Port Impedance Measurement and Current Injection Response Analysis for PLCs

Programmable logic controllers (PLCs) are used to control devices throughout the power system since they have fast control capabilities and can utilize multiple types of communication interfaces. Therefore, studying and mitigating their vulnerabilities to electromagnetic pulse is important for the reliability of PLC operations. In this article, an effective impedance measurement scheme is proposed and demonstrated for three PLCs to estimate their susceptibility to an electromagnetic pulse. The equivalent nonuniform transmission line model is established to eliminate the impact of the fixture in the de-embedding process. Then, different parameters of the impedance measurement setup are explored. Based on the measured impedance, the equivalent circuit is established to calculate the response of the device when subjected to the electromagnetic pulse. The voltage and current responses of different interfaces are compared utilizing the developed pulsed current injection (CI) method. Finally, the impedance measurement scheme is verified through testing using three measuring instruments. And the CI simulation experiments reveal the characteristics and susceptibilities of different PLCs interfaces, indicating that some protection measures are required for the reliable operation of the PLC.