Norfolk, VA Tunnel Thermographic Analysis Featuring Automated Imaging Technology

9/30/2025

---

NEXCO-West USA was awarded a tunnel leak inspection contract by Elizabeth River Crossings (ERC) based on its proven experience inspecting civil structures using infrared technology and performing pavement inspections within the same jurisdiction.
NEXCO acquired images by traveling approximately 1.2 km inside the tunnel using vehicle-mounted infrared cameras and line cameras, detecting leaks and deformations on the tunnel's concrete surfaces.

In addition to the roadway section, pushcart-type equipment was developed to walk and capture images within a neighboring utility corridor housing cables, pipelines, and emergency evacuation passages. As a means of capturing data in the utility corridor, a robot furnished with field-proven embodied AI was used to traverse the length of the corridor passages.
This fully autonomous quadrupedal robot was developed by FieldAI, a strategic partner of Kajima Corporation. It was introduced experimentally to test whether fully autonomous movement could improve on-site operational efficiency.

The robot proved capable of avoiding numerous obstacles without pre-mapping, recognizing and avoiding openings in the floor, and allowing for the addition of external equipment like cameras. Initial results showed promising potential for reducing long and strenuous labor hours while enhancing the efficiency and stability of imaging results.