US 12,333,921 B2
Unmanned aerial system for autonomous gas leakage detection, quantification, and mitigation
Yasser A. Alshaalan, Dammam (SA); Omar A. Dubayan, Dammam (SA); Abdulrahman H. Alswaidan, Dammam (SA); Prem Kumar, Dhahran (SA); and Aidhah J. Zahrani, Dammam (SA)
Assigned to SAUDI ARABIAN OIL COMPANY, Dhahran (SA)
Filed by SAUDI ARABIAN OIL COMPANY, Dhahran (SA)
Filed on Jun. 8, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/331,828.
Prior Publication US 2024/0412615 A1, Dec. 12, 2024
Int. Cl. G08B 21/16 (2006.01); G01N 33/00 (2006.01)
CPC G08B 21/16 (2013.01) [G01N 33/0075 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method, comprising:
receiving gas leak sensory data from one or more gas leak detection sensors disposed on a gas-handling system, wherein a sensor location of each of the one or more gas leak detection sensors is known or comprised by the gas leak sensory data;
receiving environmental conditions data;
detecting, with at least one sensor of the one or more gas leak detection sensors, a gas leak;
dispatching an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to a location upon detecting the gas leak using the at least one gas leak detection sensor, wherein the location is based on the sensor location of the at least one gas leak detection sensor;
collecting one or more visual images and one or more thermal images of the gas-handling system using the UAV once the UAV has reached the location, wherein the one or more thermal images correspond to a temperature of one or more objects of the gas-handling system;
determining, using the one or more visual images, the gas leak sensory data, and the environmental conditions data, a refined gas leak location, wherein the refined gas leak location localizes the gas leak beyond the location of the at least one sensor;
identifying components of the gas-handling system impacted by the gas leak given the gas leak location;
determining a mitigation action; and
resolving the gas leak by applying the mitigation action.