Method for real-time reconstruction of a transmission line based on the LiDAR point cloud data of a partial line segment

Abstract

In a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) anti-external force damage monitoring system, the LiDAR installed on an electric power tower can only collect some point cloud data from the transmission line within a few tens of meters. Consequently, its anti-break system fails to calculate the distance between the transmission line and ground objects. In this study, a real-time reconstruction method for a transmission line based on a catenary mathematical model is proposed. Based on the three-dimensional (3D) point cloud data of the local power line, a 3D point cloud is mapped to a two-dimensional (2D) plane. In the 3D plane coordinate system, the catenary equation is fitted and calculated using the catenary model, and the 2D point cloud dataset of the transmission line is calculated according to this equation. Subsequently, the transmission line of the 2D plane is restored to the 3D space, and finally, the entire transmission line is restored to the 3D point cloud data. The field test results reveal that the proposed method can be used to effectively calculate and reconstruct the 3D transmission line model in real time and solve the spatial distance calculation problem of the anti-external force damage monitoring system.