20.6 IEC 60870-5-103 communication protocol
20.6.1 Application
TCP/IP
Control Center
IED IEDIED
Gateway
Star coupler
Station HSI
IEC05000660-4-en.vsd
IEC05000660 V4 EN
Figure 337: Example of IEC 60870-5-103 communication structure for a
substation automation system
IEC 60870-5-103 communication protocol is mainly used when a protection IED
communicates with a third party control or monitoring system. This system must have
software that can interpret the IEC 60870-5-103 communication messages.
When communicating locally in the station using a Personal Computer (PC) or a
Remote Terminal Unit (RTU) connected to the Communication and processing
module, the only hardware needed is optical fibres and an opto/electrical converter for
the PC/RTU, or a RS-485 connection depending on the used IED communication
interface.
20.6.1.1 Functionality
IEC 60870-5-103 is an unbalanced (master-slave) protocol for coded-bit serial
communication exchanging information with a control system. In IEC terminology a
primary station is a master and a secondary station is a slave. The communication is
based on a point-to-point principle. The master must have software that can interpret
the IEC 60870-5-103 communication messages. For detailed information about IEC
60870-5-103, refer to IEC 60870 standard part 5: Transmission protocols, and to the
1MRK 502 071-UEN - Section 20
Station communication
Generator protection REG670 2.2 IEC and Injection equipment REX060, REX061, REX062 703
Application manual