Under the consortium leadership of EWE AG, enera was one of five projects funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) as part of the "Schaufenster intelligente Energie - Digitale Agenda für die Energiewende" (SINTEG) program. In the project, solutions for the three main topics grid, market and data were developed and tested in the model region in the northwest of Lower Saxony.

OFFIS has driven enera in various topics, which we describe in more detail below:

1. Investigation of resilience for digital connectivity in the CyberResilience Lab.
2. Evaluation of the enera Smart Grid Operator in the SESA lab.
3. Field test of an agent-based flexibility management system for decentralized battery storage systems.
4. New business models in the context of the digital energy system: Scenario- and model-based simulation of a citizen storage system.
5. enera qualification center: Playful introduction to information security using a point-and-click adventure.
6. enera overall architecture and information security in enera.

 

1. Study of resilience for digital connectivity

For the digitalization of the energy system, work package 1 (AP1) increasingly connected sensors and actuators with communication support to achieve better observability and controllability in the energy system.

In enera AP1, OFFIS had investigated the communication technologies CDMA 450 and LTE-Advanced under different communication disturbances based on the use case "Delivery of regionalized system services at the enera market by distributed generation plants". The evaluation was performed using a simulation environment consisting of the communication simulator EXata and the framework for multi-agent systems ISAAC, in which COHDA was implemented. In EXata, the communication technologies and the communication disturbances (e.g., failure of a communication node, jamming, or congestion due to communication of other communication participants) were modeled and simulated. The resulting communication delays were integrated into the agent framework so that they were taken into account in the rescheduling calculation. The results show that the optimization time of COHDA is affected by the underlying communication infrastructure and the disruptive events, and that special attention must be paid to the overall rescheduling calculation time for product delivery to the enera market.

Links to further information (only in german):

• Publication "Evaluation of Communication Infrastructures for Distributed Optimization of Virtual Power Plant Schedules", https://www.offis.de/offis/publikation/evaluation-of-communication-infrastructures-for-distributed-optimization-of-virtual-power-plant-schedules.html
• enera project magazine: AP1, p. 74 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektmagazin.pdf
• enera project compendium: solution element "ICT infrastructure and roll-out of smart metering systems" p. 18 ff,
• https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektkompendium.pdf

 

2. Evaluation of the enera smart grid operator in SESA laboratory

The expansion of power grids is not keeping pace with the growing generation capacity of renewables. Smart grids help accommodate more green power. As a result, operators in control centers are taking on a new role - and increasingly complex tasks. Automated processes and tools, which were defined and demonstrated in work package 3, help them cope with these tasks.

OFFIS tested and evaluated intelligent decentralized control solutions for the management of active and reactive power systems in the grid. For this purpose, a communication network for grid operation was first modeled and validated with empirical data. In a second step, the interaction of the communication network with the electrical grid was simulated in the SESA laboratory at OFFIS. Thereby, the intelligent control solutions were evaluated with respect to different quality attributes, mainly concerning communication.

Links to further information (only in german):

• Publication "Grid Function Virtualization for Reliable Provision of Services in Cyber-Physical Energy Systems", https://www.offis.de/offis/publikation/grid-function-virtualization-for-reliable-provision-of-services-in-cyber-physical-energy-systems.html
• enera project magazine: AP3, p. 82 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektmagazin.pdf
• enera Project Compendium: Solution Element "Concept for Validation and Testing of Communication Networks" p. 102 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektkompendium.pdf

 

3. Field test of an agent-based flexibility management system for decentralized battery storage successfully completed

Battery storage systems provide valuable flexibility for an energy supply system that is primarily based on the use of renewable energies. They compensate for fluctuations in the feed-in of electrical energy from supply-dependent wind and photovoltaic plants and increasingly also provide system services such as primary control power. However, managing the flexibility of small, decentralized battery storage systems in private households and commercial or industrial enterprises in particular is a technical challenge. In order to participate effectively and efficiently in market processes, the distributed flexibility must be aggregated. However, local utilization goals of battery storage, such as peak shaving, must also be taken into account.

In work package 5, OFFIS accompanied the field test of an agent-based flexibility management system for distributed battery storage systems, which was based on the enera project. In this context, individual battery storages were represented by intelligent software agents, which consider local usage goals and preferences, implement them in a prioritized manner, and provide remaining flexibility to an aggregator. The focus of OFFIS' work was on the challenge of which advantages and disadvantages an agent-based system offers in the context of flexibility management, and which technical-organizational obstacles stand in the way of using intelligent agents in energy supply. It has been shown that agent systems, which have been researched for more than a decade in the context of the energy industry, are on the one hand now about to make the leap into practice. On the other hand, however, aggregators or operators of virtual power plants are often still skeptical about the technical feasibility and perceived complexity of distributed optimization approaches - here, it is still the task of application-oriented research to vividly communicate the potential of distributed approaches and to actively shape the transfer into practice.

