State Farm, the first insurer to win approval from the Federal Aviation Administration to use drones commercially, has launched hundreds of experimental drone flights for routine roof inspections. If the technology works out, the company could eventually use drones to give them a bird’s eye view of catastrophes.
State Farm has not said yet when it will deploy drones company-wide to routinely do such inspections.
More insurance companies, utilities and telecommunications firms will likely embrace drones for the more dangerous or difficult to reach inspections, says Jonathan Downey, CEO of Airware, a drone startup based in San Francisco that is working with State Farm. Airware says it works with companies find the right aircraft and navigation software, train workers to use the equipment and to steer through complex government regulations.
“If you had asked me a year ago, if insurance was going to be a major adopter of drones, I probably would have been a little skeptical,” Downey said. “It really makes a lot of sense.”
Flying a remote-controlled aircraft over a disaster areas saves time and money while also minimizing the risks to employees who now must rummage around broken buildings and navigate around fallen trees, Downey said.
Drones are less expensive than hiring a standard helicopter to do survey work. Drones are more agile, can provide a variety of views, and depending on the model, can be equipped with cameras, sensors and other devices to accomplish specific tasks.
A roto-copter drone can hover in place while a fixed-wing plane covers more ground and could be used to survey a natural disaster. Rooftop inspections require high-resolution cameras to examine hail or wind damage, but also a way to flag the important five minutes during an hour-and-a-half video, Downey said.
Utilities want an infrared camera to monitor hot or cold spots on pipes or wires, Downey said. The Environmental Protection Agency might want a sensor that sniffs for methane emissions, he said.
Source: USA Today