Patent Publication Number: US-2022236312-A1

Title: Systems and methods for monitoring a powerline conductor using an associated fiber optic cable

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application is a continuation U.S. Ser. No. 16/450,880 filed Jun. 24, 2019, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/938,348, filed Mar. 28, 2018, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/573,470, filed Oct. 17, 2017. The disclosure of each of these applications is incorporated in its entirety by this reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     Typical electrical transmission and distribution systems often include some form of monitoring equipment to detect severed powerlines and other anomalies. Typically, such equipment may include head-end line monitoring gear in either or both of the transmission space (e.g., where powerline conductors traditionally carry thousands of volts over long distances) and at the substation level (e.g., where higher voltages are often converted to lower voltages prior to distribution to consumers). In addition, in some circumstances, “smart” meters installed at the customer premises may collect data regarding voltage levels, power consumption, and so on. 
     Consequently, data regarding the current operational status of large portions of the transmission and distribution systems tends to be coarse-grained due at least in part to the location of the monitoring gear. For examples, in an electrical transmission system, current supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems may detect when a particular powerline conductor has failed, but the particular location of the failure may be difficult to ascertain due to the expanse over which the conductor may extend. Similarly, due to the potentially large number of branching circuits sometimes involved in a distribution system, determining a particular location or cause of a failure in such a system may also prove to be problematic, possibly causing a significant amount of time and expense to identify accurately. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The accompanying drawings illustrate a number of exemplary embodiments and are a part of the specification. Together with the following description, these drawings demonstrate and explain various principles of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an exemplary system for monitoring a powerline conductor using an associated fiber optic cable. 
         FIG. 2  is a graphical representation of an exemplary monitoring environment in which the exemplary system of  FIG. 1  may be utilized. 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram of an exemplary monitoring device employable in the exemplary system of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a block diagram of an exemplary data injection device employable in the exemplary system of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 5  is a block diagram of an exemplary timing control subsystem employable with either or both the exemplary monitoring device of  FIG. 3  and the exemplary data injection device of  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 6  is a flow diagram of an exemplary method for monitoring a powerline conductor using an associated fiber optic cable. 
         FIG. 7  is a flow diagram of an exemplary method of installing a system for monitoring a powerline conductor using an associated fiber optic cable. 
     
    
    
     Throughout the drawings, identical reference characters and descriptions indicate similar, but not necessarily identical, elements. While the exemplary embodiments described herein are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. However, the exemplary embodiments described herein are not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the instant disclosure covers all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the appended claims. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS 
     Typical electrical transmission and distribution systems often include some form of monitoring equipment to detect severed powerlines and other anomalies. Typically, such equipment may include head-end line monitoring gear in either or both of the transmission space (e.g., where powerline conductors traditionally carry thousands of volts over long distances) and at the substation level (e.g., where higher voltages are often converted to lower voltages prior to distribution to consumers). In addition, in some circumstances, “smart” meters installed at the customer premises may collect data regarding voltage levels, power consumption, and so on. 
     Consequently, data regarding the current operational status of large portions of the transmission and distribution systems tends to be coarse-grained due at least in part to the location of the monitoring gear. For examples, in an electrical transmission system, current supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems may detect when a particular powerline conductor has failed, but the particular location of the failure may be difficult to ascertain due to the expanse over which the conductor may extend. Similarly, due to the potentially large number of branching circuits sometimes involved in a distribution system, determining a particular location or cause of a failure in such a system may also prove to be problematic, possibly causing a significant amount of time and expense to identify accurately. 
     The present disclosure is generally directed to systems and methods for monitoring a powerline conductor using an associated fiber optic cable. As will be explained in greater detail below, embodiments of the instant disclosure may facilitate use of a fiber optical cable (e.g., a fiber optic cable installed in proximity to the powerline conductor) to carry data regarding one or more characteristics regarding the powerline conductor that are generated by a plurality of monitoring devices distributed along at least a portion of the conductor, thus potentially providing more detailed and more finely-grained information regarding the operational status or condition of the conductor, which may facilitate detailed discovery of failure conditions, service theft, and so on. 
