Application of a power line maintenance information system using OPGW to the Nishi-Gunma UHV line

Tokyo Electric Power Company, Inc. began operation of the Nishi-Gunma UHV trunk line, the first 1000 kV-designed power line in Japan, in April, 1992. This line is expected to be the key line in a major trunk-line system that is being developed. It traverses high-altitude mountainous areas subject to severe environmental and meteorological conditions for a long distance. A system using Composite Fiber-optic Overhead Ground Wire (OPGW) is constructed to obtain precise information on this line for maintenance purposes. This system comprises three major functions; (1) meteorological and facility's monitoring for gathering meteorological data on such elements as winds, and icing and snow accretion, and for evaluating the corresponding reaction of the components such as conductor tension, and strain in the tower structure, (2) Industrial TV (ITV) monitoring for visual observation of weather, surrounding conditions and site facilities, and (3) fault section location for pinpointing faults quickly and determining the maintenance office that should respond to the faults. This is done by estimating the fault section accurately around the boundaries of the maintenance jurisdictions. This paper describes the development of these functions and results obtained from practical operation. Keywords: Power Transmission Line; Composite Fiber-optic Overhead Ground Wire (OPGW); Maintenance Information System; Fault Location