Ampére Evolution

Job order management, network projects sharing, backup and recovery.
Saving the project to EG Cloud and sharing documentation.
Management of user profiles for conditional access to the common database and library.

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EG Cloud is a cloud data backup and sharing service, managed through the software infrastructure and datacenter of Acronis, that Electro Graphics makes available to users of its software under warranty and/or maintenance contract.
With EG Cloud, it is possible to:
• Upload projects to your cloud space, organized in folders and subfolders.
• Download and open projects previously uploaded to EG Cloud.
• Navigate your cloud space through the EG Cloud browser, which provides the essential commands to create new folders, upload and download files, create sharing links, etc.
• Access your cloud space through the Acronis web portal to access content and account settings pages.
• Access your cloud space from mobile devices through the Acronis Cyber Files app, which allows, among other features, to add annotations to PDF printouts for subsequent import into electrical schematic drawings in graphical environment.

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Power supply LV without power limit.
Power supply HV or MV with isolated, compensated or on the grounded neutral conductor.
Use of HV/MV and MV/LV transformers with a definable data. Transformers can be connected in parallel in any number.
Management of TN, TT and IT electrical system.
Multi-supply: possibility to connect the grid to several power points in LV, MV and HV.

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Insertion of synchronous or asynchronous generators and UPS. They can be located in any point of the net grid, with different operating state (stand-by or running).
It is possible to set the nominal values of a device or to choose a device marked from a large archive available in the Devices database.
Capability curve for generator, inverter and the entire system.

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Definition of the grounding system with ground rod, collectors, impedances and connection elements.
Choosing the type of terrain and calculation of earth resistance.
Setup of the ground collectors in the grid.

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Identification and management of units by zones and panels.
Wizard for panel setup with assigning of protections, carpentry and data for the panel overtemperature check-up.
Setup of panels or distribution board.
Drawing of panels blocks diagram.
Setup and calculation of bars inside the switchboard according to CEI UNEL 01433.

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Unit denomination and assignment of zone and panel. Automatic marking of units according to customizable profiles.
Assigning units characteristics: power consumption, cos-fi, length, proximity and laying conditions, ambient temperature, maximum voltage drop and type of conduit.
Management of transformer HV/MV, MV/MV, MV/LV and LV/LV with continuous or discrete automatic adjustment.
Management of 3-windings transformers (TWT with dual secondary).
Environmentally friendly transformers according to EU regulation n.548 / 2014.
Use of connectors between any transformers.
Setup of cable lines, busbars or lines with known impedance. Setup of the maximum operating temperature on cables.
Methods of distribution and connection of the protective conductor.
Management of the neutral conductor and PE common to more units.
Method of laying in accordance with tables reported in CEI-UNEL 35024/1 - 35024/2 - 35026, IEC 364 (1983), IEC 60364-5-52 and IEC 448.
Method of laying in accordance with French standard NF C 15-100, Spanish standard UNE 20460-5-523, English standard BSI 7671 and Brazilian standard NBR 5410 and American standard NFPA
70: NEC with cables in AWG standard.
Management of more laying for each units.
Laying of cable lines in medium voltage according to CEI 11-17 and CEI-UNEL 35027.
Method of laying in accordance with IEC 60502-2 (MV cables) and IEC 61892-4 (oil&gas and offshore cables).
Various types of loads are handled: generic, motor, capacitive.
Setup of synchronous or asynchronous motor features and startup mode: direct, star delta or with soft starter.
Setup of loads distributed on power uprights (such as lines for public lighting).
Setup of preferential loads.
Setup of generic auxiliary units.
Setup of accessory elements and related functional diagrams.
Saving typical load in user profiles.
Importing project files defined in CAD, with acquisition of units data.

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Management of photovoltaic modules and grid-connected inverters.
Using multi-trackers inverter.
Analysis of the electrical components of the photovoltaic field.
Importing pv plant projects from Solergo.

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Setup of harmonic profile on loads, UPS and inverter.
Transfer down-up of the harmonic content, considering the effect of transformer and UPS.
Calculation of the distortion factor THD.
Check lines, protection and panels according to the harmonic profile.

