A collaboration between colleagues from Heriot-Watt's Ocean Systems Laboratory and the Smart Systems Group has received funding to deliver a human-robotics hybrid solution for the maintenance and operation of offshore wind farms. The consortium (the Holistic Operation and Maintenance for Energy from Offshore Wind Farms or HOME-Offshore) received a GBP 4 million grant to create remote inspection and repair technologies using robotics and autonomous systems.
These will be used to inspect the condition of subsea power cables, identify problems early and ultimately, extend their lifespan. The consortium brings together experts from the following universities: Manchester (project lead), Warwick, Cranfield, Durham and Heriot-Watt University. The GBP 4 million research grant includes a GBP 1 million industry contribution and GBP 3 million from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).