Several major industries have undergone interoperability revolutions in the past 30 years, including telecommunications, cable TV, financial services, manufacturing automation, general purpose computing, and the Internet. Many goals of creating a smart grid are similar to those that drove changes in other industries: engaging customers, developing new markets, unleashing technical innovation, and motivating new investments. Many of these changes have been enabled by immense price/performance improvements in microelectronics and communications technology; however, changes in regulatory structure and consumer acceptance/demand have also played significant roles.
Interoperability drivers, requirements, and constraints in the electric power industry have similarities to those in other industries, but are also different in important respects from those that drove interoperability transformations in other industries. The electric system is funded by ratepayers based on regulatory decisions and approvals, so ratepayer capital, not only private investment capital, is at risk. Also, availability of electric power is fundamental to the operation of modern industrial societies, and regulated utilities operate under an ―obligation to serve,‖ which means downtime to upgrade entire portions of the infrastructure is essentially not allowed. The large number of application domains, jurisdictional complexities, and diversity of interoperability challenges also makes smart grid interoperability unique.
Several interesting and important dimensions of similarities and differences are explored in order to provide insight that can facilitate understanding and help move smart grid interoperability forward.