     The following will provide, with reference to  FIGS. 1-7 , detailed descriptions of systems and methods for monitoring a powerline conductor using an associated fiber optic cable. Such an exemplary system that may include multiple monitoring devices and a data injection device is discussed in conjunction with  FIG. 1 . An exemplary monitoring environment that may employ the exemplary system of  FIG. 1  is discussed in connection with  FIG. 2 . An exemplary monitoring device is presented in reference to  FIG. 3 , and an exemplary data injection system is discussed in connection with  FIG. 4 . Moreover, in reference to  FIG. 5 , a description is provided of an exemplary communication timing system employable with either or both of the exemplary monitoring device of  FIG. 3  and the data injection device of  FIG. 4 . In conjunction with  FIG. 6 , an exemplary method of monitoring a powerline conductor using an associated fiber optic cable is discussed, and an exemplary method of installing a system for monitoring a powerline conductor using an associated fiber optical cable is presented in reference to  FIG. 7 . 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an exemplary system  100  for monitoring a powerline conductor  110  using an associated fiber optic cable  112 . In some examples, powerline conductor  110  may be an electrical conductor (e.g., a conductive cable) used in an electrical power transmission system (e.g., approximately 110 kilovolt (kV) or greater transmission lines), sub-transmission system (e.g., approximately 35 kV to 110 kV sub-transmission lines), distribution system (e.g., approximately 35 kV or less distribution lines), or any other electrical conductor for providing electrical power. In some embodiments, fiber optic cable  112  may include one or more optical fibers for carrying communication data, where fiber optic cable  112  may be associated with (e.g., mechanically coupled to) powerline conductor  110  in some fashion. For example, fiber optic cable  112  may be helically wrapped about powerline conductor  110  (e.g., as part of an aerial outside plant (aerial OSP) fiber optic cable installation). However, other ways of associating fiber optic cable  112  with powerline conductor  110  are also possible. 
     As depicted in  FIG. 1 , system  100  may include multiple monitoring devices  102  that may be distributed at various locations along powerline conductor  110 . In at least some examples, each of one or more monitoring devices  102  may include at least one detection component that detects at least one physical characteristic (e.g., instantaneous or near-instantaneous voltage and/or current signals (including transients and/or harmonics in addition to expected sinusoidal waveforms), environmental condition in proximity of monitoring device  102 , and so on) at the location of monitoring device  102  along powerline conductor  110 . Monitoring device  102  may also include a transmitter that wirelessly transmits data indicating the at least one physical characteristic. 
     System  100 , as indicated in  FIG. 1 , may also include a data injection device  104  that wirelessly receives the data from one or more monitoring devices  102 , transforms the data into an optical signal, and then introduces or injects the optical signal onto fiber optic cable  112  (e.g., an optical fiber of fiber optical cable  112 ) for transmission to a data collection subsystem  106 . In some examples, data collection subsystem may include one or more computer systems (e.g., computer servers) that collect and process the data to detect fault conditions or other anomalies in the status or operation of powerline conductor  110 . 
       FIG. 2  is a graphical representation of an exemplary monitoring environment  200  in which system  100  of  FIG. 1  may be utilized. As depicted in the example of  FIG. 2 , monitoring environment  200  may include an electrical power transmission or distribution system having a plurality of utility poles  202  carrying multiple powerline conductors  110 . While any number of powerline conductors  110  may be carried via utility poles  202 , two powerline conductors  110  are illustrated in  FIG. 2  for visual simplicity. In some examples, powerline conductors  110  are mechanically coupled to utility poles  202  via insulators  204 , although other types of components (e.g., taps, standoffs, etc.) may be employed in various embodiments. 
     Also shown in  FIG. 2  is fiber optic cable  112  aligned with, and mechanically coupled to, powerline conductor  110 . As mentioned above, fiber optic cable  112  may be helically wrapped about powerline conductor  110 , such as by way of a human-powered or electrically-powered robotic device. However, other physical relationships between powerline conductor  110  and fiber optic cable  112  are also possible. While only one fiber optic cable  112  is depicted in  FIG. 2 , multiple powerline conductors  110  employing the same utility poles  202  may each have a corresponding fiber optic cable  112  attached or otherwise coupled thereto. As depicted in  FIG. 2 , fiber optic cable  112  may be secured to powerline conductor  110  via one or more cable clamps  206 . In some examples described in greater detail below, each of one or more cable clamps  206  may include a corresponding monitoring device  102 . In some examples, fiber optic cable  112  may follow a powerline conductor  110  associated with a particular phase of the power being transmitted, or may alternate between two or three different phases, such as at phase-to-ground transitions  210  at utility poles  202 , to provide some level of monitoring of all three phases with a signal fiber optic cable  112 . 
     In some embodiments, in addition to installing monitoring devices  102  along powerline conductors  110  strung along utility poles  202 , as shown in  FIG. 2 , one or more additional monitoring devices  102  may be installed at the secondary side of transformers (not depicted in  FIG. 2 ) that supply power to customer premises. 
