Why balls on power lines over the road. Signal balloons-markers for daytime marking of overhead communication lines and power lines
PK Aston-Elektrotekhnika LLC is a leading Russian manufacturer of obstruction balloons that meet the requirements of STO JSC FGC UES 56947007-29.240.55.192-2014 "Technological design standards for overhead power transmission lines with a voltage of 35-750 kV" and ICAO, "Appendix 14 .Airfields. Volume 1. Aerodrome Design and Operations, 4th edition, July 2014. and GOST R 51177-98 “Linear fittings. General technical conditions".
Advanced technologies implemented in the design and manufacture of pilot warning systems allow achieving maximum efficiency both in terms of visual information content and in terms of manufacturability during installation and operation.
The unique development of aviation markers by a Russian manufacturer is the result of the creative efforts of engineers and technical specialists of PK Aston-Elektrotekhnika LLC, the practical implementation of the implementation of import substitution programs.
Description
Aviation barrier balls-markers are used for marking high-voltage wires in order to visually warn civil and military aviation pilots about the presence of power lines, especially those passing through water obstacles and gorges. Aviation barrage balls for overhead lines are clearly visible against the background of any terrain.
The marker ball is made of glass fiber reinforced plastic and coated with a special compound that protects against UV and fading.
Aviation markers for power lines are available in white, red and orange versions. Barrage balloons are located on the highest wire (cable) of the overhead line and are installed in an alternating color scheme of white and red or white and orange balloons, which ensures their best visibility.
Advantages
Fiberglass reinforced plastic is a high-strength material that is resistant to various atmospheric phenomena and temperature extremes. Climatic version corresponds to UHL1.
Fastening clamps are made of corrosion-resistant material.
The sizes of wire clamps are suitable for power line wires and cables of all existing diameters.
Water drain holes prevent condensation from accumulating inside the balls.
Design features components reduce the cost of transporting balls in disassembled form.
A specially designed spiral protector, on which the ball is mounted, provides protection and safety of the wire (cable).
Marker balls do not require maintenance throughout the entire service life.
Application
Cable-stayed cables supporting guyed masts.
Main overhead lines.
Distribution networks.
For many, this question has remained a mystery for many years. There are many assumptions and conjectures.
Scarecrow for birds. Small ones are placed inside the big ball. At that moment, when the bird sits on the wire, it vibrates, and the balls, like rattles, make a frightening sound. The birds are flying away.
Electrician's pockets for storing stash. Every electrician has one. So to speak, a personal safe protected by high voltage. Lightning transformer. Lightning hits the ball and turns into electricity. In winter, such a transformer greatly facilitates the work of power plants.
In summer sunny days the wire heats up and stretches under its own weight. The balls contain a high-tech device that regulates the tension of the wire.
The ball is an anchor. It dampens the swaying of wires in windy weather. This protects the line from shorting.
The ball is a connection. Used to connect two pieces of cable.
Did you smile? And all these versions were voiced by "experts" who wanted to show off their knowledge.
In fact, everything is much simpler: these are wire markers. They come in different sizes, usually red or orange. Used to make the wire visible. Are established near roads, fields, reservoirs and the airports.
These marker balls allow birds and pilots of small aircraft (low-flying aircraft and helicopters) to spot the wires at a safe distance and not collide with them.
A photo -
Most often in open areas, for example, far from cities, you can see large red balls placed on the electrical wires of high-voltage power lines. These orbs are usually found in places where there aren't really many other different objects. In fact, this is a kind of warning that power lines pass in this area.
The big red balloons that hang from power lines in some rural area are primarily designed to help airline pilots spot the lines to avoid them. Balls are often found on power lines surrounding small airports in open areas and are considered when architectural designs are being made for homes in this area. Airports in cities do not often need these markers because power lines are far from airports and pilots can more easily see the runway and any obstacles that exist in their path.
When a small local airport is located in a rural area, such indicator balloons help guide pilots when they are about to land on the runway. In other places where you can see these balls, there are power lines that cross rivers, canyons or ravines. In these places, the poles are far apart and power lines can be difficult to distinguish from other objects and the landscape.
