Infographic: No-Hands Inspection and Repair Is Coming to Offshore Wind Farms

Wind turbines by their physical dimensions present challenges for maintenance. Their height and size requires workers to climb the height of foundation column, abseiling down turbine blades for inspection and repair. Engineers and entrepreneurs are beginning to devise autonomous solutions that would lessen and ultimately replace most if not all workers in dangerous environments. In the future, offshore windfarms will rely on autonomous solutions that will manage maintenance along with onshore-based human operators. Incorporating machine learning and artificial intelligence, drones, crawling robots and autonomous surface vessels will work together to reduce safety risks for workers while bringing down costs.