Robots invade offshore wind

Scottish scientists are among members of a consortium that has received a £4m government grant to develop robotic equipment capable of helping humans operate and maintain offshore wind farms.

The so-called human-robotics hybrid solution would utilise autonomous systems to inspect the condition of subsea power cables, identify problems and ultimately extend their lifespan, Heriot-Watt University said. 

David Flynn, director of the Edinburgh-based university’s Smart Systems Group, said the cost of achieving the UK government’s decarbonisation targets had so far focused on wind turbine spending.

“But budgets have largely ignored the operation and maintenance of wind farm assets including susbea cabling,” he said. 

Flynn estimated that 70% of cable failures currently cannot be monitored where they originally occurred.

“The UK is leading the world in the development of remote inspection technologies, which also have significant applications in the global oil and gas decommissioning market,” he said.

Image: Heriot-Watt University