RWE, DTU Wind and Energy Systems and Quali Drone have worked together to find a solution, combining new drone technology with the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to inspect wind turbine blades at sea – while the blades are still spinning.The partners in the AQUADA-GO innovation project are working on a new technology that can automate the inspection of offshore wind turbine blades. Energy Cluster Denmark – the facilitator of the AQUADA-GO innovation project.
The partners have already developed the algorithms that can help the drone identify any damage on the surface of the blades, as well as potential fractures beneath it. The drone is fitted with a thermal camera that can scan the subsurface layers for damage.
The next step is to test the drone technology on land to prove that the drones themselves can follow the blades around as they rotate. The technology will then be tested offshore at Rødsand 2 offshore wind farm operated by RWE since 2010 and located south of the Danish Island of Lolland.
AQUADA-GO has a total budget of DKK 17 million and runs from 2023 to End of 2025. The partners are RWE, DTU Wind and Energy Systems, Quali Drone and Energy Cluster Denmark, and the innovation project has received DKK 7.3 million in funding from the Danish Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Programme (EUDP).
image: courtesy Quali Drone
