A cornerstone of the energy transition, offshore wind energy supplies millions of consumers with green electricity. Export cables connect offshore wind farms to the grid onshore. The cable routes need to be surveyed regularly to ensure that the cable positions are precisely known — but the acoustic and magnetic methods that are currently used to do this are time-consuming, incur high costs and lack reliability. For this reason, researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy Systems IWES are working with partners to develop a novel measuring system for cable localization as part of the SASACD project. It overcomes the hurdles that existing systems present and not only allows cables to be located over extensive areas but can also penetrate to sufficient depths in sediment.

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