Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for Inspection of Power Lines

Problem Statement. New unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology has become more accessible and practical for transmission line inspection. In this paper, we propose a multi-platform UAV system and a multi-model communication system designed for high-efficiency transmission line inspection tasks. Different UAVs perform both long-range and short-range surveillance functions, and provide communication relay. High-quality images and videos are transmitted in real time to the local control station for UAV navigation and to the remote office for analysis. Practice shows that joint inspection using multiple UAVs can significantly outperform traditional inspection methods. Objective. To propose a new method for inspecting and checking the condition of power lines using several types of UAVs using certain signal transmission and relay methods. Results. A new concept of power line inspection using joint actions of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is proposed. The functional capabilities of the UAVs and the communication system are considered and discussed. Practical experience shows that due to joint work, the time spent on inspection can be significantly reduced and the efficiency can be significantly increased. The feasibility and advantages of inspections using UAVs are confirmed. Future work can focus on optimizing the configuration of UAVs as part of a group. Practical significance. The presented method allows increasing the efficiency of inspection and testing of power transmission lines in comparison with existing methods.