A Holistic Approach for the Dependability Enforcement of Cyber & Power Systems on future MVDC Ships

Modern shipboard power systems are complex systems that rely on automation for their correct operation. The power and the control layers are strictly interrelated, and the data infrastructure is as critical as the power one. Future power systems exploiting resilient architectures (like the zonal medium voltage dc one) will rely more and more on controlled components (e.g., power electronics converters) to achieve their operational advantages, thus increasing the integration among data and power infrastructure. In such a context, the cyber security of the data infrastructure constitutes a critical point for the correct operation of the ship. Existing approaches mostly focus on enforcing the dependability on the cyber infrastructure, taking the power infrastructure as a given. However, ensuring the dependable operation of the power system means ensuring the supply of the onboard critical loads, which directly depends on the power system architecture, its design, and how it is operated. Therefore, it is critical to evaluate the effect on the power system of the malicious actions performed on the data infrastructure, and consider the possibility of acting on the power system itself to avoid or react to the threats (i.e., designing a dependable power system). In this paper such a holistic approach for the dependability enforcement of integrated cyber & power systems on ships is presented, discussing some of the solutions for the actual power systems and presenting an overview in regards to future medium voltage dc power systems.