Retriever 16 Patches

New Features

Bug Fixes

Date

January 2, 2014

Bug Fixes

  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Fixed bug in ConditionVoltagePockets that would always indicate that the script failed.

December 19, 2013

Features and Improvements

  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Replaced script command ConditionVoltagesOnRadialBuses added in the 12/9/13 patch with script command ConditionVoltagePockets(VoltageThreshold, AngleThreshold, Filter); This script command will cover the same situations as the previous script command in addition to other situations. It will identify pockets of buses bounded by branches that meet the condition that the absolute value of the voltage difference across the branch is greater than VoltageThreshold or the absolute value of the angle difference across the branch is greater than AngleThreshold and the branch meets the specified filter. The buses contained within these pockets will have their voltages estimated based on the assumption that the voltages at buses outside these pockets are good.
  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Allow special keywords @DATETIME, @DATE, @TIME, @BUILDDATE, and @VERSION to be used as part of the filename for SaveDataUsingExportFormat, SaveData, SaveDataWithExtra, SaveObjectFields, and WriteToTextFile script commands. These special keywords will be replaced with their actual values when the file is saved.

December 9, 2013

Features and Improvements

  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Added script command ConditionVoltagesOnRadialBuses(VoltageThreshold, AngleThreshold, FilterName). The goal of this script command is to find groups of radial buses that may have bad initial voltage estimates and to get a better voltage estimate of these buses based on assuming that the voltages on buses outside of the radial group are good. These radial groups are determined by finding branches that would cause islands AND the voltage difference (absolute value) across the branch is greater than the VoltageThreshold in pu OR the angle difference (absolute value) across the branch is greater than the AngleThreshold in degrees, thus identifying parts of the system that have large voltage or angle differences. The FilterName is optional and determines which branches will be examined. If not specified all branches are considered.

December 3, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • Power Flow Solution: Improved Angle smoothing routines in some situations

November 12, 2013

Features and Improvements

  • General: When defining expressions for objects, a new option has been added to treat blank entries as zeros in the expression instead of treating the entire expression as invalid.

October 8, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • Case Information Displays: In some circumstances, calculated fields would not appear in the list of available fields for an object type. This has been fixed.

May 9, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • Available Transfer Capability (ATC) Tool: The linear ATC calculations were not always being correctly done when phase shifters are included. This has been fixed.

May 8, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • Power Flow Solution: When trying to energize a dead island, an access violation could occur during the power flow solution due to the calculation that assigns voltages to the previously dead buses.

May 2, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • Oneline Diagrams: There was a problem with Memo Text objects not showing all lines of text if a background fill was applied. This has been fixed.
  • User Interface Dialogs: Fixed error when showing the combo box list of string expressions at the top of the Expression dialog. It was showing the list of numeric expressions instead.

April 5, 2013

Features and Improvements

  • Power Flow Solution: Added error checking for parallel transformers so that if they do not regulate the same bus (actually ZBR Bus group), then the transformer will be turned off control automatically and an appropriate message written to the log
  • User Interface Dialogs: Modified the list of recently open files so it will dynamically increase the visual width when file names become extremely long so that the entire file name can still be viewed.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Contingency Analysis: When using the DC Approximation inside of contingency analysis, the monitoring of interface MW flows was not working properly. This has been fixed.
    • File Formats: When loading an EPC file, changed the default setting of "Sharing of generator vars across groups of buses during remote regulation" so it default so use the SUM OF user-specified remote regulation percentages.
    • File Formats: When reading a RAW file, modified to handle bus records which omit the voltage magnitude and angle. If these values are omitted, then we assume a magnitude of 1.0 and an angle of 0.0. Previously it would cause an error when reading the file.

March 29, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • File Formats: Fixed a bug that would not allow a RAW file to load. The message log would indicate that the file was loaded successfully, but no data at all was loaded.

March 28, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • Power Flow Solution: Fixed a power flow convergence problem that could be caused by generators being taken off AVR control due to them oscillating by repeatedly hitting and backing off Mvar limits. This problem could occur if using the option to check generator Mvar limits immediately and the option to prevent controller oscillation.

