Water Supplies Department plans to use drones to replace manual labour for collecting freshwater testing samples
發佈日期: 2026-04-09 20:05
TVB News
The Water Supplies Department plans to use drones to replace manual labour for collecting freshwater testing samples.
It will also introduce a robot dog for water plant inspections, making the work safer.
Stored in Plover Cove Reservoir, Hong Kong's second largest reservoir by capacity, the Dongjiang water is treated before being supplied to residents in Shatin, Central Kowloon and other areas.
The testing of water quality rely on staff going out by boat to collect samples, but the Department has a new plan to use drones instead.
When approaching the water surface, a plastic container drops from the drone to collect the one litre water sample.
Mechanical Engineer of the Water Supplies Department DAVID LING: "Time saving is significant, as you can see we use the drone to take the sample, maybe within half an hour we can take the sample, but if we take the sample using the boat, it takes an hour."
The drone is professional grade and can be used in foggy or light rain conditions, but it will not be used under the No.3 strong wind signal or even windier situations.
The Department said the trial for drone-based water sampling costs several hundred thousand dollars, and it is still coordinating details with the Civil Aviation Department, in hopes of putting the technology to use this year.
The Department's "new colleague" also includes the six-legged robotic dog, which can patrol water treatment plants along preset routes. It is estimated to "start working" in late April.
Electrical Engineer of the Water Supplies Department ANTHONY KWAN: "We can avoid human exposure to dangerous areas when carrying inspection. Six legs is more stable from what we observe when going across high hills or going upstairs, I think the performance is much better than four legs."
The images and data collected by the robotic dog are transmitted directly to the control room, where an AI system analyses them. After completing its tasks, the robotic dog returns to its charging dock.
The Department has also introduced a welding robot that can perform repair tasks on water pipes, cutting the time required for each task by half, when compared to manual operations.
