You have more than likely seen one of those movies where the use of satellite or high-resolution imagery can yield things like license plate numbers or even gum wrappers.
If so, then you shouldn’t be shocked to learn that Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), or drones, use the same type of technology. The drones have the advantage though. They don’t require millions of dollars and millions of pounds of thrust to reach orbit! All they require is a dedicated professional pilot to zoom in on those items in question to reveal a crisp and crystal clear image of the cell tower and its related components.
That is exactly what we are going to be looking at today, as well as the ability to acquire these images and data sets from the team at Mile High Drones.
(Note: This is the second part of our Cell Tower Inspection series. You can read the first part here.)
A cell tower is a bit more than a simple radio signal tower. They may look simple in their design but the number of components and the amount of equipment involved in delivering a clear cell signal is a rather involved process.
While there may be one single cell service provider that is having the cell tower installed, the number of companies involved in the construction of a cell tower is anything but single.
With all of those different vendors having a vested interest in the tower being constructed, there needs to be a way to keep track of all the different materials involved, particularly those materials that contain serial numbers.
First, let’s take a look at how high-resolution imagery can aid in protecting those expensive pieces of the tower as it is being installed.
The Use of High-Resolution Imagery in Cell Tower Inspections
When you begin to inquire about having a cell tower inspection by drone, there are a couple of things you need to ask beforehand. Of course, there are obvious items such as making sure the drone pilot performing the inspection is qualified as well as licensed.
Then you can move on to more serious matters. Be sure that the drones being used are equipped and capable of giving you both 3D and high-resolution imagery sets.
With high-resolution imagery, you can get imaging that is so clear and precise you can track things like:
- Equipment ID tags
- ID serial numbers that can identify the owners of any cut or abandoned pieces of coaxial cable
- The color coding of any cabling with regard to the inspection of the entry/exit of the cabling through the coaxial hatch. This will allow you to determine if the cabling is going to, or coming from the cell tower.
There may be times during the construction process of the tower when destructive or otherwise inclement weather takes a toll on the construction site and materials and equipment can become scattered about the site. Having the ability to ‘fly over’ one such site can aid you in finding all the pieces and get the project back on track. Just another benefit of adding a drone service to your cell tower inspection process!
3D Imaging and Data Sets
Having a digital representation of the cell tower facility is another benefit of adding drone technology to this inspection.
When your drone inspector takes these downloadable images, you will also get precise measurements in the form of data sets. There will be no more going back to a cell tower to get a measurement that didn’t get written down! Think of the money saved right there alone!
When your cell tower facility has these periodic 3D models added in a timeline-like fashion, you will get a thorough model of the whole tower construction process from the first day of excavation to the day the power is switched on!
The team of professional drone pilots and drone support from Mile High Drones uses the latest in 3D modeling and high-resolution imagery available for the drone industry.
Why not give us a call and see just how easy cell tower inspections can be?
