Synchronization continuity is crucial for grid measurement. In light of the challenges with existing global positioning system synchronization, including signal loss and spoofing, alternative pulsar-based timing sources are introduced. However, acquiring pulsar signals and utilizing them to produce pulse per second for synchronizer calibration is a challenge. Then, a novel analog front-end circuit (AFC) comprising a pulsar generator and receiver has been developed. Subsequently, the pulse extraction framework (PEF) is utilized to obtain the integrated pulse profile and calculate the residual between the crystal oscillator and pulsar time in the synchronization measurement device for calibration. Finally, the feasibility and robustness of the AFC are confirmed through experimentation. The PEF is verified through the extraction of actual pulsar-integrated pulse profiles. The residual of the crystal oscillator relative to pulsar time is calculated, which will be further calibration through phase-lock technology.

Introduction: Phasor measurement is crucial for the monitoring and management of power grids. Traditional hardware-based phasor measurement units (PMUs) are effective but often complex and expensive. This paper introduces a software-based phasor measurement method that utilizes soft synchronization with temporal pulse signals from GPS and mobile communication stations, offering a simpler and cost-effective alternative.Methods: The proposed method synchronizes the local oscillator with Pulse Per Second (PPS) signals from GPS and primary synchronization signals from mobile communication bases. Raw data affected by the local oscillator’s instability are transformed into calibrated data using B-Spline interpolation to emulate an ideal sampling rate. The calibrated data are then subjected to a Recursive Discrete Fourier Transform (RDFT) algorithm for synchronized phasor measurement.Results: The method’s performance was assessed in compliance with the C37.118.1 standard. Key performance indicators, such as frequency, phase, and Total Vector Error (TVE), were evaluated. The proposed software-based approach demonstrated high accuracy in synchronized phasor measurements.Discussion: The results confirm that the proposed method can serve as a highly accurate and simpler alternative to conventional hardware-based solutions. Its application promises to advance synchronized phasor measurement practices in power grid monitoring, enhancing reliability and reducing complexity and costs.

Accurate synchronized sampling is essential for power grid monitoring instruments, but its precision is greatly affected by sampling time errors (STEs) resulting from oscillator frequency drift. However, existing methods to mitigate STEs often rely on additional auxiliary devices or involve complex hardware control processes. Therefore, this article introduces a novel sampling scheme that effectively mitigates the impact of STEs without the aforementioned restrictions. First, the actual sampling interval is estimated via a counter triggered by the satellite timing reference. Second, the actual sampling interval is fed into the Diophantine approximation method to determine the sampling interval conversion ratio (SICR). Finally, an IFB is constructed according to the SICR to rectify the sampling data contaminated by the STE. A series of simulation and hardware experiments are conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed DA-IFB. The test results demonstrate that the proposed DA-IFB is comparable to the state-of-the-art synchronized sampling method without any additional requirements, with maximum sampling error significantly mitigating from $2.16 \times 10^{-3}$ $\mathrm{V}$ to $7.18 \times 10^{-5}$ $\mathrm{V}$ .

Taking advantage of the extreme stability of the pulsar period, it can serve as the timing source for grid synchronization to compensate for the timing drift instigated by the loss of GPS signal. Nevertheless, the real-time transmission and processing of the pulsar data suffer from its high-frequency data rate, varying from megahertz to gigahertz, resulting in reduced computing speed and increased time delay. To mitigate this issue, the hardware and software frameworks are implemented for the high-density pulsar data transmission and processing for grid synchronization in this research. Initially, the high-density pulsar data is transferred using open-source software. The complementary duty cycle timing module is designed to coordinate the operation of the dual-channel high-speed interface and software. Subsequently, the multiple-threading is applied to the receiving, parsing, and splicing pulsar data. Next, the pulsar signal extraction method is implemented based on the polyphase filterbank and time of arrival estimation. Ultimately, real-time performance verification experiments are carried out for different components under two hardware platforms. The results demonstrate that only 0.482s is required for processing 4 Gigabyte data through multiple-threading, which is 3.8 times faster than the single thread. The pulsar signal extraction can also be executed within 707 ms for 4.8 seconds of data, thereby indicating that real-time requirements can be met.

This article presents a Tunnel magneto-resistance-based Double air-gap Zero magnetic field (TDZ) current sensor, designed for measuring wideband disturbances in Renewable Energy Sources (RES)-based power systems. Conventional current transformers face limitations in accuracy and dynamic measurement performance due to inherent structural and material constraints. To overcome these limitations, a zero magnetic environment is designed by fusing the coil and feedback circuit with the motivation of approximating the actual magnetic field strength. Next, double air gap and closed-loop structures are formed to mitigate eccentricity errors, resulting in a 39-fold improvement in linearity compared to open-loop designs. Finally, by integrating the TDZ sensor, a wideband disturbance recorder prototype, referred to as the Grid Situational Awareness Device (GSAD), is implemented to enable high-fidelity phasor measurements. Extensive experiments validate its superior performance under steady-state, dynamic, and wideband disturbance conditions. The results demonstrate that the measurement capabilities surpass those of typical sensors, achieving a linearity of 0.03% and a full-scale accuracy of 0.038%. The frequency error and total vector error of the TDZ-GSAD are as low as 0.2 mHz and 0.039%, respectively.