In order to improve the level of inspection efficiency, a scientific and rational inspection route planning should be designed. By analyzing the contents and the characteristics of the power cable patrol, we have established the foundation of inspection path planning model based on the VRP(Vehicle routing problem). And the ant colony algorithm can be applied to solve this issue. The experimental results show that optimization of the inspection path with this method improves the scientificity and rationality of the inspection program, meanwhile the efficiency of electric inspection department has been improved.