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Management of lines, or parts of the grid, in parallel.
Ring grid.
Busbars or cables shared by more units.
Mesh of grid by drag & drop units.
Inserting parts of the grid, previously meshed in CAD.
Copy-paste of one or more unit or whole panels or zones.
Importing electrical grid processed in other projects.
Calculation of current and power of the grid according to the vector method.
Automatic propagation of power at various levels of the distribution boards, taking account of any coefficients of simultaneity, use and transfer of the units or downstream panels.
“Multiproject" mode to share a job with other operators or for complex grid.
Highlight of the grounding line grid.

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Setup of grid configurations with different units operating mode (on/off, preferential,...) or different use factors.
Assignment of consumption profile to the units; consumption profile can be daily, weekly, seasonal or annual.
Analysis of the grid over time, varying the assigned load profile.
Monitoring of current, power used and power failures.

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Setup of AC/DC, AC/AC and DC/AC converters.
Management of converters database.
Analysis of grid in DC and at any frequency up to 1kHz.

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Routine to solve the grid currents balancing problem.
Automatic setting of single-phase and two-phases load connections in order to obtain a minimum neutral currents overall the power grid.
Panels and sub-panels can be balanced one by one or all together; a result printout lists all the phases to be changed in the project.

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Automatic power factor correction of the grid in order to obtain the required cos-fi, in global mode, for single loads or for a single distribution board.
The software calculates the required capacitor and let the operator to choose it from the Capacitors database.
Determination of the right protection to install in the compensation unit.

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Reference standard IEC 60364 (CEI 64-8 for Italy), NF C 15-100 (France), UNE 20460 (Spain), BSI 7671 (English), NBR 5410 (Brazil) and NFPA 70:NEC (USA).
Automatic section calculation for neutral and protective conductors and section reduction.
Section calculation for protective conductor according to the through energy method.
Cables with a custonmizable flow rate.
Possibility to set and lock section and formation of any cable in the system.
Calculation of current eligible, Joule integral, working temperature, impedance and voltage drop lines. Optimization of power failures in order not to exceed the maximum expected load drop compared to the supplay point.
Check of neutral currents on three-phase networks in result of unbalanced loads.

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MV cables database management with editable flow rate and derate value.
Automatic selection of the cable to use.
Calculation of the homopolar fault to the ground in MT, and management of the 67N directional type protections and calibration of the Petersen coil, if present.
Calculation of the total earth voltage UE on the primary of MV transformers in fault conditions.

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Customizable busbar database with more than 1.800 items by leading manufacturers (Graziadio, Moeller Electric, Pogliano, Siemens, Telemecanique and Zucchini) already available and extendable by the designer.
Check of overload, short circuit and short-time pulse current.

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Starting of asynchronous motors through VFD inverters (both in the switchboard and on the machine), with study of the indirect contact protection problems downstream of the inverter, as well as voltage drop and fault checks.

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These devices, normally present in parallel with photovoltaic or wind generators, can be inserted to compensate for periods of lack of energy production. However, they can be used as a normal reserve, increasing network security by being able to cope with energy gaps, similar to the UPS.
The electrical model used by the software relates to electrochemical storage systems, having a capability given by the combination of the inverter curve (PNINV power circular) with the battery curve (defined as a rectangle with a height between PCMAX and PSMAX and a width equal to a -Qi + Qi of the inverter).
They can be connected both in alternating and direct current grids.

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Optimization of the cableÂ’s operating temperature.
Calculation of the thermal dissipation of the grid and related operating costs.

