Radiometric thermography and visual inspections by drone of solar plants, roofs, industrial buildings, plants, bridges and lines: heat loss, water ingress and anomalies identified without scaffolding or aerial platforms.
An inspection at height normally requires permits, scaffolding or platforms and often a plant shutdown. A close-range flight provides the same documentation in less time, with the plant in operation and without exposing personnel to the risk of falling.
Reference figures
Thermography and inspections
A faulty module usually shows no visible signs. A short-circuited cell or a failed bypass diode dissipates energy and runs hotter than the rest of the string. A radiometric thermal camera detects these anomalies across the whole plant in a single flight and returns their position and temperature.
The flight is carried out with the plant in production and at least 600 W/m² of irradiance in the plane of the modules, as required by IEC TS 62446-3. Thermal resolution follows the 5.5 centimetres per pixel acquisition standard, with 70% forward and 20% side overlap and the camera tilted to match the modules.
The PV field in thermal: the hotter strings stand out even before analysis.
Single-cell hot spot, disabled substring, module out of service, degraded connection: each anomaly is mapped with its position in the field and the measured temperature.
Pixel Air survey: a faulty cell at 23.4 °C against 10.1 °C on an adjacent healthy cell, a 13.3 °C difference on the same module.
Rooftop inspections are also carried out with the modules in production, because electrical faults only show under load. The camera angle is chosen to avoid reflections of the sun and sky on the glass.
A residential rooftop system, inspected without roof access.
After components are replaced, the flight is repeated with the same parameters to document that the anomaly has been resolved.
The same module rows shot on a second flight.
Thermography and inspections
Visual and thermographic inspection of stacks, silos, overhead cranes and industrial roofs, without stopping production.
The telephoto camera resolves bolts and cracks at ten metres: structures are documented while keeping a safe distance.
Structures and pipework shot from a safe distance.
Two measurement ranges: −20 to 150 °C for ordinary anomalies and 0 to 550 °C for hot process surfaces. The range is chosen at the planning stage, as accuracy depends on it.
A plant in operation with hot surfaces in view.
Detachment, ponding, lifted membranes and damaged skylights mapped on the roof orthophoto, without roof access.
Warehouse roofs shot top-down.
The route is saved and repeated: two inspections six months apart return the same framing, comparable image by image.
A plant with a dense layout of structures and pipework.
Thermography and inspections
Linear infrastructure stretches for kilometres, while the critical points to check are few and spread along the route. A programmed route inspects them all in the same order at every campaign, with imagery at the same scale, making inspections months apart comparable.
The alignment is flown as a corridor route: same points, same framing and same altitude on every pass, so changes stand out.
A pipeline in open country, followed with a corridor route.
Floating roofs, insulation, stairs and walkways documented from above and below: the gimbal also tilts upwards, up to 70°.
Tank roofs shot from above.
Degraded insulation, heat loss and electrical panels: the thermal camera detects differences down to 0.05 °C with a stated accuracy of ±2 °C.
Pipework and electrical panels at a depot.
Unauthorised occupation, vegetation over the route and unpermitted excavation recorded and dated on the orthophoto, for reporting to the operator.
A pylon in farmland.
Example line inspection
Every insulator checked and marked: the faulty one is 18.6 °C warmer than the others on the same string, although it looks identical.
Example screen: the values shown do not come from a survey.
Thermography and inspections
In a loss assessment the value of the documentation depends on being able to measure the damage, date it and make it verifiable by third parties. An aerial survey documents roofs, elevations and outdoor areas quickly and without temporary works, with georeferenced imagery and reproducible measurements.
Georeferenced orthophoto of the area: areas, distances and perimeters are measured on the file with standard CAD and GIS software and remain verifiable at any time.
A built-up area after the event: stripped roofs and debris.
The telephoto camera resolves bolts and cracks at ten metres and returns readable detail at up to 250 metres, with no aerial platforms and no walking on roofs.
Missing tiles and exposed battens, shot from a distance.
The laser rangefinder returns the distance and coordinates of the framed point with an error of ±(0.2 + 0.0015 × distance) metres, i.e. 35 centimetres on a point a hundred metres away.
A detail at height above the eaves line.
Hail, flooding, wind: the affected area is outlined and quantified in hectares on dated, georeferenced imagery and compared with undamaged areas.
A flooded farm, with water still standing on the land.
Example roof damage report
Six holes in the roof covering located on the orthophoto, with the roof area and the undamaged pitches. None of the holes is visible from the courtyard.
Example screen: the values shown do not come from a survey.
