Geomni, which is a Verisk Analytics business that is centered around an “address- and location-based database of property-related analytics,” has announced a new service in which customers can dispatch a licensed, qualified UAS pilot to collect imagery and data about a structure. Using the data collected during the UAS inspection, a Geomni Property data package is created. The package includes “ultrahigh-resolution imagery and 3D exterior roof and wall details that fully integrate with North America’s most widely used repair estimating system.” The data collected during the inspection augments the data available from Geomni’s expansive database of imagery collected across the country by the company’s fleet of aircraft.

In cooperation with an investor owned utility, Sharper Shape and SkySkopes recently used a Sharper A6 UAS to “string sock lines for a 675 kV line construction project.” Sock pulling, which is the “act of flying a strong and lightweight rope and attaching it to the towers,” is usually performed by the way of helicopters, or by workers climbing the towers, but these methods are dangerous for helicopter pilots and ground crews alike. Using UAS, the previously complicated process that involves several steps of reattaching the rope is eliminated, which ultimately lowers the risk of injury for all parties involved.

UAVOS Inc., which a Mountain View, California-based developer of UAS and robotics, has announced the launch of several projects for the industrial use of UAS in Eastern Europe, which will feature UAVOS-developed UAS. By introducing unmanned technologies, this long-term initiative by UAVOS will look to ultimately “increase the safety of inspection activities” by using robotic technologies to replace traditional methods of inspection in the oil, gas and energy sectors. Another objective of the initiative is to reduce the budget that is typically spent by oil, gas and energy companies for “monitoring the use of ground vehicles, manpower, and manned equipment.”

Working alongside engineering, consulting and construction company Black & Veatch, Rockwell Collins successfully completed a beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) UAS flight along nearly 10 miles of power line infrastructure owned by Ameren Corp., located near Newton, Illinois. “Monitoring critical infrastructure, particularly those in rural areas beyond line of sight, can be done much more efficiently and effectively through the use of UAS technology,” says Ken Schreder, vice president, Strategic Programs, Information Management Services at Rockwell Collins.