Use of the Common Information Model (IEC 61970) for Standardized Data Exchange in HVDC Digital Twin Systems

Abstract

Digital Twins (DTw) are emerging as transformative tools for High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission systems, enabling real-time monitoring, predictive maintenance, and operational optimization. However, the effectiveness of these virtual replicas fundamentally depends on seamless, reliable data exchange with their physical counterparts and any other support system. The current landscape of HVDC DTw implementations reveals a critical challenge: the absence of standardized data exchange protocols leads to vendor lock-in, interoperability issues between systems from different vendors. The contribution of this paper is to propose the standardization of Common Information Model (CIM) defined in IEC 61970 standard family, as the data exchange methodology in HVDC DTws, which is exemplified with the Cigre B4 example, as well as connected to the IEC 61850 standard for real time station control, via the harmonization guidelines from the IEC 62361-102 technical report.