     Additionally,  FIG. 2  illustrates an optical fiber splice case  208  that, in some embodiments, splices corresponding ends of optical fibers of fiber optic cable  112  together. For example, relatively long stretches (e.g., 1 km-long expanses) of fiber optic cable  112  that may be coupled to powerline conductor  110  may be mechanically coupled together, thermally fused together, or otherwise coupled in optical fiber splice case  208 , which may include optical couplers, amplifiers, and/or other components to facilitate transmission of optical data signals from one expanse of fiber optic cable  112  to the next. In some examples, such as that shown in  FIG. 2 , optical fiber splice case  208  may be attached to, or positioned on, a utility pole  202 . In some examples, such as that depicted in  FIG. 2 , optical fiber splice case  208  may be mounted on a lower portion of utility pole  202  (e.g., in a lower-voltage section at a safe distance away from higher-voltage powerline conductor  110  to facilitate installation of optical fiber splice case  208 ). Additionally, in some embodiments, a phase-to-ground transition  210  may be coupled with each fiber optic cable  112  to be interconnected to provide electrical isolation from powerline conductor  110 . However, other locations for optical fiber splice case  208  may also be possible. 
       FIG. 3  is a block diagram of an exemplary monitoring device  300  employable in system  100  of  FIG. 1 . As mentioned above, in some examples, monitoring device  102  may be included in a cable clamp  206  or other clamping device that secures fiber optic cable  112  to powerline conductor  110 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , monitoring device  102  may include one or more detection components (e.g., a current transducer  310 , a voltage transducer  312 , an accelerometer  314 , and/or others). Also in some embodiments, monitoring device  102  may include one or more of a processor  306 , memory  308 , a wireless microcontroller  304  or other communication device, and/or a power management controller  320  coupled with a solar cell  322  and/or a battery  324 . 
     In some embodiments, the detection components may detect physical characteristics of powerline conductor  110 , including characteristics of the electrical power being carried via power conductor  110 , such as voltage and current. In some examples, current transducer  310  may include a noncontact current transducer (e.g., a Rogowski coil) arranged around powerline conductor  110  to measure alternating current (AC) current signals. Also in some embodiments, voltage transducer  312  may include a noncontact voltage transducer (e.g., a capacitor divider circuit) arranged in physical proximity to powerline conductor  110  to measure AC voltage signals. The monitoring of such characteristics may aid in identifying the location electrical faults or anomalies (e.g., short circuits, open circuits, degrading portions, and so on) of powerline conductor  110 ), as well as instances of utility theft in which power is tapped from the electrical grid in an unauthorized manner. 
     In some embodiments, other types of detection components may measure other physical aspects of powerline conductor  110  not directly associated with the power being carried via powerline conductor  110 . For example, the detection components of monitoring device  102  may include components that measure physical movement or force on powerline conductor  110 . In one example, accelerometer  314  may detect acceleration of powerline conductor  110  (e.g., aeolian vibration and/or galloping conductors in one or more directions transverse to the longitudinal direction defined by powerline conductor  110 ), which may be helpful in identifying areas of powerline conductor  110  experiencing undesirable movement (e.g., due to wind or other external factors), changes in line sag, line disconnection, and the like at the location of monitoring device  102 . Other detection components (e.g., gyroscopes, strain gauges, etc.) may measure, for example, strain or other forces imposed on powerline conductor  110  at one or more relatively specific locations along powerline conductor  110 . 
     In yet other embodiments, the detection components of monitoring device  102  may include sensors or transducers that detect one or more characteristics of the environment surrounding powerline conductor  110 , such as temperature, humidity, wind speed, and the like. Monitoring such characteristics at various locations along powerline conductor  110  may help provide insight regarding future potential problems that may be encountered with powerline conductor  110 . 
     In some examples, one or more of the detection components (e.g., sensors, transducers, and so on) may generate analog or digital indications of the particular characteristics with which they are tasked to measure. For example, current transducer  310 , voltage transducer  312 , and/or accelerometer  314  may generate an analog voltage, an analog current, a digital data value, or other indication of the characteristic being measured. 
