Multi-Agent System using JADE for Distributed DC Microgrid System Control

This paper discusses the design and implementation of a distributed multi-agent system (MAS) for a DC microgrid system using the Java Agent Development Framework (JADE), a Java software for MAS design. So far, most MAS implementations in power systems have been limited to simulations in one machine without taking advantage of the various features of MAS tools that JADE provides. In this paper, multiple computers are used to create a more realistic MAS with Ethernet-based communication links. A DC microgrid system is designed in Simulink and a JADE-Simulink interface is implemented using TCP/IP through an Interpreted Matlab Function block. The designed MAS is physically distributed so that agents representing elements of the microgrid exchange actual data, allowing for a new level of MAS system realization. Simulation results for the multi-agent based DC microgrid under some operating conditions are presented and discussed.