GridShield : Robust Control Algorithms to Prevent Power Outages

This thesis presents implementations for GridShield, a novel concept designed to act as such a fallback control mechanism. In the event of an EMS failure, it must minimize excessive power draw at the transformer while still maximizing comfort under the imposed GridShield constraints. This means that the energy not supplied to the EVs due to the intervention of GridShield should be minimized. For robustness, GridShield uses a one way standalone communication network. In this thesis, the aim is to develop a control algorithm for GridShield that has minimal excessive power draw, while providing maximum comfort. To develop such an algorithm, congestion management and control strategies from multiple fields are considered. The proposed algorithm must be robust enough to deal with unexpected events such as variations in the number of vehicles simultaneously charging. Discomfort caused to users must meanwhile be minimized in the fairest possible way.