Simulator helps validate a voltage control expert system

Computational tools must be fully tested and evaluated before they are implemented in a real system to ensure that the software provides reliable solutions under any condition that may occur. Verification and validation of expert systems present some particular difficulties, because they deal with declarative knowledge instead of the procedural instructions found in numerical programs. A static power system simulator was used to help validate the knowledge base of an expert system for voltage control (SECTE). The simulator, which was originally developed as a training platform for dispatchers and operators, facilitated the generation of numerous scenarios to test SECTE. The simulator's object-oriented main program controls a graphical user interface, the simulation functions, and the expert system coupled to the simulator. It also allows the exchange of information between the expert system (in PROLOG) and some conventional tools (in FORTRAN) that would not otherwise be possible.