UK: High speed line project promoter HS2 Ltd has launched its seventh Innovation Accelerator programme, with six SMEs selected to develop ideas for automating asset management, maximising site productivity and future-proofing operations.
Archangel Imaging will refine its AI-equipped security camera technology to monitor security across HS2’s estate.
Complete Cyber will develop its product to bolster the security technology of digital signalling.
Machines for Construction’s robotic technology will be further developed to perform repetitive tasks such as installation of overhead electrification equipment, learning on the job to do tasks with increasing efficiency.
Mind Foundry will seek to harness its AI-enabled technology to help infrastructure engineers to monitor the condition of the line’s structures and equipment for performance changes.
PRAM’s radar technology will be refined to help monitor and manage the condition of assets such as viaducts and embankment cuttings, especially in light of expected increases in extreme rainfall and drought.
StirlingX’s uncrewed aerial systems could be used to inspect and monitor infrastructure and assets, particularly on conventional lines.
The seventh Innovation Accelerator will run until May, after which the firms’ technologies will be showcased to industry investors and the HS2 supply chain.
