Drone-deployed Mini LineFly robotic crawls energy traces to avoid wasting birds

January 23, 2024

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It is a unhappy incontrovertible fact that birds are sometimes killed after they collide with unseen overhead energy traces. A brand new system is designed to maintain that from taking place, through the use of a drone and a robotic to make these traces extra seen.

Introduced earlier this month, the setup consists of an E2500 HP coaxial-rotor drone and a Mini LineFly robotic – each made by FulcrumAir – together with Hen-Flight Diverter units manufactured by PLP (Preformed Line Merchandise).

Every of the Diverters takes the type of a coiled size of wire, coated in PVC plastic. Ordinarily, these devices are wound and tightened onto energy traces by hand, at repeatedly spaced intervals the place they’re going to be noticed by birds. It is a time-consuming job, and is probably harmful for the employees who must be lifted as much as the traces in elevating work platforms.

Within the new system, nonetheless, the Diverters are utilized by the Mini LineFly.

Although the Mini LineFly robot is attached to the drone via a tether, the two devices are independently operated — Though the Mini LineFly robotic is connected to the drone by way of a tether, the 2 units are independently operated

The self-powered robotic is lowered down onto a piece of energy line by the drone, after which makes its method alongside the size of that part, periodically stopping to the apply Diverters (from an onboard provide) because it goes. Propellers on both facet of the robotic assist hold it from swaying with the road in excessive winds.

Upon reaching the tip of 1 part, the Mini LineFly is solely lifted again off once more by the drone and moved over to the following part. Simply two ground-based operators are required, one for the drone and one for the robotic.

One of the Bird-Flight Diverters, installed on a power line — One of many Hen-Flight Diverters, put in on an influence line

The system has already been utilized to put almost 15,000 Hen-Flight Diverters alongside a 75-mile (121-km) transmission line which is a part of the Excessive Banks Wind Undertaking in Kansas. “We’re extraordinarily happy with how the Mini LineFly carried out throughout this demanding challenge,” stated FulcrumAir president and CEO, Patrick Arnell.

You possibly can see a demo of the system, within the video under.

For different examples of line-crawling robots, take a look at the power-line-inspecting LineRanger and the fiber-optic-cable-applying Bombyx.