Abstract
The search for dents is a consistent part of the aircraft inspection workload. The engineer is required to find, measure, and report each dent over the aircraft skin. This process is not only hazardous, but also extremely subject to human factors and environmental conditions. This study discusses the feasibility of automated dent scanning via a single-shot triangular stereo Fourier transform algorithm, designed to be compatible with the use of an unmanned aerial vehicle. The original algorithm is modified introducing two main contributions. First, the automatic estimation of the pass-band filter removes the user interaction in the phase filtering process. Secondly, the employment of a virtual reference plane reduces unwrapping errors, leading to improved accuracy independently of the chosen unwrapping algorithm. Static experiments reached a mean absolute error of at a distance of , while dynamic experiments showed at a distance of . On average, the mean absolute error decreased by , proving the validity of the proposed single-shot 3D reconstruction algorithm and suggesting its applicability for future automated dent inspections.
Highlights
Maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) companies have an interest in the progressive automation of aircraft inspections
Most of the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)-based systems developed for aircraft inspections make use of a monocular camera as a primary acquisition device and are incapable of detecting shallow dents or collecting measures [11]
The employment of 3D scanning technology on UAVs is not straightforward: highaccuracy 3D scanners are generally based on multiple-shot algorithms, as the projection of many different patterns allows for detailed codification, and are incompatible with fast movements and vibration that would be experienced while scanning from a flying drone
Summary
Maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) companies have an interest in the progressive automation of aircraft inspections. These are hazardous, and costly, time-consuming, labour-intensive, and subject to human error [1], yet are critical for the airworthiness assessment. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are often considered to reach areas of the skin at a certain height, relieving the engineer from connected safety risks [2]: in 2018, Airbus launched an indoor inspection drone [3] and recently approved UAVs for lightning checks [4]. Other companies, such as easyJet and Air France Industries-KLM, are pioneering the adoption of UAVs for inspections
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