March 22, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • Contingency Analysis: Fixed an access violation that could occur when running contingency analysis. This would only occur if a case contained areas spanning multiple islands.
  • Power Flow Solution: A bug was introduced in the March 14, 2013 patch that affects the remote regulation of generators that are regulating buses within the same grouping of buses connected by very low impedance branches. This could lead to convergence problems with the power flow. This has been fixed.
  • Simulator Automation Server (SimAuto): Complex values were getting returned as integers when using any of the GetParameters functions. This has been fixed.

March 14, 2013

Features and Improvements

  • Oneline Diagrams: Flow arrows based on Custom Float 1 will now work with the Difference Flows options showing Difference Case and Base Case.
  • User Interface Dialogs: When using the Difference Flows options for showing Difference Case and Base Case, Custom Float values will now be shown correctly in user dialogs.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Contingency Analysis: When determining which buses are remotely regulated by generators, Simulator considers buses that are connected by very low impedance branches to be the same. This will allow coordination of generator regulation among buses that effectively control the same bus. In certain situations, contingencies that cause the groupings of the low impedance branches to change could result in a generator not regulating the correct bus. This could lead to an incorrect power flow solution. This has been fixed.

March 7, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • Bus View and Substation View Onelines: Make fonts on bus views scale in relation to the smaller screen dimension so scaling remains consistent in portrait mode.
  • Oneline Diagrams: Fixed a bug when copying and pasting oneline display objects along with their layers.
  • Oneline Diagrams: Fixed a bug caused when reading a PWD file that would not allow selecting the correct display object.
  • User Interface Dialogs: Added a Test button on the Expressions dialog to validate the expression and help with expression design. After specifying the expression function, clicking this button will either provide the value of the result or an error message if the expression is not valid.
  • User Interface Dialogs: Added better error checking and reporting of errors for Expressions.

February 21, 2013

Bug Fixes

  • Contingency Analysis: Cleaned up the reading/writing to/from an AUX file of the various Advanced Limit Monitoring options associated with violations based on a change relative to the reference state.
  • Contingency Analysis: Fixed a very large memory leak that occurred when using incremental topology processing in contingency analysis
  • File Formats: Fixed error when writing out negative values of series resistance for a branch to an EPC file.
  • File Formats: When reading in three-winding transformer records from a RAW file, we now allow a terminal bus to be specified which is NOT listed in the bus records if the STAT field indicates that the respective winding is OPEN. Thus the tertiary bus can be omitted from the bus table if the STAT=3, secondary if STAT=2, and primary if STAT=4. In these situations, Simulator will automatically create the bus number referenced as a terminal of the three-winding transformer and write an appropriate message to the log. Recent MISO cases were found to contain this structure for 145 transformers.

January 31, 2013

Features and Improvements

  • General: Fixed retrievals so that those data sources that create temporary files do so in the logged-in user's temporary directory when the temporary retrieval folder is left unspecified.

January 29, 2013

Features and Improvements

  • Case Information Displays: Added a field with generators, Mvar Capability Curve Is Defined, to indicate if the generator has a curve and not if the curve should be used. No longer create a default curve when setting the Use Mvar Capability Curve option to YES through the generator case information display and a curve does not already exist. A default curve will only be created if setting this option through the generator dialog and a curve does not already exist. A curve can only be used if one has been created and the option to use it is set.
  • Time Step Simulation: Added a button on the Results tab that will allow you to send all results to Excel. The format and data that gets sent will be the same as when sending each table to Excel one at a time. Only the results tables that actually have objects defined will be sent to Excel. All results will be sent to a new workbook in separate worksheets.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Available Transfer Capability (ATC) Tool: Allow other dialogs to be accessed when opening the Limit Monitoring and Violations dialog from the ATC dialog.
    • File Formats: When appending switched shunt data from an EPC file and attempting to keep the IDs unique, instead of always modifying the Bus Shunt Fixed ID if there is a conflict, modify the ID of the shunt that is flagged for delete if there is one. The Bus Shunt Fixed will be modified if both shunts are flagged for delete. This is intended to set the ID of the shunt that shouldn't be deleted to the desired value if attempting to replace an SVD with a Bus Shunt Fixed or vice versa.

