is also true that, since my wife and I raise breeding stock at our ranch, which is just southwest of Steamboat Springs at an elevation of around 7,100 ft, PAP is an important parameter to us. And it is further true that we test all the cattle we raise by having a well-qualified vet (there are only 2 in the country that perform this test) insert a catheter into the left ventricle of the heart and take a pressure measurement. Above 45 mm of mercury, a potentially-valuable calf faces at best deportation to lower altitude, and worst - well, let's don't talk about that, shall we? But even though PAP testing is one of the critical parameters in the success of our ranch, with a very strong genetic correlation, and a thing that most people have never even heard of, do you really think that YHA would stoop to bringing that topic into this blog, simply for the shallow purpose of making the thing more interesting? Really. I mean.
In the Roadmap, the authors grouped together the other kind of 15 PAPs into 5 overall groups, related by topic. But if you're like me, it is easier to understand them 1 at a time, so here they are:
- PAP 00 - Meter Upgradeability Standards
- PAP 01 - Guidelines for the Use of the IP protocol Suite in the Smart Grid
- PAP 02 - Guidelines for the Use of Wireless Communications
- PAP 03 - Common Specification for Price and Product Definition
- PAP 04 - Common Scheduling for Energy Transactions
- PAP 05 - Standard Meter Data Profiles
- PAP 07 - Energy Storage Interconnection Guidelines
- PAP 08 - Common Information Model (CIM) for Distribution Grid Management
- PAP 09 - Standard Demand Response Signals
- PAP 10 - Standards for Energy Usage Information
- PAP 11 - Interoperability Standards to Support Plug-In Electric Vehicles
- PAP 12 - IEC 61850 Objects/DNP3 Mapping
- PAP 13 - Harmonization of IEEE C37.118 with IEC 61850 and Time Synchronization
- PAP 14 - Transmission and Distribution Power Systems Model Mapping
- PAP 15 - Harmonize Power Line Carrier Standards for Appliance Communications in the Home
The clever and/or observant among you may note that PAP 06 seems to be missing. That's because PAP 06, the 'Meter Upgradeability Plan' was deemed to be so important, given the current schedule for many high-dollar AMI projects, that it had to be completed even before the Roadmap was published. And so it was accomplished; a bunch of meter-oriented stakeholders developed the standard for smart meter firmware upgrades, and NEMA approved it last year. In fact, I think that the whole thing only took about 90 days, which just goes to show what can be achieved when we put our minds to something.
Anyways, as you look at each of the PAPs in this chapter, you'll find that they are discussed in a common format that goes like this:
- What - definition of what the PAP will accomplish
- Why - motivation for the PAP.
- Major Plan Objectives - list of goals to be satisfied by the PAP
- Project Team - starts with the name of NIST leader, and includes the stakeholders who are contributing to the PAP.
This chapter is pretty long (30 pages) with plenty of details. You should be able to pick out the things you're interested in from the list above. But here's a warning: it isn't easy to select a small set of relevant topics. Most of the things in the list are pretty important, which makes sense if you remember that the first 'P' in PAP stands for 'Priority'. But, most PAPs give a brief synopsis at the beginning of each write up, so take a scan on those. It will be tie well spent, and may offer a few surprisingly important insights.
Next week, on to Chapt 6 Cyber Security. Certainly cybersec is one of the most critical aspects of the grid, so please join us.
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