RES has expanded its Smart Pilot turbine-inspection software to smaller drones, including the DJI Matrice 4E, in a move aimed at making automated wind-farm inspections more accessible to operators that do not use specialized inspection aircraft.
The renewable-energy company announced the expansion on October 26, shortly before the Brazil Wind Power conference in São Paulo. RES said the newly supported compact drones can provide comparable image quality to more expensive inspection platforms when conditions are suitable. The company’s claim concerns image quality rather than a universal guarantee of inspection results, which can depend on operating conditions and the asset being examined.
Reducing the inspection burden
Smart Pilot was developed to address the time and operational disruption involved in checking turbine blades. A conventional inspection of a turbine’s three blades required the turbine to be stopped three times, with one flight dedicated to each blade. That process increased downtime and required repeated aircraft operations around the same machine.
RES launched Smart Pilot in June to automate the inspection process within a single turbine stop. The software coordinates the inspection sequence so that the three blades can be assessed during one planned interruption rather than through three separate stops and flights.
In September, RES introduced Smart Pilot 3, which the company said removed the need to stop the turbine during a complete three-blade inspection. The latest expansion addresses a different part of the cost equation: the aircraft used to collect the inspection imagery.
- Smart Pilot supports smaller drones, including the DJI Matrice 4E.
- The original system was designed to inspect all three blades during one turbine stop.
- Smart Pilot 3 was announced as enabling a full three-blade inspection without stopping the turbine.
A broader renewable-energy operation
RES said its Digital Solutions business is leading the effort to widen access to its inspection tools. The company has delivered more than 29GW of renewable-energy projects globally and operates in 24 countries. It also plans to bring more than 26GW of new capacity online over the next five years, according to the company.
For wind-farm operators, the combination of automated flight procedures and smaller aircraft could change how inspection programs are deployed across a portfolio. Using a less expensive drone may lower the equipment commitment for routine work, while a single-stop or no-stop process can reduce the time a turbine is unavailable for generation. RES presented those benefits as part of its effort to make automated blade inspection available beyond operators with access to high-cost specialist hardware.
The company’s announcement came as the wind industry gathered in São Paulo for Brazil Wind Power, which ran from October 27 to 29.
