Unmanned Aircraft Systems in the Civil Airworthiness Regulatory System: A Case Study

C. Cuerno-Rejado; R. Martinez-Val

doi:10.2514/1.c031281

Unmanned Aircraft Systems in the Civil Airworthiness Regulatory System: A Case Study

Journal of Aircraft ◽

10.2514/1.c031281 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 48 (4) ◽

pp. 1351-1359 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

C. Cuerno-Rejado ◽

R. Martinez-Val

Keyword(s):

Regulatory System ◽

Unmanned Aircraft ◽

Unmanned Aircraft Systems ◽

Aircraft Systems ◽

System A

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A low cost way for assessing bird risk hazards in power lines: Fixed-wing small unmanned aircraft systems

Journal of Unmanned Vehicle Systems ◽

10.1139/juvs-2013-0012 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 02 (01) ◽

pp. 5-15 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Margarita Mulero-Pázmány ◽

Juan José Negro ◽

Miguel Ferrer

Keyword(s):

Low Cost ◽

Unmanned Aircraft ◽

Unmanned Aircraft Systems ◽

Power Lines ◽

Wildlife Monitoring ◽

Aircraft Systems ◽

Practical Tool ◽

Conservation Projects ◽

Technical Solutions

Accidents on power lines are one of the most important causes of man-induced mortality for raptors and soaring birds. The factors that condition the hazard have been extensively studied, and currently there are a variety of technical solutions available to mitigate the risk. Most of the resources in conservation projects to reduce avian mortality now are invested in fieldwork to monitor the lines, which diverts the resources available to install actual corrective measures to mitigate bird hazard. Little progress has been achieved in the methodology to characterize line risk, which is an expensive, tedious, and time-consuming task. In this work we describe the use of low cost small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) equipped with on-board cameras for power line surveillance. As a case study, we characterized four power lines, geo-referenced every pylon in selected portions, and assessed their hazard for birds. We compare the effectiveness of two variants of the sUAS method for data acquisition and two methods of plane control. This work provides evidence of the usefulness of sUAS as a fast, inexpensive, and practical tool in conservation biology, adding to their already known applications in wildlife monitoring, the environmental impact assessment of infrastructures.

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Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) for Bridge Inspection Safety

Drones ◽

10.3390/drones4030040 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (3) ◽

pp. 40

Author(s):

Bryan Hubbard ◽

Sarah Hubbard

Keyword(s):

Unmanned Aircraft ◽

Unmanned Aircraft Systems ◽

Department Of Transportation ◽

Bridge Inspection ◽

Potential Harm ◽

Aircraft Systems ◽

Potential Benefits ◽

Benefit Cost ◽

Excellent Tool

Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) are an excellent tool to remove bridge inspection workers from potential harm. Previous research has documented that UAS for bridge inspection is a strategic priority of a state’s Department of Transportation (DOT), and this paper presents how they can increase safety and presents one methodology to quantify the economic benefit. Although previous studies have documented the potential benefits of using UAS for bridge inspection, these studies have primarily focused on efficiency and capabilities. This paper investigates in greater detail the potential to use UAS to increase the safety of bridge inspection, and includes the results of a survey of bridge inspectors, as well as a benefit cost methodology that utilizes worker compensation rates to quantify the safety benefits of UAS; the methodology is demonstrated using a case study for a DOT. The results of this research present evidence that UAS can increase the safety of bridge inspection, and the benefit–cost methodology and analysis suggest that using UAS to increase safety will provide benefits that are greater than agency costs.

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