Calculation of Electric Field for UAV Cross-Inspection in 220 kV Substation

With the rapid development of smart grids, efficient and fast substation inspections have become increasingly important. Compared to traditional manual inspections and robot inspections, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) inspections offer various advantages such as low cost, flexibility, high efficiency, and close observation distance. However, UAVs are susceptible to the complex electromagnetic field environment within the substation. In this article, we focused on the Genie 4 UAV and performed three-dimensional electric field modeling of the 220 kV substation to investigate the safe distance and distribution of the power frequency electric field during the UAV’s traversing inspection of high-voltage equipment in the substation. The maximum surface electric field intensity of the UAV increases as the horizontal distance between the UAV and the high-voltage equipment decreases. Considering only the electric field, it is safe for the UAV to maintain a horizontal distance of 0.5 m from the high-voltage equipment during the traversing inspection.