Links to further information (only in german):

• enera project magazine: AP5, p. 102 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektmagazin.pdf

 

4. New business models in the context of the digital energy system: Scenario- and model-based simulation of a citizen storage systems

The objectives of work package 9 were to identify and demonstrate new data-driven business models and new energy products based on the digitalized energy system. For this purpose, a supporting innovation process around the energy system was established and continuously carried out with the partners over the project duration. With this innovation process, numerous new business models as well as new products were identified. After identification and potential analysis, selected ideas were further developed in the form of a demonstrator.

Here, OFFIS pursued the idea of a citizen storage system and investigated a model for the neighborly use of an electricity storage system. Through the joint use of a larger storage unit, installation costs and self-consumption of the households, which behave differently, can be optimized. In the citizen storage use case, the focus was on creating a simulation model to optimize the self-consumption of a neighborhood consisting of households, households with PV systems, and one or more batteries. The simulation model was implemented using the mosaic platform (a flexible smart grid co-simulation framework, see http://mosaik.offis.de/). The developed prototype is intended to allow subject matter experts to design their own scenarios according to their own needs. Scenarios are designed through an interactive geo-dashboard, see also Figure 3. Each component can be customized for the particular simulation. For example, for a household, characteristics such as annual consumption, people in the household, and house area can be customized. For the PV systems and batteries, the focus is on master data and technical metrics. Usually, several scenarios are investigated in order to create a basis for comparison, for example, for the installation of different batteries for a downstream analysis.

The main results were:

• The simulation of different scenarios serves to optimize the use of a centralized and neighborhood-based citizen storage.
• The software solution of the citizen storage use case helps subject matter experts to develop their own scenarios in order to determine the best individual configuration for a citizen storage to be installed in a neighborhood and thus reduce installation costs and further costs.
• The scenarios created by the citizen storage use case software solution are simulated using the mosaik platform.
• The comparison of the simulated data from a specific scenario should help to optimize the self-consumption in a neighborhood.

Links to further information (only in german):

• enera project magazine: AP9, p. 122 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektmagazin.pdf
• enera project compendium: solution element "citizen storage" p. 298 ff,
• https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektkompendium.pdf

 

5. enera Qualification Center: Playful introduction to information security through a point-and-click adventure game

Innovative technologies bring with them many tasks for all employees in the industry. New tools, processes and methods require comprehensive qualification, for which a qualification center with various formats was developed in work package 10.

As digitization continues to grow, so does the need and demand for information technology security. This need is reflected, among other things, in legal requirements such as the General Data Protection Regulation or also in standards such as the ISO/IEC 27000 series of standards. However, this poses new challenges for organizations, companies and employees alike, because data and IT security is a socio-technical problem that cannot be solved by technical or organizational measures alone, such as cryptography. In addition to these measures, awareness of the problem of information security is an essential component of a successful security strategy.

In order to raise this necessary awareness as well as the attention for the various dangers, a playful approach was chosen in enera within the framework of WP 10 and WP12 and a so-called point-and-click adventure game was developed and implemented as a software prototype, taking into account recommendations of the BSI (German “Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik”, Federal Office for Information Security). Lucia, as the protagonist of the game, runs through various scenes in which possible attacker approaches are presented in a playful manner. The focus is on a variety of security-relevant information, such as information on password managers, password security and computer locks, which can be found throughout the game. The PC game was primarily realized on the basis of the Unity game engine, C# as the underlying programming language and the Unity plug-in "Adventure Creator".

Links to further information (only in german):

• enera project magazine: AP10, p. 90 ff., https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektmagazin.pdf

 

6a. enera overall architecture

Work package 12 within enera dealt with the information technology development of the enera overall architecture including an information security concept. OFFIS took over the project management for this WP together with another partner of the enera consortium. In the following, different contents and results of WP12 with the focus on enera overall architecture and OFFIS participation are described.

In a sub-work package, the enera overall architecture was recorded and documented. First, a total of 76 use cases were captured together with all project partners, partly already before the official start of the project, 52 of them in detail including a step-by-step analysis. The use case methodology according to IEC 62559-2 with a standardized use case template was used to capture the use cases in a standardized manner. The tool used here was a Use Case Management Repository (UCMR), which was provided by OFFIS and also further developed during the process. In addition, the SGAM (Smart Grid Architecture Model) together with the SGAM 3D visualization, for the visualization of Smart Grid architectures, as well as the Guidelines for Smart Grid Cybersecurity according to NIST IR 7628, for the integration of information security aspects, were used for the analysis and documentation of the overall architecture. After the acquisition, an SGAM visualization tool called NISTViz was additionally developed to be able to incorporate the topic of security into Smart Grid architectures. With this tool, it is possible to annotate the respective Logical Interface Categories according to NIST IR 7628 on SGAM representations of actors and their connections, from which an initial assessment of the protection requirements for confidentiality, integrity and availability can be derived.