January 17, 2013

Features and Improvements

  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Added optional parameter FileType to DetermineBranchesThatCreateIslands(Filter,StoreBuses,"filename",SetSelectedOnLines,FileType) script command to specify the file format. CSV format is now available in addition to the existing AUX format. CSV format puts pairs of islanded buses and the branches that island them on the same line.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Fixed a bug in the Scale script command that would not scale properly if scaling based on MW, Mvar.
    • Available Transfer Capability (ATC) Tool: When using a power flow case with multiple islands, OTDF values for branches not contained in the "main" island were not properly calculated. The "main" island is defined to be the one with the most buses. This has been fixed.
    • Contingency Analysis: Fixed a bug that would not properly report interface violations when using one of the Advanced Limit Monitoring options that compares the violation results to base case conditions. This was only a problem when using one of the dc methods.
    • Sensitivity Calculations: Fixed a problem with TLR calculations when choosing the Slack as the transactor. Previously, the slack was determined from the island with the most buses. If the line or interface was not in the main island, no results were calculated. Now the slack is based on the island in which the line or interface is contained.
    • Transient Stability: Removed logging of initial limit violation for GGOV1 regarding fsrt. This represents one of three inputs into a low value select block and it is not uncommon for the limit to be exceed in the steady state solution, thus logging the violation is unnecessary.
    • User Interface Dialogs: When setting the dc loss multiplier for an area or zone, the dc loss multiplier for buses within those groupings will be set to the same value regardless of where you change the multiplier for the area or zone. Previously, you could only change the multiplier from the special DC Power Flow Loss Setup dialog that contains the loss multipliers.

December 6, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • User Interface Dialogs: The Advanced Filter dialog now has a button that will allow you to save filters to an auxiliary file. There are three options: Save the current filter, save all filters of the current filter type, or save all filters.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Contingency Analysis: Fixed an access violation that could occur when saving a case after deleting a Custom Monitor. This would only occur if contingency analysis had been run and there were violations that contained the custom monitor that had been deleted.
    • Contingency Analysis: When reading a Shunt contingency element from an auxiliary file using labels for the shunt, the shunt could not be found resulting in an unlinked element. This has been fixed.
    • Transient Stability: Fixed bug that would not allow the Kis term for the GENTPJ machine model to be visible in the case information displays. This was only a problem with the term being visible in the table as it was being read and written correctly from file formats and could be edited on the generator dialog.

November 29, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Contingency Analysis Tool: When converting contingencies defined by breakers to device contingencies, now have the option to keep the original contingency definition for any contingencies that end up with no elements after the conversion.
  • Transient Stability: Added showing the Status of dynamic models to the validation lists.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Contingency Analysis: When clicking the Abort button after clicking the Pause button on the contingency analysis dialog, the reference state was not being restored. The reference state is now restored any time that you click the Abort button.
    • Transient Stability: Modified the number of digits shown on the axis labels so that the formatting shows the appropriate number of decimal places.
    • Transient Stability: Fixed bug with Exciter model ESST3A caused by flipping the Tb and Tc parameters when the model was loded from a DYD file. This would cause an unstable response.
    • Transient Stability: On the Result Storage tab of the Transient Stability dialog under Store to RAM Options, that tables that allow selection of which fields to store could be filtered using the Area/Zone/Owner filters but it wasn't obvious that the tables were filtered. There is now an indication that the tables are being filtered and the Area/Zone/Owner filter option shows up in the Case Information Toolbar.
    • Transient Stability: The Results from RAM Time Values tables now have an indication in the table caption if they are being filtered by Area/Zone/Owner filters.

November 14, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Transient Stability: Modified the feature which automatically inserts the Distribution Equivalent model into the network model of the power flow case. It will now copy the original load record's Memo and Custom Strings into newly created load records. Also modified the newly created load records IDs to now be "MA", "MB", "MC", "MD", "C1" for static load, and "PE" for the discharge lighting load.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Contingency Analysis: Fixed error with loading an auxiliary file which contained the CTG_OPTIONS object that contained the specification of the post-contingency auxiliary file (variable name = CtgFileName:1). The post-contingency auxiliary file was not being properly set and ended up begin set blank.
    • Oneline Diagrams: Modified how dragging of a bus with attached lines works if the line had exactly 3 vertices. Previously the middle vertex could be moved too much.
    • Transient Stability: Fixed error in display of TLVPL parameter for WT4G1 wind turbine model. This value could never changed from 0.02.

