Research Application Story Concerns New Contact Voltage Sensor

Aug. 2, 2011
In collaboration with Con Edison of New York and National Grid, Electric Power Research Institute developed electric field sensor to help electric utilities detect and repair contact voltage.

To assist electric utilities detect and repair contact voltage, the Electric Power Research Institute has developed a new electric field sensor in collaboration with Con Edison of New York and National Grid.

This directional E-Field sensor makes it faster and safer to find inadvertently energized objects and surfaces. The device features an antenna that identifies the charge from any electric field. Users carry it around until some of the LED lights register on the device. The user can then sweep it from side to side and up and down and while approaching the source of the electric field, more LEDs will light up. Con Edison and National Grid have deployed more than 100 of the devices into the field and EPRI is collecting the results of those demonstrations.

For more details, see Transmission & Distribution World's "Con Edison Minimizes Contact Voltage Hazard," published in the May 2011 issue.

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