Blogs

The ArduPilot development team is delighted to announce a new stable release of plane, version 3.9.0.

For those of you who have been testing the 3.9.0beta releases then you won’t see any surprises here. That are no changes since 3.9.0beta6. Also, many thanks for testing the betas!

For those of you coming from the last stable 3.8.5 release there are a lot of changes. For a start, this is the first release to support both the ChibiOS RTOS on STM32 boards and the NuttX RTOS. Previously stable releases only used the NuttX RTOS. The ArduPilot project is moving to
ChibiOS for future releases, and we expect to drop support for the NuttX builds for the next major stable release (which will probably be called 3.10.0).

When you install the 3.9.0 release on board such as a Pixhawk1, Cube or Pixracer you have a choice of which build to use. Choosing ChibiOS will give you better performance and some very nice new features. Choosing the NuttX (also known as “PX4” builds) will get you the same base that we have been using for years.

There are a few features that are in the NuttX build but not yet in the ChibiOS build, in particular the ChibiOS build does not yet support PWM based rangefinders. That will be fixed in a future release.

This release has a lot of new features. Some of the most important ones are:

• DShot support for controlling ESCs
• BLHeli pass-thru support for ESC configuration
• automatic compass orientation on calibrating compasses
• improved VTOL flight code, with improved transition support and loiter
• support for Devo telemetry output
• new battery monitoring system, with more flexible failsafes
• built-in OSD support for boards with a MAX7456 OSD device

In addition, this release supports a lot of new flight boards, including:

• AirbotF4
• F4BY
• KakuteF4
• KakuteF7
• MatekF405
• MatekF405-Wing
• mindpx-v2
• mini-pix
• Omnibusf4pro
• Omnibusf7V2
• Pixhawk4 and Pixhawk4-mini
• CUAVv5
• revo and revo-mini
• sparky2

We also now have custom ChibiOS based builds for some existing boards, including:

• CubeBlack
• mRoX21
• Pixhawk1
• Pixracer

This means you now have a lot more choice in selecting a flight board to use with ArduPilot.

This release was made possible thanks to contributions from dozens of volunteer developers in the dev team. In total there are over 5 thousand changes since the 3.8.5 release. Special thanks to:

• Siddharth Purohit
• Tom Pittenger
• Randy Mackay
• Michael du Breuil
• Peter Barker
• Mark Whitehorn
• Paul Riseborough
• Francisco Ferreira
• Jonathan Challinger
• Leonard Hall
• Alexander Malishev
• Nathan E
• Marco Robustini
• Luis Vale Gonçalves
• night-ghost
• Patrick José Pereira
• Lucas De Marchi
• Eugene Shamaev
• Philip Rowse
• Amilcar Lucas
• Kelly Foster
• Fnoop
• Pierre Kancir
• Stephen Dade
• Jaime Machuca
• vierfuffzig
• Henry Wwurzburg
• Malcolm Churn
• Holger Steinhaus

We hope you enjoy flying this release as much as we enjoyed making it.
Happy flying!

Big thanks to Tridge and Ardupilot development team! 

Font and original discuss at -> https://discuss.ardupilot.org/t/plane-3-9-0-stable-released/31600

Today I'd like to share some information of UAVs electricity inspection work. 

To ensure the stable supply of electricity, regular inspection and maintenance of the installations are important and essential. In the past, this kind of inspection work in China are mainly finished by manual work. And always cost a lot of time and money, meanwhile, often very dangerous as well. 

Nowadays, with the development of drone inspection technology. Many inspection work that is dangerous and difficult are mainly finished by UAVs now.  

UAVs inspection enjoys several advantages as below:

• More comprehensive inspection work to reduce potential risks.
• Save more labor and cost.
• With more safety and efficient .
• Flexible working mode make it adjustable for different and difficult environment.
• Easy to bring and transport.
• .....

Several months ago one drone manufacturer integrated our Tersus RTK board in to their drones. And these drones are conducting electricity inspection work at different places in China now. Here are some pictures for your reference:

And here are some pictures of our TERSUS GNSS RTK board for your reference, 

Thanks. Have a wonderful day!