     Processor  306 , in some examples, may be a microprocessor, microcontroller, digital signal processor (DSP), application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or other hardware processor that may receive the indications from the detection components. In one example, processor  306  may be a mixed-signal processor. In some examples, processor  306  may sample one or more of the indications from the detection components hundreds or thousands of times per second (e.g., 1 kilo-samples per second (kSps) up to 20 kSps)), while other indications may be sampled less often, such as once per one or more seconds. In some embodiments, processor  306  may include one or more circuits (e.g., digital data ports, analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), and so on) that may transform the indications generated by the detection components into digital values. Additionally, processor  306  may process that data into one or more other forms. For example, processor  306  may generate averages (e.g., isolated averages over distinct time periods, moving averages over consecutive time periods, and/or the like) of the received or sampled digital data from the detection components. Moreover, in some embodiments, processor  306  may generate additional data based on (e.g., derived from) the received indications (e.g., power factor data, harmonic content, and transients based on sampled electrical voltage and current indications). In at least some embodiments, processor  306  may also communicate with wireless microcontroller  304  (e.g., to transmit the resulting data) and/or memory  308  (e.g., to store the resulting data). 
     Memory  308 , in addition to providing storage for data received and/or generated by processor  306 , may include instructions to be executed by processor  306  (as well as by wireless microcontroller  304 , discussed below) to perform its various functions or tasks, as described in greater detail herein. In one embodiment, memory  308  may be a separate memory component, or may be incorporated within processor  306 . Memory  308  generally represents any type or form of volatile or non-volatile storage device or medium capable of storing data and/or computer-readable instructions. In other examples, some functionality described above as performed by processor  306  and/or wireless microcontroller  304  may instead be performed by special-purpose circuitry included in monitoring device  102 . 
     Wireless microcontroller  304 , in some examples, may be a controller component that employs a wireless communication protocol to transmit and/or receive data wirelessly. More specifically, in at least some embodiments, wireless microcontroller  304  may receive the data representing the at least one characteristic detected by the detection components, as sampled, processed, or otherwise generated by processor  306 , and transmits that data wirelessly (e.g., to data injection device  104 ). In some embodiments, wireless microcontroller  304  may employ an antenna  302  for the wireless transmission and/or reception of data. Examples of the wireless communication protocol implemented by wireless microcontroller  304  may include, but are not limited to, Zigbee®, Wi-Fi, IEEE 802.15.4E/G (e.g., for low-rate wireless personal area networks (LR-WPAN5)), and Bluetooth®. In some embodiments, wireless microcontroller  304  may also include logic that routes data generated, as well as received, by monitoring device  102  to another monitoring device  102  or data injection device  104 . In some embodiments, a single component may function as both processor  306  and wireless microcontroller  304 . 
     In some examples, wireless microcontroller  304  may also wirelessly transmit data to, and/or receive data from, another monitoring device  102  (e.g., using wireless microcontroller  304  and antenna  302 ). For example, the distance between one or more monitoring devices  102  and data injection device  104  may exceed the communication capabilities of wireless microcontroller  304 . Accordingly, one monitoring device  102  may transmit its data indicating the at least one detected physical characteristic to another monitoring device  102 , which may receive and retransmit that data wirelessly (e.g., to data injection device  104  or yet another monitoring device  102 ). Additionally, in some embodiments, monitoring devices  102  and/or data injection device  104  may receive smart meter data or data from other utility metering infrastructure (e.g., via Zigbee®, IEEE 802.15.4E/G, etc.) and inject that data along with the monitoring data onto an optical fiber of fiber optic cable  112 , as described in greater detail below. 
     Power management controller  320 , in some embodiments, may employ either or both solar cell  322  and/or battery  324  to provide power (e.g., without a wired connection to an external electrical power source) for monitoring device  102 , including, but not limited to, wireless microcontroller  304 , processor  306 , memory  308 , current transducer  310 , voltage transducer  312 , and/or accelerometer  314 . For example, power management controller  320  may direct energy generated by solar cell  322  to battery  324  for storage and/or to other components of monitoring device  102 . Power management controller  320  may also supply power for monitoring device  102  from energy stored in battery  324  when less than sufficient energy is available via solar cell  322 . In other examples, monitoring device  102  may employ an inductive current transformer, electrostatic series capacitor, or one or more other components to leach power from the current flow in powerline conductor  110  for operating monitoring device  102 . Moreover, in some embodiments, power management controller  320  may selectively operate various components monitoring device  102 , such as by placing one or more such components in a low-power or no-power state for periods of time to reduce overall energy consumption. Some examples of power management controller  320  may include a battery charger circuit, a maximum power point tracker (MPPT), and/or a low-dropout regulator (LDO). 
