Soaring Eagle Imaging (SEI), a professional aviation organization, recently performed a 51-mile beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) utility inspection in just six hours using Censys Technologies Sentaero v2VTOL following Hurricane Barry, which made landfall in Louisiana on July 13.
Over the course of three missions, a single crew captured 51 miles worth of detailed information, which allowed the scope of damage and corresponding locations to be identified, which helped facilitate quick repairs.
Technology
Technology
BAE Systems successfully tests 'first of its kind' autonomous boat
BAE Systems has successfully tested a ‘first of its kind’ autonomous boat that it says will give navies the ability to “go beyond the limits of human endurance with unmanned vessels that can travel further, for longer and to more inhospitable environments.”
Known as the autonomous Pacific 950 Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) demonstrator, the boat has been used to develop and prove a variety of technologies that could potentially make naval missions faster, easier and safer, which, according to BAE Systems, would take the relationship between human and machine to “new territories.”
Sea Machine Robotics, MARAD to showcase how autonomous tech can increase safety of marine oil-spill response ops
Sea Machines Robotics and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) have entered into a cooperative agreement to showcase how Sea Machines’ autonomous technology can be used to increase the safety, response time and productivity of marine oil-spill response operations.
On-water exercises will be conducted once Sea Machines equips a Marine Spill Response Corp. (MSRC)-owned MARCO skimming vessel—manufactured by Kvichak Marine Industries—with its SM300 autonomous-command system. Sea Machines will train MSRC personnel on how to operate the system.
Terra Drone Brazil completes Brazil's first-ever drone inspection of an offshore FPSO tank
Terra Drone Brazil, a group company of Terra Drone Corporation, has successfully completed Brazil’s first-ever drone inspection of an offshore Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) tank.
The inspection was performed for Petrobras, which is Brazil’s state-owned oil company.
The ballast tank inspection using UAS was conducted aboard an FPSO unit from Petrobras called P-66, which is operating in the Pre Salt Area at Santos Basin.
Terra Drone Brazil notes that in order to stay on top of maintenance needs, Petrobras needs its cargo and ballast tanks inspected regularly, so that any kind of corrosion, cracks, fractures, or welding anomalies can be identified in a timely manner before they cause damage to the structural integrity of the ship.
Curiosity Lab at Peachtree Corners opens autonomous vehicle and smart city living laboratory
Curiosity Lab at Peachtree Corners has announced the grand opening of its 5G enabled autonomous vehicle and smart city living laboratory.
A publicly funded, real-world living laboratory and testbed, Curiosity Lab features a one and a half mile autonomous vehicle test track within a 500 acre commercial office park.
“Startups and mature companies around the world are interested in using the Lab’s test track to better understand how their technology operates in a suburban community with people working and living around them,” says Brian Johnson, city manager for Peachtree Corners.
GA-ASI marks 25th anniversary of Predator A UAS
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA‑ASI) recently marked the 25th anniversary of its Predator A UAS, which completed its first flight in July 1994, and made its operational debut the following year.
More than 320 Predator As have been delivered to customers across the world in support of global security. The product line remained in production until 2011.
Predator As have flown almost 141,000 missions, and have surpassed two million flight hours. GA-ASI notes that almost all of those hours were flown in support of combat missions.
“With innovation in mind, we have always looked for ways to challenge the industry standard,” says Linden Blue, CEO, GA-ASI.
Speakers kick off AVS 2019 with emphasis on automated vehicle safety
The 2019 Automated Vehicles Symposium kicked off on Tuesday with a focus on safety, as speakers from across the industry — and the world — addressed how their companies are building safe self-driving vehicles and working to educate the public about the technology.
Chris Urmson, cofounder and CEO of automated vehicle technology company Aurora, was the first keynote speaker and described how the industry has progressed during his time in it. In the early and mid 2000s he was part of the Carnegie Mellon team competing in DARPA's robotic road races, where his vehicle sometimes found itself upside down.