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Protections devices with all the electrical, thermal and size characteristics; action chart, limitation and and derating in temperature and frequency chart are included.
Management of regulation steps on currents and times with relative tolerances.
More than 90.000 devices, among the most frequently used series, made by the leading manufacturers on the market: ABB, AEG, BTicino, Eaton, General Electric, Gewiss, Hager Lume, Italweber, Legrand, Moeller Electric, Sarel, Schneider Electric, Siemens and Thytronic.
Selectivity and backup tables allows to set the coordination between protections. For electric motor protection a database with specifically coordinated devices, taken from manufacturers specification, is available.
Database of coordinated devices and soft starter for motor starter.
Management of coupled protection, motor starter, fuse holder, switch disconnector and switch disconnector with fuse.
Management of switches with electronic disconnector.
Time-current characteristic curve (to checking selectivity) and let-through Joule energy curve (for checking short circuit fault currents) are provided for each device.
New devices can be defined by the operator inserting the required electric values and the protection curves aquired from bitmap image.
Composition of protection with one switch and more breakers.

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Fine setting of MV circuit breakers according to EN 62271-100.
Management of correction coefficients for thermal, magnetic, differential break, for operation in DC or with frequency different from 50 Hz, with automatic adaptation of the action curves.

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Management of Current Transformer, Voltage Transformer and Zero Sequence CT in MV, with specific archive.
Choice of the correct type of CT, VT and Zero Sequence CT and check of saturation according to CEI 0-16 for CT and Zero Sequence CT with analysis on all types of fault current.

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Management of coordination between conductors and protection devices.
Protection device assignment guided by the software that filters the protection database in order to propose the best solution for every unit.
Automatic protection assignment according to profiles set by the operator, that includes nominal current ranges, manufacturer, series, intervention curve, switching power (according to EN 60947 or EN 60898 standard), price range.
Verification of the maximum voltage drop on motor startup.
Coordination of the magnetic characteristics with the inrush current of a motor.
Setup of motor coordination and its starter system.
Selectivity check on several levels by comparing the action curves of the protections or by the manufacturer's selectivity tables.
Adjustment of the protections according to customizable steps, with representation of the release bands.
Verification of the MV/LV selectivity.

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Fault calculation by sequential phase analysis according to IEC 60909 and Cenelec R064 standards: model with fault near or far from the generator, in a permanent and transitory state (in AC).
Calculation of the symmetrical and homopolar short-circuit current for the purposes of short-circuit and indirect contact protection of the line, taking into account the contribution of any motors and generators.
Calculation of maximum, minimum, and transient short-circuit currents in direct current, according to standard IEC 61660-1, taking into account the actual contribution of each source and development of the approximate curve of the fault current.
Fault calculation according to IEC 61363-1 for naval plants.
Fault calculation according to IEEE 141-1993 for the American standard.
Calculation of short-circuit impedance Zk and Zo' for TT, TN or IT systems, and impedance on fault loop for TN or IT systems, at any point in the system.
Verification of breaking and closing capacity and protection against indirect contact and short-circuit.
Comparison between the let-through Joule energy curve of the protection and the Joule integral of the cable, for phase, neutral or ground conductor.

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Calculation of panel overtemperature according to CEI 17-43 and CEI 23-51 standards.
Drawing of the panel layout, with placement of the carpentries and used devices (boxed or modular), without the need for external CAD resources, and saving on .dwg files.

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Automatic generation of single-line and multi-line diagrams as DWG and PDF.
Functional diagrams related to auxiliary elements of the devices can be included, also.
Produced DWG is compatible with CADelet, Eplus and iDEA.

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The calculation model considers the longitudinal, resistive and inductive elements of the lines, which typically manifest their influence on distribution networks with significant extension, over a kilometer.
The transverse, capacitive elements of the network are also considered, calculating their contribution to the total circulating load currents.
In this way, the reactive powers, typically inductive, of the loads are eventually balanced.

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The active and reactive powers dissipated along the lines due to the resistances and inductances of the cables and transformers are determined. The powers (P, Q) absorbed by the loads are added to the line powers (Pr, Qr), which provide the totals (P+Pr, Q+Qr) calculated on the node upstream of each load and at the supply.
These powers are used for the advanced study of the Capability curve when it is necessary to take into account the contribution of the distribution grid as the load varies during the day, from unload to full load.