In addition to being used at airports, such balloons are used in other areas where aircraft may be common occurrences. For example, many hospitals have helipad for the fastest delivery of patients. Because the hospital does not sit in the same way as a large airport, balloons can be placed on power lines near the hospital to help pilots spot the hospital in time. If there are areas where emergency medical evacuation is common, balloons can be used on lines in those areas as well.
Often, it is red balls that are used as warning indicator balls. While red is one of the most common colors for warning and hazard communication purposes, other colors are available. The color used is determined mainly by the surrounding landscape, and the color that stands out the most is applied. Many of these balls are red, white or orange. In many cases, you will see a combination of white and another color for better visibility. Variable colors help draw the attention of pilots to the wires and change the course of an aircraft or other aircraft in time.
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I still don’t understand what kind of balls are strung on the wires of power lines in the place where the power line crosses highways? Who knows?
I saw such things all the time and in those places where the power line crosses the road, there are no left and right.
Definitely not road infrastructure elements: flow sensors, cameras, etc., they are located on special poles, not wires.
In general, I am still tormented by the issue. Help!
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well, you found the attraction :)) I will try to photograph them for you, Mikhail, if I don’t forget :)
2Nini,
Yes, exactly red or orange balls. If this is for airplane/helicopter pilots, then why are they strung in the places where the wires cross the highway. There is nothing else on the wires. That is, they hang strictly in the span of wires that is above the road. In my opinion, to land a helicopter on highway it is illogical if there is a field nearby.
Elena's version seems more logical to me, that these are insulators, although I'm not sure.
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maybe so, but once on the autobahn we got into a "deaf and hopeless" traffic jam due to an accident that happened about a kilometer and a half from us. So I myself saw a helicopter descending onto the highway with rescuers who quickly, if you can call it that, loaded the especially seriously wounded to take them to the hospital. Probably, for such emergencies, these balls hang.
I'll give my humble opinion :)
Balloons on power lines are a preventive measure against corona discharges that interfere with radio signals (radio, mobile connection, ...) vehicles passing under these lines. In fact, these balls are hung not only and not so much over roads, since coronal discharges, in addition to ordinary communication interference, also lead to a loss of electricity. Apparently, communication is the priority in the Czech Republic.
However, how many of us, power engineers...
Colleagues saw in the Czech Republic, I recently in Italy.
Asked questions and people from science. Initially, there were assumptions that these were weather sensors, which were necessary, among other things, when melting ice. But their number does not fit into this assumption! So the question is open! :-)
perhaps these are multifunctional "devices" :-))) by the way, if these are markers for Vehicle, then not for flying (located too low), but just for those traveling along the highway, oversized vehicles such as containers, cranes, etc. where the height adjustment goes. Well, the interference factor is also not swept away. We saw such balls both in Italy and in Spain wherever the power line crosses the highway and in Germany.
Since November 1, 2010, flights of small aircraft of class G are allowed in Russia, which do not require permission, you only need to notify the air traffic control authorities. Upper bound for airspace Class G varies by region and ranges from 300 m ( Rostov region) up to 4500 m (subjects of the federation located in the eastern part of Siberia). Due to the low altitude of flights and the lack of air traffic control permission, it becomes necessary to mark overhead communication lines and power lines in the areas of small aircraft flights. The recommendation for such marking is included in the standard of PJSC Rosseti STO 34.01-21.1-001-2017 “Distribution electric networks with a voltage of 0.4-110 kV. Requirements for technological design. There are daytime markings (the marker does not glow, but only reflects light) and light protection (the marker itself emits light). In this article, we will only talk about daily marking. The devices intended for it are called "signal balls-markers" and are abbreviated SSHM.
Standard of PJSC Rosseti STO 34.01-2.2-016-2016 “Markers for overhead power lines. Marking of supports and spans of overhead lines" establishes the following requirements for marking power lines with a voltage of 35 kV and above, passing near the runways: "Day marking (painting), SShM and light protection should have elements and structures of overhead lines near the airfield or heliport, protruding beyond the internal horizontal, conical or transitional, take-off or approach surface within 6 000 m of their inner limits.” Also, regardless of location relative to the aerodrome, daytime marking (painting), SSHM and light protection must have overhead line supports 100 m or more high.
