AUGMENTED
REALITY (AR)
VIRTUAL
REALITY (VR)
3D SCANNING
(3D)
Augmented Reality (AR)
Augmented reality modifies users’ reality by bringing helpful text or information into their field of view via smart glasses or headsets. Users interact with the glasses and, in some cases, the environment via voice commands and handheld controls.
Power industry applications
Operations and Maintenance
AR-enabled technicians can gain remote access to equipment manuals and service documents on smart glasses. Overlays of preventive maintenance history can speed and improve decision-making.
Emergency Management
Work orders for storm repairs can be crowdsourced with an AR app that lets residents photograph downed power lines and submit them and their GPS location to the utility.
Asset Management
Users can scan QR labels on equipment and add inspection findings to databases used to track asset condition, schedule maintenance and identify safety hazards.
Safety
Geofences defining virtual boundaries of restricted or high-voltage areas can be built using Bluetooth beacons or GPS software. Smart glasses notifications alert unauthorized employees and their supervisors to breaches.
AR transmitters can send emergency notifications, track worker locations, indicate escape routes, identify hazardous areas, conduct headcounts and perform other actions when situations warrant.
VIRTUAL REALITY (VR)
Virtual reality disconnects users from the real world, replacing it with a virtual environment they can see through a headset and interact with using hand gestures or by walking around.
Power industry applications
Training
VR can place employees in real-life scenarios for hazards training without exposing them to high-voltage or other dangerous conditions. New employees in specially programmed VR headsets can be led through step-by-step maintenance of critical assets or other tasks. Operation of complex new equipment can be taught remotely through a hands-on VR experience.
3D SCANNING (3D)
3D laser scanning quickly captures and converts large-scale, real-world objects or environments into highly accurate three-dimensional digital models that can be stored and manipulated on computers.
Power industry applications
Predesign
When new equipment is added, or older equipment repaired or replaced, a digital twin supports predesign by accurately documenting existing conditions at a site. By capturing the ground and all objects above it, 3D models can confirm adequate clearance for electrical designs. They can also document “as-is” conditions on congested sites, making it easier to avert equipment and piping clashes when new systems are installed.
Digital twins also reduce the need for site visits to a generation plant or substation, further saving time and money.
Design & construction
Switching from 2D drawings to 3D design software fundamentally changes the way power systems are planned and designed. Design involves creating a digital 3D model that easily can be manipulated and updated. When a piece of equipment is moved or reconfigured, all the detailed design data related to it and its interfaces move with it, and the model updates itself. The potential for design and construction errors is reduced and assessing change impacts is easier.
Adding a live link to a real-world project during construction makes it possible for engineering and construction managers to monitor progress, where they can identify problems and inconsistencies. Knowing the explicit nature of an asset or process provides highly accurate as-built models. This is an invaluable aid in filling in any missing information or incomplete documentation.
Operations & maintenance
A near-real-time digital twin of an as-built asset reflects all its defects and is continually updated to include wear and tear. Users can interact with it to analyze and predict operations and maintenance issues. With machine learning and artificial intelligence, it is possible to build an operational history that can be mined for trends and predict upcoming maintenance needs.
Utilities that regularly conduct 3D scans of high-voltage transmission lines and other outdoor mission-critical assets can track and identify vegetation and other issues to support trimming and maintenance programs.
Utilizing this technology for an end-to-end system can be highly valuable in identifying the source of power outages, helping to speed recovery and improve customer satisfaction. It makes it possible to solve physical issues faster by detecting them sooner and to predict outcomes to a higher degree of accuracy.
One benefit is its ability to provide the latest 3D information on existing site conditions using both 3D scans and design models. This makes it easier to guide planning decisions with highly accurate as-built information.
A digital twin is well-equipped with advanced tools and technology to monitor asset health, quickly identifying equipment that needs to be repaired or replaced, often enabling the use of predictive and condition-based techniques.
Digital twin technologies reduce the need for site visits to a generation plant or substation, saving time and money. If a site visit is required, leveraging real-time and other system and asset data from a digital twin will enhance personnel safety and site visit efficiency.
Knowing the explicit nature of an asset or process provides highly accurate system models. This is an invaluable aid in filling in any missing information or incomplete documentation.
Utilities that regularly conduct 3D scans of high-voltage transmission lines and other outdoor mission-critical assets can track and identify vegetation and other issues to support trimming and maintenance programs.
Switching from 2D drawings to 3D design software fundamentally changes the way power systems are planned and designed. Design involves creating a digital 3D model that easily can be manipulated and updated.
Utilizing this technology for an end-to-end system can be highly valuable in identifying the source of power outages, helping to speed recovery and improve customer satisfaction.
With machine learning and artificial intelligence, it is possible to build an operational history that can be mined for trends and predict upcoming maintenance needs.
One benefit is its ability to provide the latest 3D information on existing site conditions using both 3D scans and design models. This makes it easier to guide planning decisions with highly accurate as-built information.
A digital twin is well-equipped with advanced tools and technology to monitor asset health, quickly identifying equipment that needs to be repaired or replaced, often enabling the use of predictive and condition-based techniques.
Digital twin technologies reduce the need for site visits to a generation plant or substation, saving time and money. If a site visit is required, leveraging real-time and other system and asset data from a digital twin will enhance personnel safety and site visit efficiency.
Knowing the explicit nature of an asset or process provides highly accurate system models. This is an invaluable aid in filling in any missing information or incomplete documentation.
Utilities that regularly conduct 3D scans of high-voltage transmission lines and other outdoor mission-critical assets can track and identify vegetation and other issues to support trimming and maintenance programs.
Switching from 2D drawings to 3D design software fundamentally changes the way power systems are planned and designed. Design involves creating a digital 3D model that easily can be manipulated and updated.
Utilizing this technology for an end-to-end system can be highly valuable in identifying the source of power outages, helping to speed recovery and improve customer satisfaction.
With machine learning and artificial intelligence, it is possible to build an operational history that can be mined for trends and predict upcoming maintenance needs.
Want More?
Many industries have already seen the revolutionary influence of digital twin-enabling technologies, such as 3D design, visualization and printing. Learn more about how the power industry can prepare for the evolution of what is possible here.
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