America’s infrastructure is in the news a lot these days.

Roads are old and decaying, national monuments are cracking and chipping and bridges all over the country are beginning to creak and sway.

While the politics and budget issues surrounding these projects are a topic we’ll leave for another time, the unique technologies being used to make repairs and improve structures in order to tackle these challenges are fascinating.

You’ve probably heard a lot about drones, and how they’re making construction work that much easier, but a new model, the PD6-CI-L, is unlike anything you’ve ever seen.

Drones are all the same, right? Surely it can’t be that different.

Wrong! This bad boy doesn’t even fly. Instead, it uses a series of wheels, grips and pulleys to traverse the hard-to-reach cracks, crevices, nooks and crannies that bridges are notorious for being covered in.

According to Engineering.com, “When equipped with a camera, the drone can detect cracks as small as 0.1 mm in width. This is because the clinging capability of the drone allows it to maintain a constant focal distance from the surface under inspection.”

Even better? The PD6-CI-L is better prepared to handle acclimate weather challenges, “Weather conditions like powerful wind gusts can make it difficult for hovering drones to complete an inspection, whereas a surface-clinging drone is more resilient.”

Can you see this drone being used for other applications? Would you invest in one yourself?

Technology continues marching forward, and we can’t wait to watch from the sidelines.