Korea East-West Power is partnering with robot platform company LOAS to deploy artificial intelligence (AI) robots at its Dangjin Power Headquarters to monitor equipment abnormalities and fires, launching a demonstration of “Physical AI” technology.

East-West Power announced on the 10th that it had signed a “Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the Development and Demonstration of Physical AI Technology Based on a Domestic Robot Platform” with LOAS at LOAS headquarters in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on the 7th.

The demonstration will reportedly take place in the pulverizer room and the indoor coal yard at East-West Power’s Dangjin Power Headquarters. The pulverizer room is an area where equipment startup and shutdown have become frequent due to the recent increase in power system volatility, while the indoor coal yard is a facility that requires equipment inspection and safety diagnosis to guard against the risk of spontaneous combustion.

Wheeled and tracked AI robots equipped with integrated sensors such as acoustic, video, and thermal imaging will be deployed on site. The robots will be able to move continuously for up to six hours, diagnose equipment abnormalities such as vibration and oil leaks, and perform tasks including instrument inspection as well as fire and industrial safety monitoring.

Data collected by the robots will be transmitted in real time via East-West Power’s in-house secure wireless communication network and used to monitor power generation facilities.

East-West Power plans to verify the applicability of robots at power plant sites and their work efficiency, while LOAS intends to use the demonstration data to improve the performance of industrial inspection robots. LOAS’s domestically developed integrated control platform “ARQOS” will also be verified in the process.

East-West Power plans to complete its effectiveness assessment by the second half of this year and prepare technical specifications that include essential robot requirements and operating standards. It will then push ahead with building a Physical AI monitoring system that links power facility control with three-dimensional spatial mapping technology.

An East-West Power official said, “We will not stop at introducing robots to power plant sites, but will establish a stable and efficient Physical AI operating system through on-site verification and the development of technical specifications,” adding, “In cooperation with domestic small and medium-sized enterprises, we will promote the AI transformation (AX) of the power generation industry.”

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