Sky Eye-10NLT is one 1080P 10X night vision zoom camera specially designed for DJI Matrice 200. This gimbal is developed based on DJI Skyport, which means it is seamlessly compatible with Matrice 200 drone: all gimbal functions can be controlled through DJI GO APP and controller, like Yaw/Pitch, zoom, record/photo, tracking etc. Sky Eye-10NLT is offering a payload option for your Matrice 200 aircraft.

Sky Eye-10NLT comes with powerful night vision capability. It consists of one 1080P 10X stellar zoom camera and an IR laser illuminator served as an auxiliary IR light for the zoom camera. The 10X stellar zoom camera features super low illumination:0.001lux/F1.5(white/black), is able to spot the object as far as 300 meters in the night with the help of IR laser illuminator.

Another big feature of Sky Eye-10NLT is the tracking function. Enable it from the APP, then you just need to click the target on the screen, then the gimbal will track it automatically, easy and simple.

Features

1) Weight:700grams
2) 1/2.9 inch 4MP CMOS sensor
3) 10X optical zoom,12X digital zoom
4) 1080P/30 H.264 video recorded for on-board TF card
5) Super low illumination:0.05lux@F1.5(colorful),0.01lux@F1.5(white/black)
6) IR laser illuminator cover range: over 300 meters
7) Auto object track and geotagging
8) 3-axis high stabilized gimbal system
9) Fully compatible with DJI Matrice 200

Product link:http://www.yangdaonline.com/sky-eye-10nlt-1080p-10x-night-vision-zoom-camera-for-dji-m200/

Product photos

Learning becomes easier when we add a little bit of fun to it. Here using the idea of obstacle detection, rather than just implementing simple obstacle avoidance in the drones path, I thought of playing a game with it.

To understand basic ideas of IR sensors and detection, I thought of building a game based on this using a drone. In this game of table tennis we can replace the ball with a drone.There will be 2 IR sensors on either sides which will detect a TT racket in its range and will move in the opposite direction thus 2 players can easily play this game.

For this we require the RC roll to be OFF and for it to roll in the opposite direction by itself as given in the code. I have used PlutoX controller which has its own open source Cygnus IDE on which i implemented my code.

Heres how i did it

• FINALIZING COMPONENTS REQUIRED
  • PlutoX
  • PrimusX board
  • 2 IR sensors(V53LOX)
  • Breakout board
  • 600 mAh batteries
• GETTING THE HARDWARE READY
  • The IR sensor that i have integrated consists of 5 connections namely VCC,GND,RESET,I2C pins SCL,SDA
  • Vcc is connected to BAT pin
  • The breakout board provides I2c connections
  • Pin 6 to SDA
  • Pin 7 to SCL
  • Pins 13 & 15 are the default pins for getting range from IR sensors using Xshield API which is connected to pin X on sensor module.
• GETTING THE SOFTWARE READY
  • Breakout board gives the range from IR sensors
  • If an obstacles is encountered within 150mm, the drone moves in the opposite direction
  • Using IR sensors on both sides a drone can be used to play Table tennis
  • gethub link: https://github.com/DronaAviation/PlutoX-Sample-Codes/tree/master/PlutoX-Shield(VL53LOX)

Hello,this is Haley greeting from Tersus GNSS Inc. in China. 

Recently we've finished testing of BX306 GNSS RTK Board for plant protection UAV in China. Our customer choose one BX306 board as Base and two BX306 boards as Rover in UAV. They mainly test the RTL(Return to Launch) function this time, the difference of original start point and landing point is 5-10cm. 

 BX306 is a cost-efficient GNSS RTK board for cm-level positioning and providing accurate raw measurement output, which can be integrated with autopilots and inertial navigation units.

• Supports GPS L1/L2, GLONASS L1/L2, and BeiDou B1/B2
• Supports in-built 4GB memory, which makes data collection easy
• Up to 20Hz RTK solution and raw data output
• Supports IMU raw data output
• Pin-to-pin compatible with NovAtel OEM615
• Log/command compatible with NovAtel protocol
• Supports event mark and PPS

Later we'll have more test on our RTK and PPK board, and will update once available. Thanks. 

