With the latest addition to Euro Drone Inspections' fleet, the company can serve its industrial clients even better during inspections. Clients benefit from improved accuracy and efficiency, partly because the brand-new Elios 3 can create a 3D model of its surroundings within a second. The most important gain is, however, that fewer people are needed for inspection work in confined spaces. This makes the job safer.
Patrick de Jong of Euro Drone Inspections says: 'We now have an extensive and impressive fleet of drones, including a good team of qualified drone pilots. The services we offer are diverse. It varies from 'beauty shots', e.g. of a specific event, to inspections in places where you can't or don't want to go as a human. For such jobs, you can think of work at great heights, but also of what we call 'confined spaces': industrial confined spaces that people are only allowed to enter under very strict conditions. For example, a storage tank for chemicals. In addition, we use drones for 3D mapping. A drone then flies in a certain area and measures objects and their position with millimetre precision. You can then use those measurements to make a complete 3D model of the area.’
Versatile
A drone does have its limitations. Patrick: 'In places where you really need to make contact with the material you are investigating, it becomes difficult. However, in a lot of cases, using a drone really offers a solution. We can attach different equipment to it every flight, which makes it very versatile. For emission measurements of sea-going vessels, for example, we attach a special extension to it with a 'sniffing sensor'.’
3D model
Euro Drone Inspections' most recent addition is the Elios 3. This drone has a spherical roll cage, which makes it ideal for work in confined spaces, as well as providing protection against unexpected collisions. The drone is expected to add a lot of value, especially in the industrial environment. 'The device is so advanced that after turning it on, it has converted its entire environment into a 3D model within a few seconds via a laser module,' Patrick enthuses. 'And with the help of a split screen, the drone pilot can not only observe the drone's view live, but can also see the drone flying in its environment in real time, through 3D camera technology.'
Demonstrable
Besides these benefits, the Elios 3 has another important advantage. 'A drone has to change batteries regularly,' Patrick explains, ‘and to do so it has to fly back from the spot it was currently at. With the older type of drone, you had to fly back to where you left off as accurately as possible on 'fingerspitzengefühl'. Because the Elios 3 instantly creates a 3D model, the drone can remember exactly where it left off. This way, it is demonstrable that you are not duplicating your work and that you did not skip a single spot. Moreover, you can immediately take a photo of any 'suspicious spot', such as a rusty pit or a small crack, which is immediately fed into the 3D model. Once the inspection is complete, you simply click on the photo and you will immediately see where this 'suspicious spot' was found.'
Drones are becoming established
The overriding benefit of deploying drones is and remains safety, Patrick argues. 'There are simply places where asset owners would prefer not to send their people, and if they have to, they have to spend a small fortune on safety measures. Think of working procedures, manhole guards and a rescue team that has to be on constant standby. You don't need all of that with a drone.' That is one of the reasons Patrick expects drones to be so well established within a few years that people no longer need to enter confined spaces. 'One of our customers plans to do 80% of these inspections with drones instead of humans as early as next year. Humans remain necessary for now, for validation and repair, but that work will undoubtedly eventually be done by robots.'
For more information on drone deployment, contact Patrick de Jong at patrick.de.jong@smart-ais.com.
Euro Drone Inspections - Elios 3
For more information, please visit: www.euro-drone-inspections.eu.