Challenge
Arkansas Valley Electric Co-Op used ground based inspection crews and traditional inspection techniques that would often overlook certain defects. Cracked insulators, hollowed out poles and missing cotter pins were among the issues most frequently missed. Also, the drones they did have at their disposal were difficult to fly around highly energized assets.
Skydio Solution
AVECC deployed Skydio X2s with AI technology to navigate around highly energized assets and thin power lines.
Results
AVECC discovered problem spots that were previously impossible to detect with traditional inspection methods.
“I pushed the button and the drone was able to fly on its own. We never lost connection. We were able to view pictures of it, view the model it was marking at the time, or at least the bulk of the model. We knew it was gathering plenty of data on what it needed to see. It never even thought about hitting a line. I mean, it dipped and dived, it went between bus lines, highly energized, no problem at all.
