The structures of port and shore protection facilities need to be well-maintained to ensure the required level of performance throughout their service lives. For this purpose, appropriate periodic inspection plays a crucial role in the series of maintenance tasks. In recent years, multicopters equipped with a GPS receiver and camera have been applied in the visual inspection of social infrastructures in many different fields. In the field of port and coastal facilities inspection, however,
there are only a few examples of multicopter inspections to date. To achieve more effective maintenance of port and shore protection facilities, it is necessary to discuss how to apply multicopters to facilities inspections.
The authors discussed the possibility of multicopter-aided visual inspection of port and shore protection facilities from different perspectives. One result of field surveys was that with a multicopter it was possible to acquire photographic images of deformation and deterioration for evaluation of the degree of deterioration of each structure. Moreover, the parts that were deteriorated and required additional inspection could be easily identified in the photographic images. However, it was necessary to apply certain procedures facilitating identification of the position of the deterioration and measurement of the widths of concrete cracks.
In conclusion, applying multicopters for the visual inspection of port and shore rotection
facilities holds important potential to enhance the efficiency and safety of inspections.