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Bodkin Design & Engineering (BD&E) has been awarded a $1 million SBIR contract by the U.S. Navy for a drone-based inspection system aimed at enhancing the safety of very low frequency antenna facilities essential for submarine communications.

The system will utilize AI to process inspections, identifying corrosion in kilometer-long cables supported by guy wires. Unlike current subjective human inspections or ineffective semi-robotic methods, BD&E's solution will autonomously navigate and conduct inspections, collecting spectral and dimensional data while geotagging positions. The technology aims to prevent communication disruptions by enabling timely repairs and has potential applications in monitoring other critical infrastructure.