Methods and systems for estimating the operational status of an electrical generator in a distributed energy resource system

1 . A method for monitoring a distributed energy generation system in an electrical system comprising a plurality of decentralized energy generation systems connected to a feeder line, each decentralized energy generation system comprising one or more electric generators, each decentralized energy generation system being connected to the feeder line by a feeder connection point, wherein the method comprises, by an electronic controller of the electrical system:

executing a model of a target decentralized energy generation system of the plurality of decentralized energy generation systems, wherein the electronic controller receives real time communication from at least one of the plurality of decentralized energy generation systems but not the target decentralized energy generation system,

acquiring output data from the plurality of decentralized energy generation systems at a feeder level,

predicting if the target decentralized energy generation system is connected to the feeder line based on the acquired output data,

estimating, based on the acquired output data and the model, the operational status and/or the generated electric power of the target decentralized energy generation system; and

managing power flowing through the feeder line based on the operational status and/or the generated electric power.

2 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the decentralized energy generation systems are photovoltaic systems, each photovoltaic system comprising one or more photovoltaic generators.

3 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein acquiring output data from said target decentralized energy generation system at a feeder level comprises measuring output voltage and/or output power at a measurement point located on the feeder line.

4 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the model of a target decentralized energy generation system is a predefined model stored in a memory of the electronic controller, the model being parametrized by at least one technical parameter.

5 . The method according to claim 4 , wherein the technical parameter comprises at least one of the following parameters: the theoretical nominal power delivered by solar panels of a photovoltaic generator, the solar irradiation angle of the solar panels, the efficiency of the solar panels, the amount of years for which the solar panels have been in operation.

6 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein predicting if the target decentralized energy generation system is connected to the feeder line comprises using a trained machine learning algorithm on time series of the acquired output data to determine whether the target decentralized energy generation system is generating and delivering power to the feeder line through the feeder connection point.

7 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein estimating, based on the acquired output data and the model, the operational status and/or the generated electric power of the target decentralized energy generation system comprises extrapolating data representative of the operational status and/or the generated electric power of the target decentralized energy generation system based on output of the model.

8 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises automatically correcting at least one parameter of the model based on the determined operational status and/or the generated electric power of the decentralized energy generation system.

9 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the electrical system is a microgrid.

10 . An electrical system comprising:

a plurality of decentralized energy generation systems connected to a feeder line, each decentralized energy generation system comprising one or more electric generators, each decentralized energy generation system being connected to the feeder line by a feeder connection point; and

an electronic controller configured to:

execute a model of a target decentralized energy generation system of the plurality of decentralized energy generation systems, wherein the electronic controller receives real time communication from at least one of the plurality of decentralized energy generation systems but not the target decentralized energy generation system,

acquire output data from the plurality of decentralized energy generation systems at a feeder level,

predict if the target decentralized energy generation system is connected to the feeder line based on the acquired output data,

estimate, based on the acquired output data and the model, the operational status and/or the generated electric power of the target decentralized energy generation system; and

manage power flowing through the feeder line based on the operational status and/or the generated electric power.