Augmented Reality (AR) was a major topic of discussion at the 2018 Human Performance Conference hosted by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC). The group’s seventh annual conference and workshops took place March 27-29 in Atlanta, Georgia.

One of the featured speakers at the conference was Dave Claussen, Senior Director of Substation Construction and Maintenance for Westar Energy, a customer of Index AR Solutions.

In a presentation entitled “Get Real – The Use of Animation and Augmented Reality,” Claussen described how the Kansas utility partnered with Index AR on the launch of the LineAssist SuperApp® – a powerful mobile training and field application that is making work safer and faster for electrical utility linemen.

Claussen explained how LineAssist fundamentally changes the way linemen are trained in the classroom and do work in the field. Using a tablet, linemen at Westar are using LineAssist to access detailed step-by-step directions through AR. Imagery from the app is overlaid on utility structures workers encounter on a service call, with safety warnings, 3-D animations and written instructions all built in.

The LineAssist SuperApp® captures the knowledge of Westar’s most experienced linemen, and delivers a valuable set of maintenance best practices for three different pole-mounted voltage regulators and five different control panels.

By enabling linemen to visualize and more safely and easily perform tasks that could be less familiar to them, the LineAssist SuperApp® gives everyone the ability to troubleshoot on the first truck roll – resulting in significant savings for Westar.

Westar’s deployment of the LineAssist has also been featured in T&D World Magazine.

For additional information, visit the NERC website to download the presentation or visit Index AR Solutions to learn more about LineAssist and other SuperApp® offerings.