    • Transient Stability: Fixed error in initializing the WT4E model when the WT4T model was missing.
    • Transient Stability: Fixed error in auto-correction of the Vemax limit of a ESAC7B exciter.

November 1, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Added option to control oneline linking when reading from script command OpenOneline. OpenOneline("myoneline.pwd","",NO,NO,LABEL); will link using labels, NAMENOMKV will link using nominal kV, and NUMBER will link using number.
  • Bug Fixes

    • General: Fixed an access violation that could occur after when opening a new case or closing Simulator after a case has been opened. This would only occur if the first case opened contained generators or branches with owners that had a zero percentage share.

October 31, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Modified the script command SendToExcel() to speed it up.
  • File Formats: Modified the export of EPC files to ensure the order in which multi-terminal DC converters are written conforms to a hard-coded ordering required by users in WECC when running transient stability user-written models.
  • General: Added option for economic merit order scaling for injection groups on the Scale dialog.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Fixed a bug trying to use the name of custom fields when defining filter conditions and the columns in Case Info Customizations. We were just looking for a generic variablename instead of looking for the variable name for the specific object class that is being used.
    • General: Update the owners lists when buses, gens, loads, or lines get deleted to prevent an access violation that would occur when the owner case information table was open or if there was an owner text field on a oneline.

October 23, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Case Information Displays: Added a new Branch field to show the difference in bus angle at each end of the branch (From Angle - To Angle).
  • Contingency Analysis Tool: When showing Custom Monitors as Violations, show the name of the Custom Monitor as the Category instead of just showing "Custom."
  • User Interface Dialogs: Added the ability to save the Jacobian Matlab M file in scientific notation.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Sped up the SendToExcel script command. A workbook will now be saved in the current directory with the specified name.
    • General: Fixed circular reference errors that could occur as a result of renaming a model condition, model filter, or model expression.
    • Oneline Diagrams: Fixed a bug with copying and pasting screen layers from one oneline to another. Previously, an object would not be placed in the correct layer once pasted unless the screen layers in the new oneline were in the exact same order as the old oneline.
    • Time Step Simulation: Increased the number of time points that may be inserted at one time to 100,000.
    • Transient Stability: When converting the CMPLDW model to component parts in the power flow, fixed some problems with initializing the component parts.
    • Transient Stability: Added error checking on the GAST_GE and URGS3T governor models to automatically increase Lmax if it is initially too small.
    • Transient Stability: Fixed a bug that would not implement injection group gen drop correctly.

October 9, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Oneline Diagrams: Can now include multi-section lines with the KML file export and import options.
  • Bug Fixes

    • General: The October 5, 2012 fix that improved speed of loading a large number of Model Expressions or Custom Expressions from an auxiliary file caused a potential bug where Model Filters stored in a PWB file would not be loaded correctly. This could result in an access violation. This has been fixed.

October 8, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Contingency Analysis Tool: Added What Actually Occurred tab next to the Violations tab on the Contingency Analysis dialog to show what occurred for the selected contingency.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): When using the CloseWithBreakers script command, devices will now have their status set to closed if they are open in addition to closing breakers to close the device. Previously if the status of the device was open, the device couldn't be closed by closing breakers.
    • File Formats: Fixed reading in an Areva HDB Export CSV file to handle reading information from the last TAB record properly.

October 5, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • File Formats: Fixed bug creating subscriptions from DI/DINAME file. Bug could potentially create multiple (incorrect) aliases with the same name if a point name was empty in the DI record.

October 5, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Can now refer to custom expression by name rather than number location of the field. Instead of using "CustomExpression:location" can now use "CustomExpresion:name". Using this option for custom expressions requires that a name be specified for the custom expression
  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): When saving out an entire case as an auxiliary file, the field "AllLabels" is included for each object type that allows labels and has some labels defined.
  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Improved speed of loading a large number of Model Expressions or Custom Expressions from an auxiliary file.
  • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Allow the SaveCase script command to take special keywords as part of the filename. Simulator will replace these special strings as desired when creating the filename to save. @DATETIME will replace the keyword with the actual date an time in the format yyyymmdd_hhnnss-hhmm with the UTC offset included on the end of the time. The other special keywords @DATE, @TIME, @BUILDDATE,and @VERSION can also be used but are not as useful as the @DATETIME.
  • Case Information Displays: Show the "Disable If True in CTG Ref" and "Evaluate in CTG Ref" fields by default with the Model Condition case info.
  • Transient Stability: Add ability to right-click on a plot series trace in a transient stability plot and choose "Bus View". This will automatically open the bus view related to the object associated with the plot series.
  • User Interface Dialogs: Add an option the bottom of any dialogs System Menu for "Print" which will send an image of the dialog to the printer.
  • Bug Fixes

