Monday August 29th marked the first day that the
FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot certification test was available. The first day alone the FAA reported over
1,500 individuals taking the certification test. The unmanned aircraft industry will continue
to explode as UAV ground schools open and expand as more interest is steered
towards commercial UAV applications.
There are numerous applications that are currently carried out by manned
aircraft that will certainly be replaced quickly over time with unmanned
technologies.
An application that has gained more attention
lately is power/transmission line inspections.
This task is inherently dangerous and historically executed using
lineman, helicopters, trucks, and ground crews.
The advantages of using an unmanned aerial system over conventional methods
are huge. Safety is a major factor due
to the dangerous nature of having a human either climbing or being flown over a
location to inspect and take pictures to determine necessary repairs. Cost of operation is another major advantage
of the unmanned system. The UAV is also
able to arrive on location much more quickly then calling out a crew, truck, or
scheduling time for a helicopter. UAV’s
allow for a less intrusive method of inspection along with increased detail. Transformers and powerlines can be inspected
by UAS in a safe, cost effective, and timely manner to help in avoiding
potential problems.
There are currently many companies with unique products for achieving the same goal. The Swiss company
SKIVE Aviation AG invented the first UAV that lands on powerlines. Development of the system took two years in
which many challenges had to be overcome. The UAV flies to the location, lands on the
powerlines, and then will drive along the wires for inspection. The landing of the UAV on the powerlines is
automated due to this portion of the flight being critical to avoid the propellers
making contact with wires. The images
and data collected can be analyzed as needed.
The UAS also uses LIDAR to map the surrounding environment and determine
if trees or brush are too close to wires being inspected. The robot allows for covering a much greater
distance than “on foot” inspections.
The other company, Aeroscout, uses a small industrial
unmanned helicopter that can be customized for the inspection of power
transmission lines. The Aeroscout combines INS and GPS for precise navigation along
with “heavy lift” payload capability allowing for multiple sensors packages. Options include LIDAR, Infrared,
hyperspectral cameras, aerial imagery, and photogrammetry. The Aeroscout allows for a very robust
versatile UAS for powerline inspection as well as other infrastructure.
Enwin Utilities in Windsor, Ontario recently received operations
certificates to fly drones for powerline inspection use however; they took a
much more economical approach. The use
of DJI Phantom UAS's are being used for inspection. The smaller quadcopters have shown to be
ideal for Canada's transport guidelines and under the conditions of Enwin’s
SFOC. The company can now begin flying
the small UAV’s for routine maintenance checks to help maintain safety and reliability
of local distribution systems.
Infrastructure inspections such as transmission lines are
just one of the many applications replacing manned aircraft that offer increased
benefits.
References
Aeroscout.
(2016). Aeroscout – Unmanned Aircraft
Technology. Retrieved from http://www.aeroscout.ch/index.php/en/
CTV Windsor.
(2016). Enwin to use drones to
inspect power lines. Retrieved from http://windsor.ctvnews.ca/enwin-to-use-drones-to-inspect-power-lines-1.3061891
GSN Magazine.
(2016). More than 1,000 register
for class to prep for FAA drone pilot certification in August. Retrieved from
http://gsnmagazine.com/article/47071/more_1000_register_class_prep_faa_drone_pilot_cert
UAS Vision.
(2015). Aerial Robot Lands on
Powerlines. Retrieved from http://www.uasvision.com/2015/09/09/aerial-robot-lands-on-powerlines/
Nice post on the uses for UAS in the industrial inspection world. I liked the pictures, videos, and references you added to make your point in a visual manner.
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