     Each monitoring device  102  may be included in a cable clamp  206  that clamps fiber optic cable  112  to powerline conductor  110 , thus restricting relative movement between fiber optic cable  112  and powerline conductor  110  in the area of cable clamp  206 , thus reducing friction or other forces between the two that may lead to damage to either fiber optic cable  112  or powerline conductor  110 . In some embodiments, cable clamp  206  may encompass monitoring device  102  in a substantially weathertight container, and may retain the components of monitoring device  102  in a configuration such that one or more of the components (e.g., current transducer  310  and/or voltage transducer  312 ) are in sufficient proximity to powerline conductor  110  to perform their corresponding detection functions. Also, in some examples, cable clamp  206  may configured with an eye bolt or other mechanism such that cable claim  206  may be installed on powerline conductor  110  and fiber optic cable  112  by way of a “hot stick” or other device to ensure safety from possible electric shock. 
       FIG. 4  is a block diagram of an exemplary data injection device  104  employable in system  100  of  FIG. 1 . In some examples, data injection device  104  may include antenna  302 , wireless microcontroller  304 , processor  306 , and memory  308  that may be the same as, or similar to, the corresponding components of monitoring device  102  of  FIG. 3 . In some embodiments, wireless microcontroller  304 , using antenna  302 , may wirelessly receive data from one or more monitoring devices  102 , such as data indicating some aspect of the at least one physical characteristic detected by the detection components of monitoring devices  102 . In some examples, the received data may be stored for some period of time in memory  308  prior to data injection device  104  injecting the data onto an optical fiber of fiber optic cable  112 . 
     As indicated above, data injection device  104 , in some embodiments, may be installed within an optical fiber splice case  208 . Further, in some examples, optical fiber splice case  208  may include a splice tray  416  that holds mechanically-coupled, or fusion-spliced, ends of one or more optical fibers  418  of a section of fiber optic cable  112  to an end of corresponding optical fibers  418  of another section of fiber optic cable  112  to provide a continuous optical data path. In some embodiments, a single optical fiber  418  may be employed to carry data received from one or more monitoring devices  102  while the remaining optical fibers  418  (e.g.,  24  optical fibers  418 ) may carry communication traffic not originating from, or otherwise associated with, monitoring devices  102 . 
     In some examples, data injection device  104  may include an electrical-to-optical signal converter circuit that transforms the data (e.g., digital data) received from monitoring devices  102  into an optical signal in preparation for introduction onto an optical fiber  418 . In some embodiments, as depicted in  FIG. 4 , the electrical-to-optical signal converter may include a physical (PHY) layer transceiver  410  and an optical transceiver  412 . An example of the PHY layer transceiver  410  may be a type of electronic interface protocol transceiver the converts the data into an electronic interface protocol signal, such as an Ethernet physical layer transceiver. Optical transceiver  412 , in some examples, may be communicatively coupled to PHY layer transceiver  410  and may transform the electronic interface protocol signal generated by PHY layer transceiver  410  into an optical signal (e.g., a single-wavelength optical signal). More specifically, in one example, optical transceiver  412  may be a single-fiber, single-wavelength (SFSW) coarse wavelength-division multiplexing (CWDM) small form-factor pluggable (SFP) 100-megabit (Mbit) Ethernet optical transceiver. 
     To inject the resulting optical signal from optical transceiver  412  onto one of the optical fibers  418  of fiber optic cable  112 , data injection device  104  may include an optical add/drop multiplexer (OADM)  414  coupled to an end of the one of the optical fibers  418  of each section of fiber optic cable  112  being spliced together at optical fiber splice case  208 . In some examples, OADM  414  may inject data from optical transceiver  412  onto a spare or otherwise unused wavelength or wavelength band of an incoming optical fiber  418  while passing the remaining wavelengths that may be carrying other data (e.g., data from another data injection device  104 ) through to corresponding optical fiber  418  of the outgoing section of fiber optical cable  112  (e.g., for transmission to data collection subsystem  106 ). Meanwhile, in at least some examples, splice tray  416  may facilitate the optical coupling of one or more wavelengths of optical data carried on the remaining optical fibers  418  from the incoming section to the outgoing section of fiber optic cable  112 . 
     In a manner similar to that described above with respect to monitoring device  102  of  FIG. 4 , data injection device  104  may include power management controller  320 , solar cell  322 , and/or battery  324  for the generation, storage, and/or distribution of electrical power for operating the various components of data injection device  104 , such as wireless microcontroller  304 , processor  306 , memory  308 , PHY layer transceiver  410 , optical transceiver  412 , and/or OADM  414 . In other examples, data injection device  104  may leach power from the current flow in powerline conductor  110  (e.g., using a current transformer built into a phase-to-ground transition  210 , such as might be located near optical fiber splice case  208 , as illustrated in  FIG. 2 ). 
