Our industry is moving forward in an effort to address the numerous challenges it faces. New technologies, specifically multifunctional Intelligent Electronic Devices and advanced high-speed broadband communications, help in improving the security of the electric power system under different system conditions.
But it is also always a good idea to have a look outside, at other domains, and see if there is something that we can use, instead of re-inventing it ourselves. One of these things is BigDog.
When you look at it and what it does, maybe it looks more like a mule than a dog. Actually, it is a robot developed by Boston Dynamics. The research is funded by the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA).
As described on the company web site http://www.bostondynamics.com/ BigDog is "...a quadruped robot that walks, runs, and climbs on rough terrain and carries heavy loads. BigDog is powered by a gasoline engine that drives a hydraulic actuation system. BigDog's legs are articulated like an animal's, and have compliant elements that absorb shock and recycle energy from one step to the next. BigDog is the size of a large dog or small mule, measuring 1 meter long, 0.7 meters tall and 75 kg weight.
BigDog has an on-board computer that controls locomotion, servos the legs and handles a wide variety of sensors. BigDog's control system manages the dynamics of its behavior to keep it balanced, steer, navigate, and regulate energetics as conditions vary. Sensors for locomotion include joint position, joint force, ground contact, ground load, a laser gyroscope, and a stereo vision system. Other sensors focus on the internal state of BigDog, monitoring the hydraulic pressure, oil temperature, engine temperature, rpm, battery charge and others.
In separate trials, BigDog runs at 4 mph, climbs slopes up to 35 degrees, walks across rubble, and carries a 340 lb load." If we think about the capabilities of BigDog, we can definitely see it as an alternative to deliver equipment at difficult to reach sites of transmission line towers. But much more exciting is seeing in the video on the company's web site how well it handles the different conditions and manages to keep its balance when hit by an unexpected kick or slipping on an icy surface. Maybe we need to look into the methods and algorithms used to maintain the balance based on the information from its sensors and see if we can use them to maintain the electric power system balance under any abnormal and suddenly changing conditions.