Nowadays, we cannot imagine life without electricity. Although we take it for granted as a part of our lives we do not always realize how demanding it is to be produced and supplied by power plants directly to our homes. The transmission and distribution network is a highly complex system of lines of interconnecting electric energy sources, transformer stations and consumers. Unfortunately, failures can occur within electricity networks that can lead to electricity breakdowns as well as destructive fires. A UAV (drone) with a thermal imaging system installed can be a very useful tool to prevent such problems.
Aviation inspection using the Workswell WIRIS system
The question is how to check equipment located at great heights, is under high voltage and is located in areas with complicated access. How do you check the network of lines in large transformer stations when the whole system takes up a large area and the inspected elements are difficult to access? The option of aviation inspection is available that has been used in this area for many years.
The thermal imaging system for Workswell WIRIS drones from Workswell are designed for assembly on the drone (UAV). The set is light, mobile and fully controlled using a standard RC controller. The system combines two camera systems – a camera for visible spectrum (for inspection of visible defects to piping) and a thermal camera (for detection of hidden defects). The servicing software enables remote switching of camera regimes, record radiometric videos and to produce static images in the visible and infra-red spectrum. The operator sees any objects under the drone in real time and can analyse the records in order to identify damaged areas.
Moreover, unlike similar systems, Workswell WIRIS enables the manual setting of set the range of temperatures, e.g. in intervals of 15 °C to 25 °C. Even this range of temperatures can be changed during the flight. Without the need to land, the system can be set for actual situation to easily achieve the required thermal sensitivity setting, which is needed to localize minor moisture defects that may worsen after time and lead to serious problems. Moreover, the system can be equipped with a GPS sensor for storing information on the position of the drone when recording.
Comments
Very, very cool. Awesome development and integration work!