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Researchers at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) have developed a prototype for a brand new kind of transmission line monitoring and surveillance device: a wire crawling robot equipped with a high-definition camera and sensors designed to
detect problems like overgrown trees – the most common cause of power outages – and bad connections. As researchers envision it, the robot would crawl along shield wires located above transmission lines that protect them from lightning strikes. It would be powered by electricity picked up by the shield wires from the nearby transmission lines and also would carry solar cells for backup power. "There is nothing that does what it does; nothing that even tries," said Andrew Phillips, EPRI power transmission research director. The first prototype will be tested sometime this month with field tests anticipated in 2014.
Quick Take: The estimated cost of these little guys is expected to be less than $500,000. It's a lot of money, but apparently a lot cheaper than aerial surveillance by helicopter – and way more fun.
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