The use of RPAS in the aerospace industry has the potential to make aircraft inspections quicker and more efficient, enhancing public safety in Canada and around the world.
This two-year project (2019 to 2021) involves investigating the application of RPAS and artificial intelligence (AI) to general visual inspections of aircraft. In this research, a drone is used to safely and systematically collect images, while an experimental AI system developed by BCIT students tries to sort the images based on whether a defect is detected or not.
A truly interdisciplinary endeavour, this project involves the School of Transportation (Dr. Sanja Boskovic, Associate Dean Aerospace), the School of Construction and the Environment (Dr. Eric Saczuk, Faculty Geomatics Department), and the School of Computing and Academic Sciences (Dr. Chi En Huang, Option Head, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning), with support from aerial imagery specialists Spexi Geospatial. The initiative was funded by grants from the BCIT Institute Research Committee (Level 0) and Mitacs Accelerate.