Haley

Email: yunxia.hu@tersus-gnss.com

Webesite: https://www.tersus-gnss.com

By changing the CNN of my previous post CNN (1) into a multi-classification CNN (fly, go left, go right, stop) and adding an appropriate multi-thread python dronekit script, my drone bypasses most of the obstacles encountered at our "Model Club de la Côte de Beauté - MCCB". The YouTube video demonstrates the obstacle avoidance of my drone in loiter flight mode.

Honda released the video featuring their new Civic Type R car in a mixed reality race of a professional car racer against a video gamer! The race between real-world Honda Civic R and Forza Motorsport 7 version was arranged by UNIT9, the production company. Reach RS RTK receiver was used to re-create the remarkably accurate behavior of a car.

Check the breathtaking film about this race (above)

Visit R vs R project page on the UNIT9 website to see project details.

On the sixth installment of my project log, I finally get some test flights off with the flight controller i started to make from an arduino 101.

Up until this point, we barely had the aircraft gliding. This week I decided to add some methods, and cruicial parts to the aircraft that make it behave more like an actual aircraft, and down the line will help it make its own decisions. All of that is outlined in the video above. Enjoy!

I'd love to hear everybodies thoughts on the project so far.

Follow me: 

Twitter: twitter.com/Ohitstarik

Instagram: instagram.com/ohitstarik

Real life: please dont

snapchat - oitstarik

I follow back for drone related content! 

Today, UAV Components introduced the Micronav, a dynamic ground control platform that enables developers and producers to improve the reliability and professional experience of their robotic solutions.

To meet the high market demand for a smaller ground control station, the Micronav offers a flexible and rugged performance in a smaller size. The Micronav is based on the Panasonic FZ-M1, a favorite of the toughest industries and the ideal tool for today's mobile workforce. The Micronav make a professional customizable ground control solution that drives efficiency and productivity in ways never before possible.

It is critical for UAV Components to deliver the market’s most versatile platform, which enables the end user to operate effectively in any condition. The Micronav has a MIL-STD-810G, 5' drop, and all-weather IP65 dust and water-resistant design. Besides its rugged qualities, it also has features such as user-replaceable and long-life batteries and improved sensitivity for use with heavy gloves, the operating system Windows 10, and 4G LTE multi carrier broadband.

A tailored high-quality ground control station has proven to be in high demand. No two robotic and/or UAV solutions are identical; therefore, customers seek a solution that goes hand-in-hand with their specific operations being carried out by the robotic tool. Therefore, the Micronav can be tailored with custom radio/videolinks links, ethernet, software, and unique engraving.

Since 2015, UAV Components has had the honor of delivering custom ground control systems based on its Aeronav platform. As of today, it has created more than 100 robotics solutions that implement the Aeronav platform in close cooperation between the company and its clients.

www.uavcomponents.net

Sky-Drones prioritizes and always strives to enhance the safety of UAV operations - for this reason we integrated AirMap  - world's leading airspace management platform for drones. Now in SmartAP GCS and available for all platforms including iOS, Android, Mac OS, Windows. Visit http://sky-drones.com/smartap-gcs for more info or download SmartAP GCS now.

Downloads:

iOS: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smartap-gcs/id1349876201

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sky_drones.SmartAP_GCS

Mac OS: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smartap-gcs/id1351690745?mt=12

Windows: http://sky-drones.com/download.php?file=SmartAP-GCS-Win.zip

Or visit https://sky-drones.com/smartap-gcs for more info

I'd like to share a project I've been busy with for the past months. It's a lightweight, small size quadcopter built for long flight time. The AUW of the quad is 85g, and uses geared propulsion with micro DC motors. Controlled by a F4 brushed flight controller, and using a 300mah 2S lipo battery. With this configuration it achieves around 10 mins flight time, which could be further increased with a redesign of some structural parts focusing further on weight-reduction. 

The quadcopter is quite stable and responsive for it's weight and size, and is also suitable for indoor flying. I've designed and 3D printed all structural parts for this quad, including the motor and prop holding assemblies and main body. The arms themselves are build out of unidirectional carbon fiber tubing.

