Sense announces edge artificial intelligence fault detection

Grid edge intelligence specialist, Sense, has launched an edge-powered fault detection solution to improve safety, reliability, and wildfire prevention.

The software solution, which is embedded directly into next-generation smart meters, gives utilities real-time visibility into faults throughout the distribution grid. This includes all the way to the service and secondary lines feeding homes, areas where most failures originate but monitoring has historically been limited.

Fault detection technologies

According to the US Energy Information Administration, more than 90 per cent of US outages occur on the distribution grid, yet most fault detection technologies focus upstream on transmission or substations. Sense uses Waveform AI, its on-meter signal disaggregation and insight technology, to detect arcing, downed lines, and equipment degradation in real time, helping utilities reduce wildfire risk, protect crews, and accelerate restoration.

Built for advanced metering infrastructure 2.0 (AMI 2.0), Sense runs as software inside modern smart meters, maximising the investment in meter deployments and avoiding the additional cost and complexity of pole-top sensors or radio-based localisation.

Sense claims utilities can detect and localise faults faster, shorten outages, reduce truck rolls, and prioritise asset replacements based on real-world conditions. Early fault detection on the distribution grid can also help improve safety for utility lineworkers, as arcing events can be fatal for lineworkers who encounter them in the field.