Emesent scanners help map Central Coast sewers

A claimed world-first remote sewer inspection has been carried out by Central Coast Council, using a remote-controlled buggy developed by American engineering firm KBR and CSIRO spinout Emesent.

According to a statement from KBR on Thursday, a custom-built remote-controlled vehicle (ROV) recently completed its first mission, scanning over 640 metres of sewer pipe between Terrigal and North Avoca.

The ROV was decked out in Emesent's Hovermap ST-X Mobile Laser Scanner (LiDAR) and a HD 360-degree CCTV, and created a “high-definition Point Cloud model and associated imaging for a virtual assessment of sewer pipe condition, helping to detect cracks, blockages, and structural wear with unprecedented precision” according to KBR.

The provider of the Lidar scanner, Emesent, was founded in 2018 and based on a SLAM (simultaneous localisation and mapping) research program at the CSIRO, often involving drones to map underground mine environments. 

KBR’s Hayden Robinson said data was uploaded to a Cintoo cloud-based 3D modelling application, “transforming the data into high-fidelity 3D meshes used to create a digital replica of the sewer” and allowing “our team to inspect the internals of the sewer pipe remotely.”

Jamie Loader, Central Coast Council Director of Water and Sewer, said that the council engaged KBR for sewer and tunnel condition assessments in the region. 

“However, given the size, age and unknown condition of the Terrigal tunnel we wanted to see if there was a way to inspect it without sending anyone down as a safety precaution,” said Loader.

“We’re proud to be the first local government in Australia to deploy this kind of innovative technology for sewer inspections.”

Stefan Hrabar, Emesent’s Chief Strategy Officer and co-founder, added that his company’s scanners were designed “for exactly this reason”, to capture data in “challenging and inaccessible” environments.

“By attaching our Hovermap scanner to the remote controlled vehicle, we’re able to provide engineers with the data they need to build a 3D digital replica for future maintenance works.”

Picture: supplied

Further reading

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