Aerial Transportation, Deployment and Retrieval of Dexterous Dual Arm Rolling Robot for Power Line Maintenance: Field Validation

This paper presents the application of an aerial-deployable dual arm rolling robot developed for the realization of maintenance operations on power lines, validated through field tests in a real power line. The system consists of a quadrotor used as carrier platform for the transportation, deployment and retrieval of a lightweight and compliant anthropomorphic dual arm system (LiCAS). The arms are equipped with a drive wheel that allows them to move along the cable to conduct the installation of devices while the aerial platform stays at the landing area. The proposed approach avoids the problems of operating while flying in terms of positioning accuracy and energy efficiency, reducing also significantly the load on the power line compared to the case in which the multi-rotor has to perch. The paper describes the mechanisms implemented for the deployment and retrieval of the arms on the power line and for the installation of a customized model of bird flight diverter on the power line, as well as the system architecture, reporting results and practical aspects derived from the experimental validation.