Smart Sensors Will Make Power More Efficient

12:17, April 1, 2021

A new project will be implemented at Ural Interregional Research and Education Center "Advanced Industrial Technologies and Materials"

Ural scientists are actively working to create a technology that will significantly accelerate the digital transformation of the Russian energy sector. This is a comprehensive project for the development of intelligent small-sized sensors for digital power grids. This will form the basis for the deployment of digital power grid management systems. The project is being implemented within the framework of the Ural Interregional Research and Education Center "Advanced Industrial Technologies and Materials".

Non-invasive sensors can be mounted on the wires of power lines from 6 to 110 kV inclusive, and without the use of expensive lifting equipment - through the use of the famed "Kanatokhod" robot. This will significantly reduce the cost of organizing one measurement node and will provide an economic and technological basis for saturating networks with high-precision measuring devices. Sensors provide real-time data collection and processing to build advanced network management systems and implement predictive automation based on accurate data.

In recent years, the Ural Federal University has successfully developed theoretical foundations for the need and expediency of using distributed systems for measuring the primary parameters of the network. The work of the UrFU Automated Systems Department opened the urgency of this problem for grid companies and formed the basis for the development of the first commercial metering devices. As part of the project, it is UrFU that is responsible for the conceptual and theoretical components, as well as the synergistic effect of combining various technologies. Close interaction of the university with power grid companies played a large role in the success.

The developers strive to combine our manufacturing and engineering competencies with the best scientific school in the country to create new breakthrough developments for the energy of the future. The team plans to develop and reach the declared parameters for a whole line of smart sensors.

Efforts to develop and implement innovative technology are supported by such development institutions as the Skolkovo Foundation, the Innovation Promotion Foundation and the Sverdlovsk Regional Entrepreneurship Support Fund.