       FIG. 5  is a block diagram of an exemplary communication timing subsystem  500  employable in either or both monitoring device  102  of  FIG. 3  and phase-to-ground transitions  210  coupled with data injection device  104  of  FIG. 4 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , communication timing subsystem  500  may include a zero-crossing detection  502  in addition to voltage transducer  312  and processor  306  (introduced above). As described above, in some examples, voltage transducer  312  may detect a current AC voltage signal of electrical power carried on powerline conductor  110  over time, such as in a continuous or sampled manner, and generate an analog voltage, digital data, or the like indicating the current AC voltage signal. In turn, zero-crossing detector  502  may determine points in time at which the current AC voltage signal crosses a zero or midpoint threshold. In some examples, zero-crossing detector  502  may also indicate whether the detected zero crossing is a low-to-high or high-to-low zero-crossing of the AC voltage. In some embodiments, processor  306  may control the timing of wireless communication between one monitoring device  102  and another, or between one or more monitoring devices  102  and data injection device  104 , to reduce the overall percentage of time during which wireless communication occurs. Such reduction may be possible since wireless communication between devices  102 ,  104  residing on the same powerline conductor  110  may be synchronized to each other based on the zero-crossing information, which is based on the same AC voltage carried on powerline conductor  110 . For example, multiple monitoring devices  102  and/or data injection device  104  may attempt to communicate wirelessly in response to each zero-crossing of the AC voltage, each positive or negative zero-crossing, every nth zero-crossing, or the like. In some examples, the zero-crossing timing information may also be employed by power management controller  320  to control power consumption of the various components of monitoring device  102  and/or data injection device  104  to reduce overall power consumption during time periods when monitoring device  102  and/or data injection device  104  are not communicating wirelessly. In some examples associated with the use of communication timing subsystem  500  at data injection device  104 , phase-to-ground transition  210  may include voltage transducer  312  and zero-crossing detector  502 , which may transmit zero-crossing information for timing purposes via a dielectric light guide to processor  306  of data injection device  104  located in optical fiber splice case  208 . 
       FIG. 6  is a flow diagram of an exemplary method  600  for monitoring a powerline conductor (e.g., powerline conductor  110 ) using an associated fiber optic cable (e.g., fiber optic cable  112 ). In some examples, method  600  may be performed by a combination of one or more monitoring devices (e.g., monitoring devices  102 ) and a data injection device (e.g., data injection device  104 ). In the method  600 , at step  610 , multiple monitoring devices at multiple locations along a powerline conductor may each detect at least one physical characteristic associated with the powerline conductor. At step  620 , in some examples, data indicating the at least one physical characteristic may be wirelessly transmitted by the monitoring devices. At step  630 , the data injection device may wirelessly receive the wirelessly transmitted data indicating the at least one physical characteristic. In some embodiments, the data injection device may wirelessly receive the data from the monitoring device that generated the data, or may wirelessly receive the data from a monitoring device that relayed the data from another monitoring device that originally generated that data. In some examples, the data injection device may then transform the received data into an optical signal at step  640 , and inject the optical signal onto a fiber optic cable at step  650  for transmission to a data collection subsystem (e.g., data collection subsystem  106 ). In some embodiments, the timing of the wireless data transmissions and receptions may be based on the timing of a particular signal available to the monitoring device and/or the data injection device, such as the AC voltage (or current) waveform carried by the powerline conductor. 
       FIG. 7  is a flow diagram of an exemplary method  700  of installing a system (e.g., system  100 ) for monitoring a powerline conductor (e.g., powerline conductor  110 ) using an associated fiber optic cable (e.g., fiber optic cable  112 ). In some embodiments, at step  710 , a fiber optic cable may be installed alongside at least a portion of a powerline conductor. Further, in some examples, at step  720 , each of a plurality of clamping devices (e.g., cable clamps  206 ) may be installed at a corresponding location along the fiber optic cable, where at least one of the clamping devices includes a monitoring device (e.g., monitoring device  102 ). In some embodiments, at step  730 , a data injection device (e.g., data injection device  104 ) may be installed that wirelessly receives data from the monitoring device of the at least one of the clamping devices, transforms the data into an optical signal, and injects the optical signal onto the fiber optic cable. 
     The steps shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 , as well as other tasks performed by monitoring device  102  and data injection device  104 , may be performed by any suitable computer-executable code and/or computing system, including wireless microcontroller  304  and processor  306  in conjunction with memory  308 , as described above. In one example, each of the steps shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7  may represent an algorithm whose structure includes and/or is represented by multiple sub-steps, examples of which are described above in greater detail. 
