State-of-the-art visual inspection features for remote asset inspections
Nowadays’ global scenario, characterized by several limitations, in combination with the challenges provided by performing inspections in restricted or difficult-to-access areas, forces companies all over the world to turn to new and innovative solutions, in order to upgrade their operations.
Thanks to the capabilities delivered by the combination of Artificial Intelligence and Augmented Reality, SPACE1 empowers on-field technicians with the best-in-class remote collaboration features, even drone-based, allowing to connect physically separate workers through live video, audio and AR annotations.
These advanced functionalities enable a faster, safer and more efficient performance of remote asset inspections, even from remote and for a multitude of vertical markets, all with their different needs, use cases and assets to inspect:
Utility: towers, wind turbines, power lines.
Oil & Gas: pipelines, offshore rigs, drilling ships, FPSOS, refineries.
Construction: on large construction sites, bridges, roads.
Industrial Manufacturing: production units, chimneys, boilers, storage silos
SPACE1 always keeps up with the latest and most innovative technologies available on the market and supports the integration with advanced devices to take the execution of remote asset inspections even one step further:
Thermal imaging cameras
By simply connecting the camera to the chosen device (tablet, mobile or head-mounted display), users will be allowed to inspect and control assets and mechanical equipment with increased accuracy and efficiency, thanks to the possibility to detect energy leaks and thermal data in order to diagnose the source of issues.
Drones
All those maintenance and inspection activities, which are performed in not suitable places and environments for human access are highly expensive and may seriously put workers’ life or safety at risk. Therefore, today, more and more companies belonging to a multitude of different industries are starting to use drones in order to transform their virtual inspection operations, by allowing expert technicians to easily and safely reach difficult-to-access areas and confined spaces, without the need to move from their own work station. This is the case of all those companies that need to inspect complex assets such as tanks, chimneys, power lines, oil rigs, which are located in remote or tough-to-reach locations.
When combined together, these two technologies provide companies with even better insights and a more accurate perspective over assets’ conditions, making inspection procedures safer and more efficient than ever before.
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How do drones support remote asset inspection activities?
Remote expert: on the backend side controls the camera installed on the drone device, performs a pre-inspection, collects data and information on the asset and is enabled to record the whole operation. In the case any issue or failure is identified, by leveraging SPACE1 and its advanced AR-powered remote collaboration features, the backend expert supports an on-field technician in the safe hands-free execution of the fixing procedure.
Drone pilot: is in charge of flying the drone from the field and communicates in real-time with the backend expert, in order to support him/her during the whole pre-inspection process on the remote asset.
Field technician: gets involved in the maintenance process only in the case the backend expert identifies an issue on the asset during a pre-inspection operation. By leveraging SPACE1, the field technician receives the support of a remote expert and fixes the issue.
Benefits of enabling remote asset inspections
Increased safety
Inspectors no longer have to be put into potentially dangerous situations
Minimization of the time spent in dangerous environments
Better and clearer insights regarding asset conditions and failure sources
Reduced Costs
Less effort needed to reach the asset located in difficult-to-access areas
Huge savings in time required to perform inspection activities on complex assets
Reduced downtimes of key assets
Enhanced efficiency
More frequent inspections implying less risk of failures
Better and quicker collection of data thanks to the possibility to record inspections
Improved collaboration among suppliers and clients