Automated system for determining frequency dependent parameter model of transmission line in a laboratory environment

This work presents an automated system for determining transmission line model parameters at various frequencies. The system was developed and implemented on General Electric test reactors designed to model power transmission line behavior in a laboratory environment. The measurement system and data processing are controlled and automated via custom developed LabVIEW software. Measurements are obtained from voltage and current probes interfacing with oscilloscopes. This data is then acquired and processed in LabVIEW software. The structure of the transmission line model, desired confidence level and number of tests to conduct are specified user inputs. The system subsequently provides the transmission line impedance parameters based on these specifications. These parameters are calculated using both time domain and frequency domain techniques. While this work focuses on determining transmission line model parameters, this automated test measurement system is applicable to any device that can be parameterized via a current-voltage (I-V) characteristic or frequency response.