As part of a sub-work package, a metrics system was developed that can be applied to cross-system smart grid architectures to enable an architectural assessment. The basis for the application of the KPI system is formed by standardized use cases according to IEC 62559 and their representation in the Smart Grid Architecture Model (SGAM). These can be imported into a KPI dashboard and evaluated by adding just a few additional pieces of information.

At the end of the project, the use case acquisition and SGAM modeling in enera was reflected upon and experiences gathered were exchanged with about twenty to thirty interview partners as part of AP12. Background of these interviews are socio-technical issues in the use and application of the use case methodology and the SGAM in the project collaboration. Thereby, the social level of collaborative project work was investigated and thereby, which influence the use of standardized architecture models has on the collaboration and design of the projects as well as the innovation activities. The aim was not only to gain organizational sociological insights, but also to derive practical tips for the design and application of use cases and SGAM in other projects. The results will then be incorporated into the use case template and SGAM.

Links to further information (only in german):

• Publication "Addressing Quality Properties In Use Case Descriptions - Adding Assurance To A Use Case Process", to be published by Fraunhofer Verlag.
• enera project magazine: AP12, p. 94 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektmagazin.pdf
• enera Project Compendium: Solution Element "Adjustments to the Use Case Template with Regard to Security-by-Design" p. 130 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektkompendium.pdf
• enera project compendium: solution element "Assurance cases as a guide for the use case survey" p. 180 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektkompendium.pdf

 

6b. Information security in enera

Work package 12 within enera dealt with the information technology development of the overall enera architecture including an information security concept. OFFIS took over the project management for this WP together with another partner of the enera consortium. In the following, various contents and results of WP12 with a focus on information security and OFFIS participation are described.

One work step dealt with which national and international regulations, i.e. laws, guidelines, regulations, norms and standards, are relevant for the project with regard to information security. For this purpose, corresponding laws, standards, etc. as well as certifications on information security aspects were analyzed and their relevance for all enera work packages was shown. Furthermore, the topic "Information security in software development" was dealt with here.

Based on the use cases recorded and the overall enera architecture created from them, a security analysis in accordance with BSI-Grundschutz for the introduction of an information security management system (ISMS) was carried out together with the project partners from WP12. For this purpose, an identified scope with the title "Measurement and Control via Smart Meter Gateway", which includes several use cases in this subject area, was selected and analyzed. On this basis, the structural analysis, protection requirements assessment, modeling and risk analysis were then carried out so that an ISMS could be introduced for this scope.

For the enera showcase project, all use cases in the overall project were systematically recorded using the use case template (UC template) from the IEC 62559 standard, in some cases even before the project began. However, for one focus of work package AP12, information security, the template proved to be insufficient to create an ISMS. Therefore, in the last year of the project, experiences from the project were collected to develop recommendations for the extension of the UC template. These recommendations are intended to adapt the UC template according to IEC 62559 in such a way that information security aspects can already be taken into account and documented during use case identification. Thus, a security-by-design approach can be established in system development with the use of IEC 62559.

A gap analysis with various questions was also developed. Here, the focus was on existing gaps that were identified in the topics of WP12: such as gaps in regulations; the use case methodology according to IEC 62559, in which security aspects cannot yet be adequately captured; the topic of information security versus functional security; the merging of emergency management in the information security area and the energy sector; information security or the creation of an ISMS in the project and with many project partners; and the enforcement of continuous information security. These and other topics, as well as associated gaps, were identified and discussed in a results document.

As part of a subcontract in AP12 with Fraunhofer IESE, assurance cases were added to the IEC 62559 use case template. Assurance cases are used to ensure that a system can be operated in an appropriate environment, for example with respect to security features, and thus proves the fulfillment of quality features. Thus, the acquisition of critical quality characteristics finds its way into the use case acquisition. In this context, a book publication has been produced in collaboration between OFFIS and Fraunhofer IESE.

From a master's thesis in collaboration with the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg, prerequisites were created to create an IT basic protection profile according to BSI for virtual power plants. For this purpose, a result document was created that corresponds to the structure of a basic IT protection profile and thus supports those responsible in the scope of virtual power plants to create an ISMS. OFFIS supported the creation of the result document and the quality assurance.

Links to further information (only in german):

• Publication "Addressing Quality Properties In Use Case Descriptions - Adding Assurance To A Use Case Process", to be published by Fraunhofer Verlag
• enera project magazine: AP12, p. 94 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektmagazin.pdf
• enera Project Compendium: Solution Element "Adjustments to the Use Case Template with Regard to Security-by-Design" p. 130 ff, https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektkompendium.pdf
• enera project compendium: solution element "Assurance cases as a guide for the use case survey" p. 180 ff., https://projekt-enera.de/wp-content/uploads/enera-projektkompendium.pdf

At the end of the project, all project partners produced on the one hand a project magazine, which goes into more detail about the goals of the project and the work packages, and on the other hand a project compendium, which presents many results - called solution elements - of the individual work packages. The OFFIS results can also be found there. Both documents can be found here:

https://projekt-enera.de/enera-projektmagazin-projektkompendium/