ING Robotic Aviation has selected FLIR Systems products to develop robotic aircraft for aerial industrial infrared inspections and visual gas leak detection.
FLIR cameras and gas detection filters will allow ING’s unmanned systems to locate hydrocarbon gas leaks from the air on pipelines, rail cars, marine vessels and more. FLIR inspection software provides analysis of the captured imagery.
ING Robotic Aviation, formally known as ING Engineering, honed its skills through extensive service with the Canadian Army and Royal Canadian Navy in support of ScanEagle operations in Afghanistan, the Mediterranean and Arabian Sea.
ING is now focused on commercial services including critical infrastructure inspections, forest fire monitoring and land use planning in North America and other regions. The company says it is “at the forefront of a disruptive technological and operational change, focused on reinventing aviation.”
The company’s Responder unmanned aircraft was recently called into service by the Fire Department of Sherbrooke, Quebec, to help assess river level rise of the Saint-François river.
“Responder will be used as an integral tool for flood monitoring,” said Ian Glenn, chief executive. “Our equipment will be used to get the right information, into the right hands, at the right time – in this case, directly into the hands of those managing the flood response.”
For an interview with Glenn about ING’s role with the Canadian Armed Forces, click here.