From bridges to oil and defense, repairing robots on aging infrastructure

The infrastructure that the United States is, in some cases, floats. More than a third (36 %) of all American bridges – approximately 222,000 stretching – requires major repair or replacement, according to Ministry of Transport Data. At the same time, more than 1500 people were injured or died In 153 oil refineries across the country in the six years ending in 2023, partly due to unintentionally working sites on damaged structures. In addition to the risk of human safety, the damage to the oil refinery causes an increase in the already strong pollution factor. As climatic shocks change in the world and its structures increasingly, it may be difficult even for the most experienced workers to keep up with it. This is where the robots come.

“What is the process of trying to evaluate material structures such as bridges, dams or ships?” Jake Lusararian, CEO and co -founder of Gecko Robotics, said: “This is good when you have miles and miles from potential damage areas.”

Jiko publishes robots This climbing, crawling, swimming and aviation, which works with sensors and artificial intelligence programs to create layers of data that tells you everything that can be known about the health of the structure. It can do all of this without putting humans in the fire line, although they are experts who experiment with robots, then understand and act on technology results.

Geeko, who was launched from the college’s dwellings in the college in 2013 after he visited a power plant in West Pennsylvania and learned about its failures and explosions, is not the only one to address the infrastructure problem with robots. Procepto provides a drone from the tip along with different types of cameras and couples with their inspection and monitoring programs.

“If you are talking about the oil and gas industry, you can find gas leakage, you can find crude oil leakage, and you can find broken ingredients,” said Audi Zohar, chief product employee in Edrak. Zohar added that drones can reach electrical infrastructure in stormy weather conditions that people cannot (such as hurricanes or snowstorms, for example).

The drone program also receives alerts and sends drones to determine the precision of alert. “You save time. You add safety to your company,” Zohar said. While Procepto started the main use of security in sensitive facilities, it has expanded to provide a set of cases of use, including weak locations where methane emites or operating facilities after climate disasters.

Companies such as GECKO and Procepto target usage cases that increase safety and efficiency, and reduce expenses, in industries such as defense, energy and manufacturing. Running and maintaining (including old age assets) 39 % of the American military budgetAnd the national group The cost of postponed maintenance It may be at least $ 1 trillion, as the research shows. By employing robots to properly address structural evaluation and determine the priorities of repairs as needed, companies and agencies can create a healthier and safer world, often for less money.

Nosrarian said that the robots that are suspected of infrastructure are growing very quickly so that they cannot take it on its own. “My problem is that I need more robots, and I cannot build them all,” he said.

Meanwhile, Gecko actively works on the artificial intelligence model predicts the date of the failure of the assets. Procepto, for its part, develops to include more types of cameras and sensors on the Drone-I-A-Box product. These two companies reflect a larger path – the inspection robot industry grows at least 30 % per year.

In the United States, car drivers cross bridges in bad condition about 168 million times a day. Hundreds of workers Sites inspection on her death every year. And in oil refineries, such as factors such as Error increases dangerous emissions This harms the close workers and the planet as a whole, with increased operational costs simultaneously.

While experts who are needed continues to search for abnormal structural situations, robots-and people who occupy them-are eliminating to fill a clear gap for a safer and healthier world.