Alberta’s planned Supernet high-speed network now has a pint-sized “STAR” on its team that can handle the toughest jobs.
Stream Intelligent Networks Corp. has successfully deployed a 1.8-metre long robot called STAR (Sewage Telecommunication Access by Robot), to complete North America’s first installation of a high-speed fibre-optic network inside a city sewer system.
Stream Intelligent Networks, based in Toronto, is a strategic partner of Bell Nexxia, the general contractor for the Supernet. Bell Nexxia is a partner of consortium leader, Bell Intrigna.
The STAR robot would be useful for making the “last mile” connection among government buildings, schools and hospitals in many of the 420 communities to be linked with Supernet, says Scott Johnston, vice-president of client services for Bell Intrigna. “One of the premises behind Supernet is to make use of local companies, local innovation, to make this thing go faster.”
The big headache with conventional installation of fibre-optic cable has been the disruption it causes and the infrastructure costs.
That includes breaking up the pavement, lifting up the road surface, excavation, laying new duct structure to hold the fibre cable and then resurfacing everything. Usually at least one lane of traffic is blocked for several months during the construction.
Local merchants and residents affected by such projects often complain — as witnessed in Calgary during refurbishment of the Centre Street Bridge.
But with the STAR robot, “we’re trying to create a business-as-usual atmosphere while we’re doing the construction,” says Bill Chapman, senior project manager for Stream Intelligent Networks.
All that’s required during cable installation with STAR is one truck with a crew at the surface controlling the robot.
Chapman was project manager on the pilot North American project in Mississauga, Ont., where the robot connected 14 buildings with five kilometres of fibre-optic cable via the city’s storm sewer. The job was done in 21 days, compared with at least three months for a conventional installation. “No one even knew we were out there,” Chapman says proudly.
Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion says STAR “is an innovative way for us to enhance public services and business competitiveness with minimum disruption to both our citizens and our roads.”
Robotics Cabling Company GmbH of Berlin developed the robot. Ca-Botics Fiber Systems International Ltd. in the U.S. holds the North American licence on the robotics technology. Stream Intelligent Systems, whose chairman of the board is former New Brunswick Premier Frank McKenna, has the sub-licence for Canada.
So how does the little robot get the job done?
Stream Intelligent Systems works with each municipality to first establish a route for the fibre cable through either sewage pipes or storm pipes. A crew then goes into the sewer system and power-washes the inside of the pipes, removing scale and any other debris.
After that, the STAR robot — equipped with five television cameras to monitor operations — is lowered down a manhole into the system to map the route and inspect it for obstacles or sharp edges that need grinding down so they don’t snag the cable.
“Most things can be done within the sewer system by robot. And it can be done at very minimal cost and be performed very quickly,” Chapman says.
Once the system is ready for installation, a crew manually pulls the fibre cable through the pipes, going from chamber to chamber.
Then STAR takes over. The robot travels along the pipes at about one metre per minute. At one-metre intervals, STAR stops, drills a hole in the pipe, rotates its assembly or “body” 45 degrees and then pneumatically anchors a tie-bolt holding the cable to the ceiling inside the pipe.
The cable, designed by Corning, holds 216 fibre-optic filaments. It has an acid-resistant sheath and aluminum armour that would deter gnawing by the biggest rat. The cable’s life expectancy is designed for a minimum 20 years, although Corning expects it will last 30 years and more, Chapman says.
The STAR robot is connected to the control truck at the surface via a 200-metre long tether of three hoses carrying water, compressed air and power controls/video. But the robot also has onboard batteries so it can continue functioning if the surface connection is lost. STAR can operate inside sewer pipes that are between 200 millimetres (eight inches) and 1,200 mm (47 inches) in diameter.
The robot can lay about 800 metres of cable a day compared with up to 100 metres by conventional methods, the company says. And the robotic installation costs $85 to $90 per metre of fibre cable, compared with the typical $140 to $150 metres for conventional construction, Chapman says.
Franco Lofranco, vice-president of business development for Stream Intelligent Systems, says Stream has already held initial discussions with Bell Intrigna about using the robot for Alberta’s Supernet.
“There’s a logical fit, to be able to get involved,” Lofranco says.
Adds Bell Intrigna’s Johnston: “We want to have something that we can hold up for Alberta . . . and say: ‘We’re demonstrating our innovation. We’re not just a natural resource province anymore.’ ”
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