DTEK Dnipro Grids have examined almost 400 km of lines using drones since the beginning of the year

Thermal power generation26 October 2020

DTEK Dnipro Grids inspects power lines using a drone. It is equipped with a thermal imager and cameras, and is able to determine the equipment condition, and detect any type of defects. Since the beginning of the year, specialists have surveyed almost 400 kilometers of lines from the air. The company identified and eliminated more than 6640 defects, which are often not seen during a routine inspection.

DTEK Dnipro Grids have examined almost 400 km of lines using drones since the beginning of the year

The new technology makes it possible to automate the inspection, speed up the monitoring process, and eliminate any damage on power lines. Since the beginning of the year, the company has surveyed more than 385 km in Krynychansky, Pavlogradsky, Tsarychansky, and Novomoskovsky Districts, as well as in the cities of Kamensky and Podgorodny. Specialists who have undergone special training use a drone to conduct thermal imaging, photo and video filming of the lines. The modern equipment detects the smallest defects in the grids.

“DTEK is the leader in the digital transformation of the Ukrainian energy sector. We started a pilot drone project last year. During this time, 573 km of lines were examined, and almost 9 thousand defects were identified and eliminated. Now, together with Hepta, an Estonian company, we are finalizing software based on artificial neural networks, thanks to which the defects recognition will be automatic, without human intervention. We fill the database and thus train the program to recognize all types of defects in the grids. Modern technologies help us improve the quality of power supply and fix problems even before the accident,” says Andrii Tereshchuk, DTEK Dnipro Grids Director General.

Considering that two cameras (video and infrared image) are used, 6 to 7.5 km of lines are surveyed per a flight day. First, using a drone, medium (6-10 kV) and high (35-150 kV) voltage lines are examined. The drone helps to do inspections within the most difficult areas, such as wetlands, over bushes and trees, water barriers and industrial areas. In this case, the survey is carried out without disconnecting the lines and involving additional equipment, which significantly accelerates the process. Specialists immediately carry out video and photographic recording of defects, as well as diagnostics of contact line connections heating using an infrared camera.

As for example, in Kamenskoye power engineers discovered a dangerous malfunction on a 150 kV high-voltage line near the railway line crossing from the power plant just in time. A defect in one of the support elements was identified, which could lead to a wire break and, as a result, to a major accident entailing disconnection of an entire residential area and a stop of railway communication.

The company plans to continue to use drones to inspect lines, and scale the project to the entire Dnipropetrovsk Region.

Modern European energy companies successfully use a similar method, such as ENEL (Italy), E-ON (Germany), CEZ Group (Czech Republic). Now it is available in Ukraine.