I've got some more photos and characteristics up on my blog, so if you like this check it out.

I'll be posting a flight video of this quad sometime soon, so stay tuned! Needless to say, if you have any ideas or comments I'd love to hear from you.

I would like to share a recent project that I found on the internet, such a nice design these guys made with carbon fiber body.  I wonder if they are using pixhawk 2.1? lol

It looks so light flying!

Does it seem to be a combo design using a vtol vehicle with helium inside?l What do you guys think?

opener website

Having now worked for a few years on the development of the Raptor drone series I thought I share some thoughts on the design process and impact this has on performance.

When initially started designing for this series of drones the priority matrix was reduced to a single design element... ie performance. By that I mean maximizing the aerodynamic efficiency of the platform for optimized endurance flight and boy did it work well.

For very slow flight there is single element in the design process that dictates endurance and this for powered flight is wingloading. If you fly slow enough, say for example at 14 m/s drag is not really a consideration and induced drag can be optimized. Once you start flying faster the drag increases and for optimized results everything that can be done should be done to get the most out of your aircraft.

For this reason the fuselage that looks almost identical to that of the V1 German bomber is designed using the NLFM approach, ie natural laminar flow. In order to achieve the maximum lift out of the wing area, which was scaled to achieve low powered flight, the airfoils where thickened similar to powered full scale aircraft at ~ 13% thickness. This is important and probably one of the differentiating factors among other civilian drones in the same category.

In order to reduce the tail area the wings were optimized in order to reduce the pitching moment, this reduces the requirement for a large tail moment to achieve stability. Essentially this allowed to put together aerodynamically a flying wing that looks like a traditional layout aircraft.

The angle of attack of the main wing was at maximum power factor so efficiency is optimized for level flight, again another factor to increase endurance. For the Raptor EV this was achieved at ~ 5 degrees angle of attack.

The high aspect ratio further increases efficiency for the same wing area and the adverse yaw affect during turns was filtered out by differential ailerons and coordinated rudder input.

At ~16 m/s we initially had excellent stability at gusty conditions and because as I wrote above this was "essentially" a flying wing pitch stability was more than good. However maximum endurance was at 14m/s for this system and at 8 kg all up this clearly displayed early onset of tip stall that was demonstrated by small yaw movements as the increased drag during tip onset and the large moment due to the large aspect ratio had enough impact. However over the last year we worked on maximizing performance even further by working on dual wing tips similar to those used by Boeing. The results were excellent and the aircraft can fly at 14 m/s at gusty conditions and in addition we gained ~ 4-6 % on performance. Power consumption by the way at these conditions was only averaging 4-12 Amps at 25 Volt. This was achieved by a lengthy power optimization process as we had to achieve high efficiency requirements for two previous customers Cella Energey Cella and RaptorUAS  and with Horizon Energy Systems Horizon and RaptorUAS .

Essentially power train optimization was achieved though increase of the motor mass and appropriate adjustment of propeller and voltage configuration.

Raptor was eventually VTOLized :) to increase operational efficiency and easy of use

Trias

https://www.linkedin.com/in/triantafyllosgkikopoulos/

http://www.raptoruas.com

Quadcopter Drone Flying Characteristics

All in all the JJRC Quadcopter Drone is a very robust, stable flyer. Changing the direction the Quadcopter is pointing towards (the yaw rate) is not spectacular in low rates but is quite acceptable in the top 100% mode. However when flying in this mode be aware any sharp movement on the right stick (mode 2 flying left hand throttle stick) the RC Quadcopter Drone will enter into acrobatic auto-flip mode and perform tight flips.

The LED lights will start a flashing sequence when the battery life is running low. Be warned you don’t get much time left to land the Quadcopter Drone so it is better to fly this model using a timer. Lipo batteries last longer if you don’t run them right down so using a timer has double benefits. Remember to let the motors cool down if you have spare batteries ready to go.

Quadcopter Drone Body Styling

The body shell of the JJRC 1000A resembles that of the much larger DJI Phantom and is a welcome change from all the Hubsan X4 look-a-likes. The propeller blade shapes are of a very similar shape to those used on the Walkera QR Ladybirds albeit slightly larger.

