Local electric power authorities in Shenzhen on Feb. 2 demonstrated the country’s first laser drone, which can be used to solve electrical breakdowns in a safer and more efficient way.
Yu Peng, director of Shenzhen’ electric power bureau, told Chinanews.com that the laser drone works together with another two specially designed counterparts, whose main functions are to detect electrical glitches from far away and eliminate hyperthermal obstacles, respectively.
The drone squad can shorten the duration of traditional power cuts from 8 hours to 30 minutes. Equipped with advanced technologies including binocular vision system and automatic fault detection system, the squad can detect over 60 percent of typical electrical breakdowns using laser and thermal properties to eliminate flotage and obstacles that can cause power outages.
China’s UAV manufacturing industry has been expanding rapidly in recent years thanks to extensive use of drones in everything from surveying and mapping to personal consumption. According to Xinhua News Agency, the market value of UVA industry in China is expected to rise 40 percent year on year on average to 60 billion yuan (about $9.1 billion) by 2020.