German company Siemens and SkySpecs in the US have joined forces to deploy automated drone technology for onshore and offshore wind turbine inspections.
The collaboration is aimed at developing a new push-button inspection system.
In order to speed up the development of new technologies, Siemens’s Wind Power business and its next47 venture unit, which was established in October last year, are taking part.
Siemens Wind Power chief technology officer Ruediger Knauf said: "The autonomous drone technology supports our 'Digitalization@Wind' initiative in generating high quality field data about the condition of our wind turbines.
“Siemens Wind Power and SkySpecs can mutually benefit from this collaboration via next47, in sharing and co-developing technology and expertise. I am confident that we can bring blade inspection to the next level."
SkySpecs plans to use new software and hardware to provide a solution that includes data collection, damage identification, classification and recommendations.
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By GlobalDataIn collaboration with SkySpecs, Siemens aims to refine its technology for utility-scale wind turbine inspections and also prepare it for commercial readiness.
Further, the joint effort will enable Siemens to incorporate new preventive maintenance techniques using SkySpecs' technology.
SkySpecs CEO Danny Ellis said: "Siemens Wind Power is motivated to improve turbine inspection technology, including data collection and analysis, and have provided us access to their deep resources and expertise."
SkySpecs enables wind farm owners, ISPs, and OEMs to easily monitor and track the health of their wind turbines with a 15-minute automated robotic inspection.