Quadcopter Drone Transmitter

A real plus with this model is you get a ‘Proper’ sized Remote Control RC Quadcopter Drone Transmitter. Nearly all under $30 Micro and Mini Quadcopter Drones have tiny transmitters that are OK for smaller hands but can cause stress for those with larger hands. It is therefore plain to see that this under $30 Drone is a great learning tool and will teach any beginner the basic Quadcopter flying skills. It will also prepare YOU well if and when YOU want to move up to bigger Quadcopter Drones.

JJRC Quadcopter Drone Review from Drone Flyers

We took the JJRC 1000A outside today and had a blast with it. We can’t get over how quiet it is unlike some of the other Quadcopter Drones in this class. The lightweight body shell and larger size propellers don’t seem to strain the motors and in 100% mode the flips are awesome. It was a pleasure to fly, fast and easy to control.

Over the next few weeks the Drone Flyers Team are going to put this RC Quadcopter Drone through some rigorous testing. Having flown the JJRC 1000A indoors over Christmas and studied all the Best Drone Reviews of this model we are certain that this is one of the finest under $30 Quadcopter Drones you can buy.

Quadcopter Drone Description

Item Name: JJRC 1000A Quadcopter Drone
Frequency: 2.4G
Channel: 4
Gyro: 6 axis
Battery: 3.7V 250mAh lipo
Flight time: 5-8 minutes
Quadcopter Drone Battery charging time: about 40 minutes
Control distance: about 80-100 meters
Size: 12 x 12 x 2.5cm
Color: White

Quadcopter Drone Features

Latest 6 axis gyro system
Mini size, super light weight
With LED light function
Compatible with transmitter of V202 V222 V262 V272 JXD 385 388 X30 X30V F180 L6036 L6038

Quadcopter Drone Package includes

1 x JJRC 1000A Quadcopter Drone
1 x LCD Quadcopter Drone transmitter
1 x 3.7V 250mah battery
1 x USB charging cable
4 x spare blades
1 x Quadcopter Drone manual

More quadcopter DIY article here :http://www.rcdronegood.com/

Sky Eye-T50 is a 3-axis high stabilized gimbal with thermal camera.The thermal camera is with 640*480 resolution,25HZ,allows you to detect targets in the night or low visibile conditions,and provides you with priceless information.Furthere more,the thermal camera comes with a 50mm lens,which will enable you to get very clear thermal image even you are 500 meters away from the target.High-performance 3-axis gimbal is developed based on FOC(field-oriented control) technology,which will give you crystal clear video footage.

Sky Eye-T50 is using the most advanced thermal tracking technology,with which you will be able to track the target very easily.How it works: put the object you want to track in the screen,move the cursor to the object and lock it via controller,and then the camera will track it automatically.

Another big feature for Sky Eye-T50 is that the gimbal will geotag the video streaming and photos,also gimbal Yaw/Pitch angle,height,time information will be displayed on camera OSD,this is really important when you are conducting missions like rescue and search.

Sky Eye-T50 comes with an amazing advantage that the gimbal can not only be controlled via PWM signal,but also serial command.Also gimbal status(like Yaw/Pitch/Roll angle,zoom position etc) can be obtained by sending serial command to the gimbal via its serial port,which is really useful for precise gimbal control and system integration.

Sky Eye-T50 provides an outstanding wiring hub design for RC receiver and video output port,which makes wiring pretty easily.Also the gimbal offers 2 smart speed modes:FAST speed and LOW speed.Fast speed mode is used for small zooming range,which makes the gimbal control sensitive and quick.LOW speed mode is used for large zoom range,will enable you to target the object more accurately.

