Find the project website at sgs.zae-bayern.de.
Open-air Testing Site for Future Low-Voltage Grids
In Arzberg, northern Bavaria, ZAE Bayern operates an outdoor laboratory integrated into the local low-voltage grid with its large number of small photovoltaic systems and battery storages. Here, components and systems may be tested, operated, and continuously monitored under realistic conditions.
Real Operating Environment over mere Simulation
The testing site represents a complete low-voltage cell including photovoltaic systems, battery storage, distribution infrastructure, and backup connections. The level of expansion here is equivalent to the necessary and expected level in future local grids designed to achieve climate targets.
It therefore picks up where hardware-in-the-loop testing reaches its limits: technologies leave their purely simulated environment to undergo lab-like testing under real-life conditions in a future distribution network.
Measurement, Communication, and IT Infrastructure
Comprehensive electrical and meteorological measuring equipment provides high-resolution data on grid operation and environmental conditions. Readings from the low-voltage grid, PV systems, storage facilities, and weather stations are collected in databases and made available via established communication protocols and interfaces.
The lving lab is completed by hands-on experience with various communication protocols and a dedicated control room with server infrastructure, which allow for the connection of external control systems, energy management systems, and forecasting models.
Room and Capacity for your Technology
The site has open strip foundations as well as distributors and cable connections readily available for further components. Hence, new technologies – from demonstration models to prototypes to near-series units – can be integrated into the existing network.
The electrical infrastructure provides sufficient capacity for additional generating units, storage systems, power electronics, or electrical loads, enabling challenging test series to be carried out under realistic load and feed-in scenarios.
Protected Test Cell with Transparent Framework
The testing site is designed as a clearly delimited cell connected to the public grid, meeting all relevant safety guidelines. Consequently, different setups and operating strategies may be implemented within the cell with no impact on public grid operation.
The combination of adaptable sensor technology and ICT infrastructure enables tailored testing concepts – from one-off measurement campaigns to prolonged field tests.