     As explained above in conjunction with  FIGS. 1 through 7 , the systems and methods described herein may facilitate relatively fine-grained monitoring of one or more physical characteristics (e.g., with respect to time and location) of a powerline conductor by way of monitoring devices distributed along the powerline conductor that generate data based on the monitored physical characteristics, and by way of data injection devices that receive that data wirelessly from the monitoring devices and inject that data onto an optical fiber of a nearby fiber optic cable. In some examples, the various devices may be included in infrastructure (e.g., cable clamps, optical fiber splice cases, etc.) employed when installing a fiber optic cable in an aerial OSP environment, in which an electrical transmission or distribution system is leveraged to add fiber optic communication capacity to a geographic area. Consequently, in some examples, the additional costs of providing the fiber optic cable may be offset by the financial benefits possibly provided by the addition of the resulting electrical grid monitoring network that includes the monitoring devices, such as by detecting failure conditions, utility service theft, and the like. 
     EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS 
     Example 1: A clamping device may include (1) a monitoring device for a powerline conductor, the monitoring device including (a) at least one detection component that detects at least one physical characteristic at a location of the monitoring device, (b) a transmitter that wirelessly transmits data indicating the at least one physical characteristic, and (c) a receiver that wirelessly receives data indicating the at least one physical characteristic from at least one other monitoring device, where the transmitter retransmits the data indicating the at least one physical characteristic from the at least one other monitoring device, and (2) a container that retains the monitoring device such that one or more of the at least one detection component is maintained proximate the powerline conductor, where the clamping device clamps a fiber optic cable to the powerline conductor to restrict movement of the fiber optic cable relative to the powerline conductor. 
     Example 2: The clamping device of Example 1, where the at least one physical characteristic may include at least one electrical characteristic of power carried on the powerline conductor. 
     Example 3: The clamping device of Example 2, where the at least one electrical characteristic of power carried on the powerline conductor may include at least one of voltage or current. 
     Example 4: The clamping device of any of Examples 1-3, where the at least one physical characteristic may include at least one characteristic of an environment including the powerline conductor. 
     Example 5: The clamping device of Example 4, where the at least one characteristic of the environment including the powerline conductor may include at least one of temperature, humidity, or wind speed. 
     Example 6: The clamping device of any of Examples 1-3, where the at least one physical characteristic may include a physical movement of the powerline conductor. 
     Example 7: The clamping device of Example 6, where the physical movement of the powerline conductor may include at least one of aeolian vibration or galloping conductors. 
     Example 8: The clamping device of any of Examples 1-3, where the at least one physical characteristic may include a physical force on the powerline conductor. 
     Example 9: The clamping device of Example 8, where the physical force on the powerline conductor may include strain on the powerline conductor. 
     Example 10: The clamping device of any of Examples 1-3, where the container may include a substantially watertight compartment that encompasses the monitoring device. 
     Example 11: The clamping device of Example 8, where the clamping device may further include an eye bolt that facilitates installation of the clamping device onto the powerline conductor. 
     Example 12: The clamping device of Example 8, where (1) the at least one detection component may include a detection circuit that detects a characteristic of power carried on the powerline conductor, and (2) the monitoring device may further include a communication timing circuit that causes the transmitter of the monitoring device to wirelessly transmit the data indicating the at least one physical characteristic according to a timing that is based on the characteristic of power carried on the powerline conductor. 
     Example 13: The clamping device of Example 12, where the characteristic of power carried on the powerline conductor detected by the detection circuit may include a zero-crossing of a voltage carried on the powerline conductor. 
     Example 14: The clamping device of any of Examples 1-3, where one or more of the at least one detection component samples the at least one physical characteristic multiple times per cycle of a current or a voltage carried by the powerline conductor. 
     Example 15: The clamping device of any of Examples 1-3, where the monitoring device may further include (1) an energy source that supplies electrical energy to the monitoring device, (2) a battery that stores at least a portion of the electrical energy, and (3) a power management controller that (a) manages power consumption of the monitoring device, (b) provides electrical power to the monitoring device from at least one of the energy source or the battery, and (c) directs at least a portion of the electrical energy from the energy source to the battery. 
     Example 16: The clamping device of Example 15, where the energy source may include at least one of (1) a solar cell or (2) a power extraction component that extracts electrical power from the powerline conductor. 
     Example 17: The clamping device of Example 16, where the power extraction component may include at least one of an inductive current transformer or an electrostatic series capacitor. 
