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SmartDataby National Drones

Powerline analytics

Find the spans that need a closer look.

Evaluate your corridor data for classification and clearance screening. Review the evidence, assumptions and excluded spans before you plan follow-up work.

Scoped pilots

Screening and prioritisation under stated assumptions. Outputs require review and do not replace certified engineering assessment.

Classified powerline corridor in SmartData
A classified corridor from an evaluation dataset. Results depend on the supplied data.

Available for scoped pilots

Utility data, asset, and vegetation teams

Your data

A representative corridor for evaluation

Agreed checks

Data quality, classification and exclusions

Scoped output

Review evidence before a wider program

Powerline intelligence, built in

Trained on real networks, verified by humans

The classifier is trained and validated against expert-reviewed ground truth from live Australian corridors: distribution and transmission, open easements and heavy canopy, across multiple LiDAR sensors.

From processed L3 corridor to classified network

SmartData keeps the processed DJI L3 corridor and the classified network connected so teams can move from source evidence into powerline analysis without another viewer handoff.

Processed DJI L3 RGB point cloud of a transmission corridor in SmartData

01 Processed corridor

Georeferenced RGB point cloud ready for hosted review and downstream processing.

SmartData classified transmission corridor with conductors, structures, vegetation, and ground separated

02 Classified network

Conductors, structures, vegetation, and ground separated while retaining their corridor context.

Conductors

Review extracted conductors against the supplied corridor evidence.

Poles and towers

Check structure classes and their limits on your network.

Your source data

Assess capture quality and suitability before the pilot.

Reviewer checks

Keep quality notes and excluded spans with the result.

SmartData point cloud with powerline structures isolated from the corridor

Structures isolated for QA

Toggle classes independently to inspect timber poles, lattice towers, and mixed structure types before downstream analysis.

SmartData classified lattice transmission towers viewed across dense vegetation

Complex structures retained

Review structure classification through changing terrain, dense vegetation, and overlapping network geometry.

SmartData classified towers extending along a transmission corridor

Corridor-scale consistency

Move from an individual structure to the wider corridor without breaking the relationship between assets and terrain.

It gets better with your network

Start with a cold evaluation, then use one expert-reviewed section of your own corridor to tune the classifier. Agree on the review, tuning and quality checks as part of the pilot.

Operational outcomes

From point cloud to answers

Classification is the foundation. The same network can then support conductor geometry, span analysis, vegetation screening, contours, clearance envelopes, and evidence reporting for asset and vegetation teams.

01

Classified conductors, poles, towers, vegetation, and ground

02

Conductor geometry, pole clustering, and ordered spans

03

Catenary fitting and survey-day clearance context

04

Vegetation-encroachment and fuel screening

05

Worst-case thermal sag and wind blowout envelopes

06

Contours, QA notes, evidence reports, and review-ready hosted views

Worst-case clearance envelopes

Screen beyond the survey-day wire position

The worst-case clearance workflow reconstructs the observed conductor state, then screens how thermal sag and design wind assumptions can change the available margin. Results carry P50 and conservative P05 bands, uncertainty drivers, assumptions, and excluded spans.

1.6 km

demonstration corridor

14

measured spans from 391-557 m

0

screened clearance breaches in the demonstration

7.9 m

maximum hidden margin quantified

Worst-case clearance envelope along a transmission corridor

Survey-day position versus worst case

Span-level worst-case conductor clearance evidence over corridor terrain
Span-level evidence
Top-down view of a worst-case transmission line clearance envelope
Corridor-wide screening context

Corridor review

Move from corridor risk to span evidence

Compare survey-day conductors with modelled hot-and-wind envelopes, then select individual spans to review the clearance evidence and assumptions behind each screening result.

Worst-case clearance screening across a LiDAR transmission corridor in terrain context
Corridor-wide envelope screening
Selected transmission span with survey-day conductors and worst-case clearance envelopes
Survey-day position and worst-case state
Span-level clearance screening with conductors, vegetation, structures, and terrain visible
Span evidence in corridor context

Clearance screening case study

A single LiDAR pass was used to separate phases, reconstruct observed conductor state, and screen 14 spans under a 100 C conductor-temperature scenario plus design wind assumptions. The demonstration reported no screened breaches and quantified up to 7.9 m of margin that was not visible from the survey-day wire position alone.

View the clearance screening case study (PDF)

2-page PDF with assumptions, methodology, and span-level results.

Have a corridor to evaluate?

See the baseline on your own data before deciding how to proceed.

Scope a corridor evaluation

Screening and prioritisation only

Clearance-envelope outputs are produced under stated assumptions. They are not a certified engineering assessment and do not replace detailed design tools or engineering sign-off.

Delivery workflow

From upload to corridor intelligence

SmartData keeps classification, QA, hosted review, network analytics, and evidence outputs connected instead of handing teams another disconnected point-cloud file.

  1. 01

    Upload or hand off a supported corridor LiDAR capture for a cold baseline evaluation.

  2. 02

    Classify conductors, poles and towers, vegetation, and ground, with confidence and QA context.

  3. 03

    Review classes in the hosted point cloud and submit an expert-reviewed section for optional tuning.

  4. 04

    Build conductor geometry, ordered spans, contours, encroachment screening, and clearance envelopes where scoped.

  5. 05

    Share browser-based results, evidence exports, assumptions, exclusions, and recommended follow-up.

Questions utilities ask

Clear boundaries around data inputs, model tuning, evaluation, and engineering follow-up.

Do we need to supply a pre-classified point cloud?

No. A cold evaluation can start from a suitable corridor LiDAR capture so the baseline classifier can be assessed before any network-specific tuning. Existing usable classes can also be retained where appropriate.

What does a cold evaluation show?

It runs representative data through the baseline workflow with no network-specific tuning. You can review conductor and structure extraction, exclusions, QA notes, and downstream analytics before deciding whether to tune the model or expand the corridor.

Can the classifier be tuned to our network?

Yes. A small expert-reviewed section can be used to tune the classifier for local structure types, vegetation, and capture characteristics. The pilot scope defines the review and tuning process.

Is the clearance envelope a certified engineering assessment?

No. It is a screening and prioritisation layer under stated assumptions. It identifies spans that deserve vegetation work, field review, or certified engineering follow-up; it does not replace detailed design tools or engineering sign-off.

See the baseline on your own corridor

Start with a cold evaluation and no network-specific tuning. You will see how the classifier performs on your data before deciding whether to tune it or expand the deployment.