Transformer Power Management

Problem Statement:

1. Chronic high voltage is most often attributable to excessive correction for voltage drop on the utility transmission and distribution system. Voltage drop on electrical conductors is a common situation anywhere. But, in locations with low electrical load density, such as suburban and rural areas, long conductor runs magnifies the problem.
2. Impedance causes the voltage to decrease along the length of a conductor as the current flow increases to meet the demand. To correct a voltage drops, the utility employs on-load tap changing voltage regulators (OLTCs) and line drop compensating voltage regulators (LDCs) to boost (raise) or buck (lower) the voltage.
3. Customers nearest to an OLTC or LDC can experience over voltage as the utility tries to overcome conductor voltage drop for those customers at the far end of the line.
4. In many locations the impact of load-driven voltage drop is seen as daily fluctuations that result in voltage levels being the highest at the time of lowest load demand.
5. A less typical cause of high voltage problems is caused by local transformers that have been set to boost voltage to offset reduced voltage levels. This most often occurs at facilities with heavy loads at the end of distribution lines. When the heavy loads are operating, a normal voltage level is maintained but when the loads are shut off, the voltage levels shoot up.
6. Electrical devices are designed to operate at a certain standard voltage in order for the product to achieve specified levels of performance, efficiency, safety and reliability. Operating an electrical device above the specified voltage level range can lead to problems such as malfunction, shut down, overheating, premature failure,   etc. For example, a printed circuit board can be expected have a shorter life when operated above its rated voltage for long periods of time.

Solution:

1. Design of Microcontroller based system is to monitor the voltage fluctuations on a input /output side of transformer and acquire real time data.
2. Development of automatic transformer tap changing using servo/stepper motors.
3. The system should raise the alarm during threshold voltage levels or emergency.
4. The system should be reliable rugged.
5. The system can be fitted on outdoor transformers.

TECHNICAL FEASIBILITY:

Microcontroller Based Data Logger System (MDLS):

MDLS requires no additional hardware and allows the selection of amount of data and the time intervals between them. The collected data can easily be exported to a PC computer via a serial port. MDLS is very compact because it employs few integrated circuits. An MDLS design which is selected should meet the following requirements:-

1. It should be easily programmable.
2. The user must be able to choose measurement rates.
3. It should backup data when sys power is momentarily disrupted or removed entirely.
4. It should be able to export data to a PC computer via a serial port.
5. It should be simple and inexpensive.

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