Abstract:

The situation in the world caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has forced teaching staff to adapt teaching processes to distance learning. A special challenge of distance learning is posed in areas that include the implementation of practical classes in designated laboratories.

The curriculum of the university study of electrical engineering implies the acquisition of practical knowledge that gives students competencies in the labor market. The program is practically impossible to carry out without the implementation of part of the teaching in laboratories and the use of specific equipment. Since the pandemic prevented face-to-face teaching, and in order to maintain the quality of teaching and implementation of the planned curriculum, Digital Twin technology was used to transfer students the necessary knowledge, specifically in the field of power engineering - power system protection.

New technologies, also driven by the Industry 4.0, allow a remotely sense, real-time monitoring and control of devices and cyber physical production elements across network infrastructures and therefore provide easier integration and synchronization from the real to the virtual world [2]. One of aformentioned technologies is Digital Twin (DT), a concept for which formal ideas began to appear in the early 2000s. The purpose of a DT is to develop a mirror image of a real process which matches exactly with the action of the physical process. Today, by the term of DTs are called various digital simulation models working with real-time processes, and refer to social, economic and physical systems. There are many formal definitions, mostly customized to the issue itself, while the concept of DT is still evolving and its definition has adopted over the last few years.

The first definition of DT was given by Michael Grieves of Florida Institute of Technology [3]. Based on Grieves formal idea, The National Aeronautical Space Administration (NASA) defined DT as an integrated multiphysics, multiscale, probabilistic simulation of an as-built vehicle or system that uses the best available physical models, sensor updates, fleet history, etc., to mirror the life of its corresponding flying twin[4]. Definitions of DT is later adapted to the issue, and one of the newer definitions defines DT as a virtual instance of a physical system (twin) that is continually updated with the latter’s performance, maintenance, and health status data throughout the physical system’s life cycle [5]. As can be noticed from the aformenioned DT definions, there is not a fundamental or meaningful difference. For the moment the term and concept of a DT is developing rapidly and finds its use in almost all segments of human life such as smart objects (smart cities, smart energy, smart grid, etc), manufacturing, healtcare, etc.

This paper describes the procedure for conducting practical classes in the field of power engineering, parameterization and testing of relay protection devices using DT technology. The planned curriculum has been preserved in the proposed manner, and students have been enabled to acquire practical knowledge. The proposed teaching technologies are even more important since, in the conditions of a pandemic, they are also used for the purpose of testing relay protection installed in industrial plants.

Keywords:

Distance learning, digital twin, power system engineering, covid-19.