Drone monitors transmission lines of Indonesia’s state electricity distributor

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or drones can be used to monitor electricity transmission lines.

This was the conclusion of trials conducted recently by Terra Drone Indonesia and Japan’s Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry (CRIEPI).

The demo was conducted using Terra Wing drone at PT PLN (Persero) main transmission unit (UIT) in East Java and Bali (JBTB). The drone was able to monitor two kilometers of electricity lines covering four transmission towers in 10 minutes.

The demo has also proven that drone technology can be used to safely carry out mapping and monitoring in high-risk areas such as energy and utilities.

As Indonesia’s state electricity, PT PLN (Persero) needs to ensure optimum power distribution in the country. The two companies reported after the trials that PLN is bullish about using drones as the “technology has proven to reduce risk to human workers in high-voltage areas.” 

Terra Drone, headquartered in Tokyo, is a provider of industrial drone solutions with 20 branches globally, including the Asia-Pacific.

The company provides drone technologies empowered with LiDAR and photogrammetric surveying methods for construction, electricity, energy, and oil and gas sectors. It specializes in high-performance hardware, software, drone services, and drone traffic management systems (UTM).