A hot topic of discussion in the Esri Electric community is what a Single Line Schematic Diagram should look like. In working as a system integrator in the industry for several years, I had my opinions, but I decided to reach out to a few customers and to Rick Anderson, Esri Product Manager for ArcGIS Schematics, to get their thoughts on the subject.

The conclusion: each of us had a different view on what we would expect to see on the diagram. Well, that didn’t come as a shock, as this is the same reason why the community has been struggling to reach a consensus. Seeing this as a challenge and a perfect article topic, I decided to work with Rick to see if we couldn’t get the ball rolling on providing a simple proof-of-concept.

The first step in building a successful proof-of-concept is to identify a set of requirements that will decide success or failure. After talking with a few customers and with Rick I selected this initial list of requirements to be the basis for an Electric Single Line Schematic Diagram:

• One diagram per feeder
• Display the source at the top of the diagram (e.g. Circuit Breaker)
• Display three phase mains only (e.g. no single/double phase and no lateral taps)
• Display inline and tie switches
• Label tie switches with the feeder id of the feeder that it is tied to

With the requirements established, the next step is to build the proof-of-concept. The software being utilized is ArcGIS 10.0 SP4, ArcFM™ 10.0.3, and sample data provided for the ArcFM™ Multispeak model. In building the proof-of-concept the following high-level steps were performed using ArcGIS Schematics:

• Create a schematic dataset
• Edit the schematic dataset with Schematic Dataset Editor
• Create a new schematic diagram template using hierarchical – smart tree layout and standard schematic builder
• Import the feature layers and properties for all participants in electric geometric network
• Add new attributes to DynamicProtectiveDeviceBank for associating FacilityID and FeederID
• Add new attributes to SwitchBank for associating FacilityID, FeederID, and Position
• Create and configure feature removal rules for primary and secondary line sections
• Create and configure node reduction by priority rules for network devices and junctions
• Import default symbology
• Save the new schematic diagram template

With the new schematic diagram template created and configured, the next step in the process is to generate a new schematic diagram from the Schematic toolbar in ArcMap. Choose the schematic dataset, schematic diagram template, output data frame, a schematic diagram name, and the input source. The input source for a schematic diagram can either be a selection set or a tracing result; a trace result was used for the proof-of-concept.

As you see in the pictures below the ArcFM™ Downstream Trace results for Feeder 9 is displayed on the left and the resulting Single Line Schematic Diagram that was generated is displayed on the right.

So how does the schematic output compare to the requirements that were established? Let’s revisit the requirements to find out.

• Is there one diagram per feeder? Yes, Feeder 9 is displayed
• Is the source displayed at the top of the diagram? Yes, the circuit breaker is on the top
• Are only main three phase lines displayed? Yes
• Are the inline and tie switches displayed? Yes
• Are the tie switches labeled with the feeder id of the feeder that it is tied to? Yes, the tie switch is tied to Feeder 8

So was the proof-of-concept a success? Based on the initial requirements I would say yes, but I will need to hear from the community if this is something that would meet their needs as a Single Line Schematic Diagram. Feel free to give feedback at [email protected] or seek out SSP Innovations at the upcoming Esri Electric and Gas GIS Conference at Salt Lake City, UT.

Next month I will go into more details on the “how” for the proof-of-concept as well as some ideas on maintaining these diagrams after they have been created.