MODRIO

Project results

New features include the formal modelling of requirements involving objects, sub-systems, systems and human interactions in space and time in order to automate system design verifications. With optimisation of the operation of large transients such as start-ups or shutdowns or the evaluation of the consequences of faults and failures in mind, a new modelling approach was developed. The aim was to provide the ability to simulate the system behaviour away from its nominal operating point when transitions between modes, represented by completely different sets of equations, take place. One key success factor was the involvement of large industrials whose businesses are to design and operate large CPS in four major industrial domains: energy (electricity production, transmission and distribution), aerospace (civil aircraft), transportation (trains) and buildings. Other key factors were to base tool development on two existing standards, Modelica and the FMI together with the participation of all prominent players in those two standards, in terms of standard and tool development. Finally, the project benefited from the cooperation between SMEs and research organisations.

Exploitation

One of the main early achievements was the ability to generate software code for optimising the control of 6000W, representing almost one tenth of German electrical power production. Up to 1500 MW comes from more than 2500 small solar and wind power generators that are coordinated to operate as a single big power plant.One of the main early achievements was the ability to generate software code for optimising the control of 6000W, representing almost one tenth of German electrical power production. Up to 1500 MW comes from more than 2500 small solar and wind power generators that are coordinated to operate as a single big power plant.

Vattenfall used the results to optimise the start-up of conventional power plants, necessitated by the rising share of renewable energy production that forces conventional power plants to manoeuvre more frequently to balance the grid, while complying with all operational constraints in order to satisfy safety and environmental regulations and minimise system wear.

In the rail domain, the industrial cooperation partners – Knorr-Bremse and Bombardier Transportation – focused the results on crosswind stability and friction brakes. To boost the potential of brake distance management, Knorr-Bremse uses FMIs extensively to share simulation models between stakeholders. This makes it possible to simulate the behaviour of the entire system of a passenger train at a very early stage of development.

EDF uses results regarding state estimation to detect and diagnose the causes of power losses in power plants. A new power loss monitoring system, which combines physical modelling with Modelica and Bayesian networks and modelling based on neural patterns, is now deployed in the nuclear power plant EDF fleet, and has prompted the launch of a new start-up to provide model-based smart diagnosis and prognosis services for CPS.

The roots of EMBrACE, a follow-up ITEA project in which 45 organisations across 8 countries have declared interest to develop a new standard and associated tools for the formal modelling and simulation of requirements, can be found in MODRIO that produced the draft specifications for a new requirement modelling language. Finally, ideas developed in MODRIO about multi-mode modelling were among the incentives behind the development of a new modelling language, named MODIA by Modelica founders, that could be the successor to the Modelica language in the long term.