Microcontroller

Arducopter can do this. All you need is mission capabilities and the ability to carry a sensor package, right? I'd say Arducopter is the best platform for that.

You should read through the wiki to get a better idea of how Arducopter works. I would recommend hooking your sensor package up to its own payload Arduino for datalogging and transmission.

I do have to warn you that getting a copter flying missions regularly, for someone with zero copter experience, is a huge undertaking no matter what autopilot you use. It will be less like you are doing an agriculture project that happens to use copters, as that you will be doing a copter project that happens to take agriculture data.

I would recommend getting one of these. There's no reason for you to build your own copter for this. The Iris will already be able to fly around on autonomous missions for you. Instead of the camera mounted down below, you could make your custom payload with sensors, arduino, and radio back to whatever receiver you're using for the farm.

I also feel I should warn you that unless you get into some serious engineering or money, your copter is going to be flying for 10-15 minutes. Meaning this is very much not a system you set and forget for farm monitoring. Its more like a time saver that is less work than walking around with a sensor package for 10 minutes. Unless you're willing to invest in developing a very advanced system, you are going to need a pilot to prep and reset the copter every 10 minutes. I don't know if this is what you're looking for or not.

By the way, I'm available for paid consulting, R&D, or testing work with copters. My background is in copters for ecological study.

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Stephen Zidek August 24, 2014 at 7:09am

Arducopter can do this. All you need is mission capabilities and the ability to carry a sensor package, right? I'd say Arducopter is the best platform for that.

You should read through the wiki to get a better idea of how Arducopter works. I would recommend hooking your sensor package up to its own payload Arduino for datalogging and transmission.

I do have to warn you that getting a copter flying missions regularly, for someone with zero copter experience, is a huge undertaking no matter what autopilot you use. It will be less like you are doing an agriculture project that happens to use copters, as that you will be doing a copter project that happens to take agriculture data.

I would recommend getting one of these. There's no reason for you to build your own copter for this. The Iris will already be able to fly around on autonomous missions for you. Instead of the camera mounted down below, you could make your custom payload with sensors, arduino, and radio back to whatever receiver you're using for the farm.

I also feel I should warn you that unless you get into some serious engineering or money, your copter is going to be flying for 10-15 minutes. Meaning this is very much not a system you set and forget for farm monitoring. Its more like a time saver that is less work than walking around with a sensor package for 10 minutes. Unless you're willing to invest in developing a very advanced system, you are going to need a pilot to prep and reset the copter every 10 minutes. I don't know if this is what you're looking for or not.

By the way, I'm available for paid consulting, R&D, or testing work with copters. My background is in copters for ecological study.

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