Hybrid Transmission Line Kite Thread Removal Robot

Abstract

Robotic maintenance of high voltage transmission lines is becoming an increasingly feasible solution in providing a safer and more reliable alternative to manual maintenance. In particular, in areas of Indonesia, a significant majority of electrical faults are attributed to kite thread entanglements, and if not swiftly resolved, may cause significant power disruptions and blackouts. Due to the hazards associated with traditional manual removal methods, the paper proposes the preliminary design of a hybrid robot capable of remotely traversing the transmission lines and removing kite thread entanglements. A top-down system engineering approach is utilized in designing and building the robot. Furthermore, a functional analysis was performed to identify the user and system requirements of the robot that leads to the identification of its subsystems. A transmission line maintenance robot, equipped with a unique removal system with blades designed to fit onto varying transmission line sizes, has been designed and built for removing kite threads using a remotely-controlled drone. The proposed hybrid robot with its novel cutting mechanism provides an efficient and safe solution to remove kite threads entangled on transmission lines as it rolls along the lines.