Development of a live-line technology for insulator changing

Hungary was one of the pioneers of high voltage live-line maintenance in the 1960s. Many of the currently applied technologies and equipment is related to the developments of Dr. Béla Csikós, one of the pioneers of this technology. Nowadays different working methods are used worldwide for the maintenance of the energized components of the high voltage grid. As a part of an international project, Budapest University of Technology and Economics is involved in the improvement of existing live-line activities in the Hungarian high voltage grid. This paper introduces the research and development of composite insulator changing method in the vicinity of both energized and grounded parts in the Hungarian grid. There is also a need to introduce the safe approach technology for conductors above the lowest phase which only can currently been reached by the existing techniques. As the result of a co-operation between the Hungarian TSO and the High Voltage Laboratory of Budapest University of Technology and Economics, newly developed technologies will be introduced in the live grid to demonstrate the new capabilities. These new developments are proposed to increase the efficiency of live-line works by the increment of activities executable while the grid is energized. Besides the technical and economic benefits, with proper risk assessment the safety of the workers may be increased as well, compared to the de-energized works.