Smart hammer (AM10)

Business Need

Asset replacement strategies need to factor in current fleet health as well as anticipated changes in order to pace expenditure manageably. Wooden pole assets on overhead line networks present a particular challenge given the diversity of their operating environments and the ways in which they face material degradation. The Smart Hammer provides the telemetry for measuring pole condition without subjectivity, but interpreting the volume of data it produces necessitates an automated assessment.The purpose of AM-10 was to validate the experimental design of health index classifier tests, recommend performance improvements and propose the means to make the assessment transparent

Key partners

The solution

This project will build on Strathclyde’s know-how in the operational data analytics field as well as model explainability. The new IP to be generated will be further know-how and specific algorithms that can provide diagnostic or predictive capabilities based on the data inputs as well as the actions that result from their predictions.

Next steps

Further consideration of human factors in decision support for automated asset health index classification through automated model explanations.

Business benefits

Policy impact

DNO wooden pole assets are numerous and understanding their condition is essential for network resilience in rural areas and also from a health and safety perspective. This project allows pole asset health to be assessed quicker, more accurately and more repeatably than existing methods.

Industry quotes

Strathclyde provided a rapid assessment and validation of the  project trial experimental design; subsequent revisions yielded model  performance design improvements that were fed back to delivery partners for revisions to the operational 
solution. 

 

Fraser MacIntyre, Innovation Project Manager, SSEN Distribution

The Strathclyde analysis and subsequent AI model performance improvements can give field operatives greater confidence in assessing the health of wooden pole assets.

Kevin Dennis, Innovation Project Manager, SSEN Distribution