    • Auxiliary Files (SCRIPT and DATA Sections): Using the script command "Scale" with injection groups, the scaling was not functioning properly since the patch release on August 24, 2012. This has been fixed.
    • Power Flow Solution: Fixed error in how area interchange was handled when solving a DC power flow solution in a case which had transformers with non-zero magnetizing conductances.
    • Transient Stability: Fixed error in the transient stability contingency command requesting that loads within an Injection Group be opened. Previously this wasn't working properly.

September 27, 2012

Bug Fixes

  • Integrated Topology Processing (ITP): If using a full-topology case with the Use Consolidation option set to true in Simulator without the Integrated Topology Processing add-on, the power flow might fail to converge. This has been fixed.
  • Power Flow Solution: When a switched shunt is on Wind Mvar Control Regulation and the generator that it is controlling is opened, the shunt Mvar injection will be set to zero.

September 20, 2012

Bug Fixes

  • Power Flow Solution: Fixed an access violation that could occur in the angle smoothing process if closing in a series of zero impedance branches.

September 12, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Integrated Topology Processing (ITP): When determining the Derived Status of a device and a closed breaker is found, we now look for a connected generator, load, or closed branch on the other side of the breaker to fully determine that the device is closed.

August 30, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Case Information Displays: Added the ability to specify the Key Fields type from the Case Information Toolbar.

August 7, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • Integrated Topology Processing (ITP): When determining the Derived Status of a device (branch, gen, load, shunt, etc.) by interrogating the system topology, we will no longer consider a Load Break Disconnect as something which will signify that a device is CLOSED.
  • Integrated Topology Processing (ITP): When determining the Derived Status of a device by interrogating the system topology, we will no longer consider a breaker that is directly in series with a switched shunt as something which will signify that a device is CLOSED (except for that particular switched shunt of course).
  • Integrated Topology Processing (ITP): When determining the Derived Status of a device by interrogating the system topology, we will no longer consider a breaker that is in parallel with another type of branch as something which signifies that a device is CLOSED. This is meant to eliminate the consideration of breakers which represent bypass breakers such as for a series capacitor.
  • Transient Stability: Added ability to store the Transmission Line Relay Model states to hard-drive. Previously these could only be stored to RAM.
  • Bug Fixes

    • File Formats: Fixed a problem when reading back in a PWB file which contained Model Expressions which referenced a Model Filter or Model Condition. This reference would be lost after loading back in the PWB file.

April 26, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • General: New objecttype POWERWORLDSESSION is now available that will provide access to the Retriever executable currently being used. Use variablename VERSION to return just the executable version and VERSION:1 to return a string listing the add ons.

April 4, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • General: Added Center X/Longitude Location and Center Y/Latitude Location fields to the Display Explorer case information displays. These provide the center location of an object. Changing these values will update the X/Longitude and Y/Latitude fields.

March 14, 2012

Bug Fixes

  • General: Fixed PI data source so that it works.
  • General: Access violation could occur when unlocking the software. This has been fixed.

March 9, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • General: Added Online field for dc lines and VSC dc lines.
  • General: Added Derived Online field for branches, dc lines, and VSC dc lines. If Online = NO then Derived Online = OPEN, else Derived Online = Derived Status.

March 7, 2012

Features and Improvements

  • General: Changed how Derived Status is determined. If Status = OPEN then Derived Status = OPEN else if breaker then Derived Status = CLOSED. If non-breaker shunt device (gen, load, or switched shunt) and a closed breaker is found by looking outward from the device terminal, a device is considered to be CLOSED. For a non-breaker branch, look from both terminals to determine if CLOSED, OPEN (no closed breaker at either terminal), OPEN FROM (closed breaker at to terminal only), or OPEN TO (closed breaker at from terminal only). Encountering a shunt device (gen, load, or switched shunt) when examining a branch will be considered the same as finding a closed breaker.