The CoAP-based M2M gateway for distribution automation system using DNP3.0 in smart grid environment

As a power system develops rapidly into a smarter and more flexible state, so must the communication technologies that support it. Machine-to-machine (M2M) communication in a Smart Grid environment has been discussed by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). A power system is not easily replaceable, due to system replacement costs. THE M2M gateway is required in other to improve interoperability in the M2M environment. The Distributed Network Protocol 3.0 (DNP3.0) is the most important standard in SCADA systems for power. It has been used for device data collection/control in Substation Systems and Distribution Automation Systems. If the DNP3.0 data model is combined with a set of contemporary web protocols, it can result in a significant shift. We selected the Constrained Application Protocol (CoAP) based on RESTful as the M2M protocol. It is a specialized web transfer protocol for use with constrained nodes and constrained networks. We used the OPNET Modeler 17.1 to compare the performance of Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) to that of CoAP. In this paper, we propose a CoAP-based M2M Gateway for a Distribution Automation system using DNP3.0 in a Smart Grid Environment.