Over a quarter of water is lost through leakage. These small “AI pipebots” could fix that
In the not-too-distant future, AI pipebots could be patrolling inside our water pipes. They will ensure no drop of clean water leaks out.
Can you guess the amount of drinking water that gets wasted every day just because of leaks in pipes across the globe? As big a number as you may come up with, you’re probably still short. The estimated figure (and it’s a rough estimate) is 344.5 billion liters (91 billion gallons) — which means every minute about 239 million liters of clean water is wasted. This much water can quench the thirst of millions of households, alleviating the growing problem that is water availability.
Thanks to a team of engineers, there may be an unexpected way to fix it. For obvious reasons, we can’t send humans inside all the pipes to fix leaks. But miniature robots could work; in fact, they may be our best bet if we want to fix leaks from the inside out.
A team of researchers at the Integrated Civil and Infrastructure Research Centre (ICAIR) in the UK is testing AI-powered miniature robots that can patrol inside water pipes, check for leaks, and repair them. These high-tech robots are called “pipebots” and while they look like small toy cars, come equipped with cameras, and have special legs that enable them to walk through any surface. The engineers at ICAIR reveal that in many places, people have already started to employ tethered robots to clean and repair water pipes. However, none of those solutions comes close to the pipebots when it comes to intelligence and feasibility.
