FAQ Visual Substation

Visual Substation has a built-in historian database, specially designed to meet the stringent requirements of utility applications. The database has been optimized both for data insertion and retrieval efficiency and for optimum hard disk usage. It can sustain up to 10,000 transitions per second and manage up to 100,000 data points on a typical PC server (P3 – 2Ghz, 512MB RAM). Data can be exported in a variety of formats using the data reporting capabilities.

Does Visual Substation support MS Windows 2000/XP/NT?

Visual Substation is compatible with the following versions of Microsoft Windows—

Windows 2000
Windows 2003 Server
Windows XP Professional
All the latest Service Packs are supported.
Windows NT operating system is no longer supported.

Does Visual Substation use MS Visual Basic?

Visual Substation Diagram Editor includes Visual Basic for Applications to create highly interactive diagrams. However, Visual Basic programming is not required to perform any of the common Visual Substation tasks.

Does the software support ODBC and OLE? Are you capable of providing an ODBC interface to the historical data?

Data from the historian database can be exported in a variety of formats using the reporting capabilities. ODBC and SQL support is planned for release in November 2005.

Is Visual Substation an OPC client?

Visual Substation is both an OPC client (Data Access 2.05) and an OPC server. The OPC client interface allows for the use of any commercially available OPC server (including Cooper’s Cybectec OPC servers). On the other side, an OPC server interface publishes all the real-time data that is available in the Visual Substation database. This allows for the real-time transfer of data from Visual Substation to a third party application having an OPC client interface.

Is it possible to retrieve information from Visual Substation using OPC?

Visual Substation is an OPC server. This interface publishes all the real-time data that is available in the Visual Substation database which is then available for transfer to a third party application having an OPC client interface.

What protocol drivers are available with Visual Substation?

The Visual Substation Communication Server option is based on SMP technology and supports all the protocols available on the SMP.

Moreover, Visual Substation’s OPC client (Data Access 2.05) allows the use of any commercially available OPC server.

Can Visual Substation software be purchased in modules? If yes what modules are available?

For simplicity sake, all Visual Substation functions are provided as part of the basic package. The server license includes one client license. The following options are sold separately—

Additional remote client licenses
Windows 2003 Server redundancy support
Communication Server
Alarm Notification by email and pager
Event File Processing

Is the application software developed with a utility perspective?

Visual Substation has been designed from the ground up to meet utility requirements. It supports data quality, one millisecond time tagging, no-loss event queues, select-before-operate control functions and has a built-in historian capable of sustaining more than 10,000 transitions per second. Visual Substation real-time data views support IEC 61850 data concepts and can display data points grouped by region, substation, voltage level, bay, equipment and function. The Diagram Editor shape libraries contain power industry symbols and help minimize configuration efforts while reducing the risk of errors.

How long has the software been released?

Visual Substation version 1.0 was first released in 2000. Since then it has been used by numerous utilities, some of them establishing the product as an in-house standard.

Does the software provide any pre-built screens?

The Visual Substation Explorer program is designed to provide access to real-time data with minimum configuration efforts. Table Views provide a spreadsheet-like display of the real-time values of selected data points. Data points can be filtered by name, by attribute, or by IEC 61850 concepts. Trending Views plot the value of any data point, in real time. Historical Trends and Queries display historical values. The Site Layout View graphically displays the state of important readings and alarms, without the effort usually associated with creating a single-line diagram.

The Visual Substation Diagram Editor is provided with pre-defined shapes that simplify the creation of single-line diagrams. The Cybectec support team may also assist you in creating an equipment library to fit your specific needs.

Is training available?

Cooper gives regular training sessions on its products. You may also choose to have training at you own facility. Two Visual Substation training courses are available – “Using Visual Substation as a local substation HMI” is a two day introductory course sufficient for end users and basic configuration.

“Visual Substation – Advanced configuration” is a two day advanced training for application developers that wish to learn how to create their own interactive shape libraries.

What is the training recommendation?

Cooper recommends that Visual Substation users and developers follow a two day training course. Training sessions are held regularly either at Cybectec facilities in Quebec or Montreal or at client premises.

What is the cost and location of training?

Cooper’s philosophy toward Cybectec products is to provide training at minimal cost because we feel that training plays an important role in maximizing the effective use of our products. Please contact a sales representative at sales@cybectec.com for a list of the next available training sessions and prices.

Is local support available?

Many Cooper partners are certified to give local support on Cooper’s Cybectec products. Cooper also offers comprehensive on-line support using phone, email or WEB conferences.

What is the cost of a software development license?

Visual Substation may be used either as a development platform or as a runtime application. There are no separate runtime and development licenses.

What is the cost of the software runtime license?

Visual Substation may be used either as a development platform or as a runtime application. There are no separate runtime and development licenses. Please contact a sales representative at sales@cybectec.com for more information about Visual Substation pricing.

What are the available tag increments?

Visual Substation's licensing model is adapted to the large number of data points in modern IEDs. It provides economical access to all the data in your substation. Only physical I/O and calculated (logical) data points, derived from physical I/O, count as licensed data points.

Visual Substation is available in the following standard configurations – 3,000 data points, 5,000 data points, 10,000 data points and 15,000 data points. Different configurations and volume discounts are also available. Please contact a sales representative at sales@cybectec.com for more information.

Does the tag or I/O count include logical tags and device tags?

The number of tags in your Visual Substation license includes both calculated (logical) and physical (input/output) data points provided by the connected devices. You create calculated data points using the expression editor that is part of the built-in configuration tool.

Visual Substation also includes system tags that provide information about the system behavior such as number of active alarms and number of transitions per second stored in the historian database. System tags are not counted as licensed tags.

How is the pricing structured? Do discounts apply if more licenses are purchased?

The Visual Substation licensing is based on the number of physical and logical data points. The entry license supports up to 3000 data points, which is sufficient for a typical substation application. Standard licenses are available for 5000, 10000 and 15000 data points. Different configurations and volume discounts are available. Please contact a sales representative at sales@cybectec.com for more information.

Is Visual Substation available with a MODBUS Plus interface?

MODBUS Plus support is available using a third party OPC server and PC card.

Is it possible to replicate, backup, extract and/or purge the historical data from the database?

Cooper recommends the use of Veritas Backup Exec 10 for Windows Server to automate the backup process. This product may be purchased from the Cybectec technical support or directly from Veritas. The historian database may be set up to automatically purge old data if it exceeds a specified size limit. Typical applications demonstrate that years of data may be stored on a small (60 GB) hard disk.

Is it possible to generate daily, weekly, monthly or annual reports?

Visual Substation's report generator can be set up to automatically schedule and export event reports to an email account or to an FTP server.

Historical reports are also available, using queries that specify the data points to extract for a given time period. Basic report templates are included. Users can create additional report templates using Seagate Crystal Report software. The Cybectec engineering department can also create report templates.

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FAQ - Cybectec Visual SubstationTM

FAQ - Cybectec Visual Substation^TM