Boston Dynamics: High Voltage Spot Inspections at National Grid

 

Oct 13, 2021

Energy giant National Grid is using Spot to keep employees safe and ensure uptime at a critical facility. National Grid introduced Spot into the thyristor hall at Sandy Pond Converter Station just a few days before the facility’s shutdown period. The inspection robot was equipped with both a high-resolution 30X optical zoom pan/tilt/zoom camera and an infrared (IR) thermal camera to detect signs of potential problems. A top priority at the facility is the monitoring of equipment conditions. Because the valve hall is water-cooled, any leaks could cause issues leading to equipment overheating and malfunction. While stationary cameras could detect signs of water leaks in certain locations, there’s no way for those cameras to cover every angle of the valve hall. With the optical zoom camera, Spot was able to inspect the equipment during operation. Just as importantly, the IR camera allowed the robot to detect “hot spots,” where the equipment is hotter in some areas than others.