Docomo trials drone-based tower inspection in Indonesia

Japan’s NTT Docomo and Indonesian tower provider PT Solusi Tunas Pratama (STP) have commenced a trial in Indonesia involving the use of drones to inspect telecom towers.

During the pilot of the Docomo sky for Tower Inspection service, the companies will use drones to photograph base stations and telecom towers and transmit the information to a command center in real time.

The system is based on an operational drone-based tower inspection system developed by Docomo for use in its own network across Japan. It is designed to support the Docomo sky ground control station app for assistance in inspection tasks and remotely piloting the drones.

For the trial, Docomo will provide its cloud-based platform for operational support and data analysis for faster and more accurate tower inspections.

According to the companies, the trial service is well suited to markets including Indonesia, where rapid urban development is resulting in the construction of tall buildings and transport infrastructure that can interfere with radio propagation from telecom towers.

The two companies hope to test the technology in other locations and facilities before launching a full-scale commercial service later in the first half of the year.