     Example 18: A method may include (1) clamping, by a first clamping device, a fiber optic cable to a powerline conductor at a first location, (2) clamping, by a second clamping device, the fiber optic cable to the powerline conductor at a second location, (3) detecting, by a monitoring device retained by the first clamping device, at least one physical characteristic associated with the powerline conductor at the first location, (4) wirelessly transmitting, by the monitoring device retained by the first clamping device, data indicating the at least one physical characteristic associated with the powerline conductor at the first location, (5) wirelessly receiving, by the monitoring device retained by the first clamping device from a monitoring device retained by the second clamping device, data indicating the at least one physical characteristic associated with the powerline conductor at the second location, and (6) wirelessly retransmitting, by the monitoring device retained by the first clamping device, the data wirelessly received from the monitoring device retained by the second clamping device. 
     Example 19: The method of Example 18, where the method may further include detecting, by the monitoring device retained by the first clamping device, a characteristic of power carried on the powerline conductor, where a timing of wirelessly transmitting the data indicating the at least one physical characteristic associated with the powerline conductor by the monitoring device retained by the first clamping device is based on detecting the characteristic of power carried on the powerline conductor. 
     Example 20: A method may include (1) installing a fiber optic cable alongside at least a portion of a powerline conductor, and (2) installing each of a plurality of clamping devices at a corresponding location along the fiber optic cable to restrict movement of the fiber optic cable relative to the powerline conductor, where each of the plurality of clamping devices may include a container that retains a monitoring device that (a) detects at least one physical characteristic associated with the powerline conductor at the corresponding location along the fiber optic cable, (b) wirelessly transmits data indicating the at least one physical characteristic associated with the powerline conductor at the corresponding location along the fiber optic cable, and (c) wirelessly receives and retransmits at least a portion of the data indicating at least one physical characteristic associated with the powerline conductor detected at one or more other locations along the fiber optic cable of others of the plurality of clamping devices. 
     As detailed above, the computing devices and systems described and/or illustrated herein broadly represent any type or form of computing device or system capable of executing computer-readable instructions, such as those contained within the modules described herein. In their most basic configuration, these computing device(s) may each include at least one memory device and at least one physical processor. 
     In some examples, the term “memory device” generally refers to any type or form of volatile or non-volatile storage device or medium capable of storing data and/or computer-readable instructions. In one example, a memory device may store, load, and/or maintain one or more computer-executable modules designed to accomplish the computer-executable tasks described herein. Examples of memory devices include, without limitation, Random Access Memory (RAM), Read Only Memory (ROM), flash memory, Hard Disk Drives (HDDs), Solid-State Drives (SSDs), optical disk drives, caches, variations or combinations of one or more of the same, or any other suitable storage memory. 
     In some examples, the term “physical processor” generally refers to any type or form of hardware-implemented processing unit capable of interpreting and/or executing computer-readable instructions. In one example, a physical processor may access and/or modify one or more modules stored in the above-described memory device. Examples of physical processors include, without limitation, microprocessors, microcontrollers, Central Processing Units (CPUs), Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) that implement softcore processors, Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), portions of one or more of the same, variations or combinations of one or more of the same, or any other suitable physical processor. 
     In some embodiments, the term “computer-readable medium” generally refers to any form of device, carrier, or medium capable of storing or carrying computer-readable instructions. Examples of computer-readable media include, without limitation, transmission-type media, such as carrier waves, and non-transitory-type media, such as magnetic-storage media (e.g., hard disk drives, tape drives, and floppy disks), optical-storage media (e.g., Compact Disks (CDs), Digital Video Disks (DVDs), and BLU-RAY disks), electronic-storage media (e.g., solid-state drives and flash media), and other distribution systems. 
     The process parameters and sequence of the steps described and/or illustrated herein are given by way of example only and can be varied as desired. For example, while the steps illustrated and/or described herein may be shown or discussed in a particular order, these steps do not necessarily need to be performed in the order illustrated or discussed. The various exemplary methods described and/or illustrated herein may also omit one or more of the steps described or illustrated herein or include additional steps in addition to those disclosed. 
     The preceding description has been provided to enable others skilled in the art to best utilize various aspects of the exemplary embodiments disclosed herein. This exemplary description is not intended to be exhaustive or to be limited to any precise form disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the instant disclosure. The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered in all respects illustrative and not restrictive. Reference should be made to the appended claims and their equivalents in determining the scope of the instant disclosure. 
     Unless otherwise noted, the terms “connected to” and “coupled to” (and their derivatives), as used in the specification and claims, are to be construed as permitting both direct and indirect (i.e., via other elements or components) connection. In addition, the terms “a” or “an,” as used in the specification and claims, are to be construed as meaning “at least one of.” Finally, for ease of use, the terms “including” and “having” (and their derivatives), as used in the specification and claims, are interchangeable with and have the same meaning as the word “comprising.”