Anhui Huaibei Power Supply's drone tech drives time, cost down

The new technology of drone operation center to conduct data collection and flight path planning were newly adopted during the inspections of power lines recently by the State Grid's Anhui Huaibei Power Supply Company.

This marks the first independent initiative by the company's power transmission and inspection center to undertake such operations.

The adoption of this new technology has resulted in significant cost and time savings. Leveraging the newly established drone operation center and a team of young professionals, Huaibei Power Supply Company is dedicated to exploring and applying drone equipment and related technologies through continuous learning and research.

They have embarked on autonomous cloud of points data collection and flight path planning activities.

Using the M350 drone equipped with L2 laser scanning devices, the team conducted high-precision three-dimensional laser cloud of points data collection along the power lines.

By importing the collected data into flight path planning software and adjusting the equipment angles and distances manually, they can generate refined inspection flight paths.

Mastering this technology requires a proficient understanding of drone flight techniques and strong three-dimensional spatial perception, qualities that the young team at Huaibei Power Supply Company possess.

According to the company, with this technology, significant cost savings can be achieved when dealing with new power lines, and the ability to autonomously re-collect cloud of points data and plan flight paths in the event of changes to existing lines will save considerable time and manpower.

Looking ahead, the company plans to further explore drone applications by leveraging the drone operation center, driving the digitization and intelligence of power transmission and inspection to a better development.