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It was necessary to make a choice for the modeling of reality, in order to obtain a compromise between ensuring a good calculation of the voltage drop and the currents seen by the protections; moreover, an equitable propagation of the currents in meshed networks must be guaranteed.
Therefore, a pi-greek model of capacitance is used: it is assumed that the uniformly distributed capacitance along the line is concentrated in two capacitances of half the value, positioned at the extreme terminals of the load.
There are some exceptions:
• In terminal loads, the capacitance is positioned entirely upstream of the protection, to ensure that (P, Q) is only the load power.
• In distribution loads connected to the supply, the capacitance is positioned entirely downstream, so the protections read the total currents and the supply does the same, providing the total value for the connection point and the calculation of the Capability curves.

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Three types of wind generators are provided, with an electrical model based on the definitions given in the IEC EN 60909 standard.
Ampère's algorithms allow the calculation of short-circuit currents for asynchronous generators, doubly fed asynchronous generators, and finally full-size converter generators.

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A wizard allows for the complete definition of the photovoltaic generator.
The user can choose photovoltaic modules from a vast archive, and based on the desired peak power or available surface, the optimal choice of inverter is made that satisfies the electrical coupling conditions, with a proposal for the various string solutions that follow.
It is possible to define the field sectioning and the type of cables and protections to be used.

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Capacitor banks are managed as a variant of capacitive loads. In particular, to comply with Terna's regulations, they have an insertion active power, which commands the closing of the bank protection when this threshold is exceeded and the disconnection if the active power absorbed at the supply level returns to a lower value.
In addition, these capacitances cannot have a step-by-step regulation, therefore they are a single capacitor bank with fixed reactive power; the designer can create multiple similar loads with different values of reactive power and insertion powers, but independent of each other.

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Shunt reactors are managed as a variant of inductive loads. In particular, to comply with Terna's regulations, they have a disconnection active power, which commands the opening of the reactor protection when this threshold is exceeded and the insertion if the active power absorbed at the supply level returns to a lower value.
In addition, these inductances cannot have a step-by-step regulation, therefore they are a single shunt reactor with fixed reactive power; the designer can create multiple similar loads with different values of reactive power and insertion powers, but independent of each other.

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The capability curve is calculated at the connection point based on the curves of each generator, the influence of loads present in the grid, and takes into account the influence of the longitudinal and transverse parameters of the distribution grid, the resistances, inductances, and capacitances present, as well as the losses on the transformers.
In addition, if present in the grid, capacitive and inductive loads used for automatic reactive power compensation, defined as capacitor banks and shunt reactors, will be considered.

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Introductory report with standard reference and method of calculation.
Table report about cables and busbars sizing, protections choices, fault conditions in different points of the grid, presence of motors and power supply conditions.
Customization of the printing model for the tabular documents.
Extended report for each units that fully documents all load characteristics, cables sizing, parameters of fault-line and the choosen protection device.
Graphic document with let-through energy curve of protection related with the Joule integral of cable.
Selectivity chart and protection calibration data.
Tables of analysis about trends over time of customizable monitored values.

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All reports can be printed or saved inside the project folder.
Generation or concatenation of all reports in a single PDF file in order to obtain the general document report of the project.
Save reports as XLS, RTF, TXT, WMF, HTML and CSV.

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App for smartphones and tablets to view, edit and add note on the grid progect, with calculation of the power of cable lines.
Interactive exchange of project files with Ampère via email.
Available for iOS and Android in App Store and Google Play.

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Data exchange for the automatic drawing of the single-line diagram or the distribution panels radial scheme and their layout in CADelet, Eplus and iDEA.
Export estimation data to Sigma (optional module, Italian only).
Import photovoltaic plan file from Solergo.
Parametric exportation of project data to Microsoft EXCEL and importation.

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Plug-in for equipment and electric circuits data exchange between Ampère Professional and Revit© BIM enviroment.
Generation of the related Ampère electric grid with concentrated, barycentric or distributed loads.
Calculation of the optimal route and the length of the cables through the cable duct system, considering the routing parameters.
Export in Revit© environment of calculated electrical data and cables with annotations and overall estimate.
Ampère multi-project related to the Revit project.

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