SSHM and light protection on power lines with a voltage of 35 kV and above should also be, regardless of the location of the line relative to the aerodrome, at crossings over lakes and navigable rivers, as well as when crossing highways IA, IB, IB. At the same time, the SSHM and light protection are installed not only on lightning protection, but also on phase wires (if there are several of these wires and they are located in the same plane, only the outermost wires are marked). In some cases, it is allowed to install only SSHM without light protection, these options are listed in STO 34.01-2.2-016-2016. For example, it is quite possible to get by with only the SSHM, if in a given area from small aircraft only aircraft that perform aviation-chemical work in agriculture, because such work is carried out during daylight hours. Also, the specified standard describes the principles of placement of SHM on wires.
SSHM can be white, red and orange. In the event that there is more than one wire at the highest level in the power line, the alternation of markers of two colors is applied - red and white or red and orange. The choice between red and orange is made based on which of these colors will be most noticeable against the background of the surrounding landscape. According to the current Russian standards, the SSHM used in the area of flights of small aircraft, when crossing roads and water barriers, must have a single color. However, on sale you can also find SSHM, painted in two colors, as a rule, this is a combination of white and red or white and orange. In Russia, such markers are used where small aircraft do not fly, but there is a mass migration of birds. The bright two-tone markers scare birds away from being injured by wires.
At first glance, what could be simpler - a ball painted in a certain color and equipped with wire attachments? But in fact, SSHM is a real high-tech product!
Let's start with the fact that SSHM must combine strength, low weight and resistance to rain. In this case, the SSHM is necessarily made of a dielectric metal, otherwise the capacitance between the conductor and the ground will increase. To prevent cracking and fading, the ball is coated with a special compound that protects the plastic from exposure to ultraviolet rays, or additives to the material are used that protect against ultraviolet radiation.
The material from which the fastener is made must not cause electrochemical corrosion in contact with the wire on which it is installed. Recall that in modern overhead power lines, wires made of aluminum or aluminum and steel are used: inside there is a steel cable braided with aluminum wire. Accordingly, electrochemical corrosion should not occur when fasteners come into contact with aluminum.
Does the SHM have to be completely sealed? It turns out not. During the operation of the SSHM, the ambient temperature varies over a wide range. When the temperature drops, the air compresses, and moisture is sucked in through small cracks or leaks. Inside the ball, moisture accumulates on the bottom, which is practically not removed from there. The mass of the marker increases, which can lead to stretching and even breaking of the wires. When frost sets in, the resulting ice can deform the marker. That is why at least two drainage holes must be provided in the SSHM.
And, of course, the SSHM should fulfill its main function, namely, be clearly visible from afar. The ball must be visible at a distance of at least 1000 m in the air and 300 m from the ground.
The listed requirements are fully met, for example,. These markers can be used on overhead lines and power lines with voltage from 35 kV to 1000 kV. The observation range is at least 1200 m. They are produced in two versions - with a diameter of 600 mm and 800 mm. Thanks to the use of fiberglass reinforced polyester as the body material, the mass of the ball is 6.9 and 9.0 kg, respectively. A wall thickness of 3 mm for the material used is sufficient to provide the necessary strength. But, if the SShM is planned to be used in difficult conditions, the strength of the marker can be increased by installing special reinforcing rods in it (purchased separately).
Signal balls-markers RedDot OMARK in different colors
The following color options are available: orange, red, white, orange-white, red-white. Optionally, you can install a reflective tape on the SSHM.
Separately, it should be noted cable clamp, the design of which provides a secure fit on the wire. The clamp is made of aluminum alloy, but the bolts, washers and nuts are made of stainless steel, so that they do not come into contact with the wire and do not create a risk of corrosion for it. This model of SShM can be mounted on wires with a diameter of 6.5 to 55 mm. Such a wide range of wire diameters is an important advantage of RedDot OMARK - the closest competitor has a width of this range that is almost two times smaller. What is the practical significance of this? If your company builds or maintains power transmission lines with a wide variety of types, you do not need to purchase SHM for various diameters, it is enough to have only one model in stock, which can be installed on almost any wires that are widely used on power lines.
The problem of storage and transportation is also simplified due to the special design of the marker. When disassembled, the markers fold compactly into one another, saving space in the warehouse, as well as reducing the number of truck trips required for delivery.
