INESC P&D Brasil coordinates project on power grid monitoring

In November 2015, INESC P&D Brasil (INESC R&D Brazil) started project TECCON II – Technology for Smart Grids, where the goal is to increase the efficiency, reliability and safety of power transmission lines, using optical fibre-based sensing systems.

The team involved in the project will be responsible for developing a 230 kV polymer isolator using optical fibre-based sensing systems. Additionally, a supervision system will be developed based on machine learning for reading and processing data. The system is an innovative solution for monitoring transmission lines in real time.

The project will be developed by a multidisciplinary team involving eight partners. Besides INESC P&D Brasil (coordinator), the consortium includes the Federal University of Campina Grande, the Federal University of Pará, the Federal University of Santa Catarina, the Federal University of Technology of Paraná, the Federal University of Itajubá, the State University of Campinas, and INESC TEC. In this project, INESC TEC is represented by Pedro Jorge and Ivo Nascimento of the Centre for Applied Photonics (CAP).

The kick-off meeting of the TECCON II took place in Florianópolis, on 19 November, and was attended by the Directors of INESC P&D Brasil, Mauro Rosa and Alexandre Rocco, and a group of researchers from the different entities involved. During the meeting, an overview of the project was presented, as well as the goals and tasks for the first year of the project.

The TECCON II is funded by the Transmissora Brasileira de Energia (TBE), as part of the company’s R&D Programme. With a funding of about 1.2 million Euros, the project has a planned duration of 36 months.