Vienna (energate) - Wien Energie is currently training a robot dog to monitor the facilities at the Simmering CHP plant. From 2023 onwards, the dog will be making its rounds on its own. energate asked Alexander Kirchner, Head of Operations at Wien Energie, about this.
energate: What tasks will the robot dog perform in the future?
Kirchner: Our robot dog - affectionately known internally as the "Energy Dog" - is being used for the first time in Europe in the regular operation of a power plant. Equipped with numerous special cameras and sensors, the Energy Dog will inspect the power plant site in future and report deviations or potential faults to our central control room at an early stage. This will enable us to make everyday power plant operations even more efficient and, above all, safer: In delicate situations, for example, our employees will no longer have to enter the danger zone directly, but will be able to use the Energy Dog to safely and precisely detect faults from a distance and subsequently solve them.
energate: The dog is currently in the "learning phase". What exactly will he learn?
Kirchner: In order for our Energy Dog to be able to perform its tasks well, it first has to get to know our company and the site. To do this, it is currently being fed knowledge by Vienna Energy experts from the operational plant. We use the data that the robot collects to create mathematical models. With the help of artificial intelligence, it learns how the plants function in normal operation. From spring 2023, the Energy Dog will then be in operation 24 hours a day and will carry out the necessary ongoing inspection tours of the plants.
energate: So from 2023, the robot dog will be used around the clock. How will you ensure its energy supply?
Kirchner: A tour of this digital assistance system takes around 90 minutes. During this time, the Energy Dog checks the facilities and communicates with our control room. After the tour is complete, the robot dog goes back to its "sleeping place" - its charging station. There it recharges its batteries for about two hours before it goes on its next round.
energate: To what extent will it replace the existing staff, which tasks will continue to be performed by humans in the future?
Kirchner: Assistance systems like the Energy Dog cannot replace employees, on the contrary. They merely provide support and free up resources that are more urgently needed elsewhere. The advancing digitalisation and the measures to cope with the energy transition are massively changing job profiles in the energy sector. With the help of such new technologies, we can relieve our employees of routine tasks. This allows them to use the freed-up resources for more complex tasks and problem solving.
energate: Where else in the company do you rely on artificial intelligence and robotics?
Kirchner: Digitalisation has been with us for a long time: Augmented reality is used in the power plant, for example. With data glasses, our technicians can have relevant real-time data from plants immediately available on site. If necessary, data and precise instructions for operation or troubleshooting can be called up, thus massively speeding up the process. The Energy Dog is now the next innovative measure to make our power plants fit for the future.
The questions were asked by Stefanie Dierks .