OpenGridGym: An Open-Source AI-Friendly Toolkit for Distribution Market Simulation

TL;DR

OpenGridGym is an open-source toolkit that enables simulation of distribution markets with AI decision-making, facilitating research and development in electricity market design and operations.

Contribution

It introduces a modular, flexible framework for distribution market simulation integrated with AI, with customizable components and multiple case studies demonstrating its utility.

Findings

Demonstrated flexibility with interchangeable modules.

Showcased use cases for AI decision-making in distribution markets.

Validated the toolkit's effectiveness through multiple case studies.

Abstract

This paper presents OpenGridGym, an open-source Python-based package that allows for seamless integration of distribution market simulation with state-of-the-art artificial intelligence (AI) decision-making algorithms. We present the architecture and design choice for the proposed framework, elaborate on how users interact with OpenGridGym, and highlight its value by providing multiple cases to demonstrate its use. Four modules are used in any simulation: (1) the physical grid, (2) market mechanisms, (3) a set of trainable agents which interact with the former two modules, and (4) environment module that connects and coordinates the above three. We provide templates for each of those four, but they are easily interchangeable with custom alternatives. Several case studies are presented to illustrate the capability and potential of this toolkit in helping researchers address key design and operational questions in distribution electricity markets.