Features

1)800grams,light weight
2)Thermal camera:640*480 resolution,25HZ,50mm lens
3)Digital zoom:1X,2X,4X,8X
4)HDMI and Ethernet video out
5)Auto object tracking
6)Geotagging
7)PWM control and serial command control
8)Convenient wiring hub for RC receiver and video output
9)3-aixs high stabilized gimbal system
10)Adjustable control speed: SLOW speed for large zoom range,accurate.FAST speed for small zoom range,sensitive and quick.
11)One key back to center

Product link:http://www.yangdaonline.com/sky-eye-t50-3-axis-gimbal-for-thermal-camera-with-50mm-lens/

Product Photos

We have a new Android based fully rugged ground control station format for some serious UAV/USV work. We’ve been calling it simply the RHH, and it was developed with extensive modularity in mind from scratch. As the supporting and enthusiastic community of DIYdrones looks more and more like the primary meeting place of professional unmanned platform developers, rather than just DIY-ers and hobbyists, I think there’s some interest in this level of GCS integration here, as well.

Because operating only in fair weather is a luxury not all users can afford, we had to come up with a fairly light hand-held controller that does the job under any circumstances. While we still mostly associate UAV flights with clear skies, there are always occasions where we just can't get away with a hobby grade RC and a tablet or a laptop. We also thought about surface systems, which are even more affected by the weather.

Protecting the GCS from the elements is just one of the points here, because when it comes to rain or extreme cold you would like to operate from some kind of shelter, at least a car or a van. That’s where the extreme modularity of this design comes in really handy. The entire RF unit of the RHH is removable from the bottom of the controller, and it can be mounted on your car roof, tripod, mast or even on the pan axis of an antenna tracker.

The field cable between the two modules is just a thin and flat twisted pair, which can be shut into the car door without messing with the seal. The cable can be of any practical length, because there is some serious voltage compensation and signal conditioning going on at both ends. Although it’s not exactly PoE (Power over Ethernet) in all versions, but we use a similar system for legacy hybrid AV/RC/modem controls, whereas there’s a fairly straightforward powered LAN connection for transparent IP RF links like Microhard or modified WLAN.

If you want to get rid of the single field cable, a wireless ground relay is also possible with most RF link combinations between the station and the RF box, but it may introduce unwanted latency in some signals. Safety is another concern when adding another RF hop to such systems, because typically low power ground relay signals are easy to block or screen accidentally. Of course, then you also have to power the RF box independently, preferably with built-in batteries.

Using such a rugged docking RF box design has another advantage when operating many different systems with the same station. Because the pinout for the bottom docking connectors is universal for all station and RF box variants in the 10” RHH line, changing bands, RF modules or even upgrading to high-end transparent IP links is just a snap without having to modify the station itself.

DRONEE PLANE comes with super simple to use mission planning software which makes piloting skill unnecessary.

It covers a large area within a short time capturing high-quality images and data. Dronee can withstand high winds and flies for a more extended period and lands in a small space autonomously making it ideal for professional use.

Now DRONEE opens for partnership with resellers.

For more information about DRONEE kindly contact us at hello@dron.ee

Tomi Piriyev

https://dron.ee/

We are pleased to announce our latest development: SokilLink!

It is a complex both software and hardware solution for Mavlink-powered autopilots.
In short, our solution will allow you to build a modern drone with features available only in leading products. Main features are:

• Using only one digital data link (e.g. WiFi)
• Remote control from an USB gamepad or conventional RC using USB dongle
• HD video streaming from drone
• Displaying video stream on ground receiver with telemetry overlay and touch screen support
• Various cameras control (Sony, Z Cam E1)
• Possibility to connect a laptop with GCS

GCS app which runs on ground PC:

There is also configurator app available for those who want customize all these features:

Hardware consists of ground and on-board Linux-powered boards equipped with high-power WiFi cards.

On-board PC (on image) has HDMI input, USB where you may connect your camera or other devices and two UARTs.

Ground PC (on image) has HDMI output for video and telemetry overlay displaying, USB for game pad or trainer dongle and Ethernet.

We're still polishing SokilLink so at this stage we expect to establish connections with advanced users and drone makers interested in our product.

There are also planned many other cool features:

• Backup link support: RFD900 (only for Mavlink) or 3G/LTE (also for video)
• Multiple cameras or even UAVs connected to one station
• Sony block cameras support (with precise zoom control and other features acessible through API)

The software runs not only on mentioned boards but also on other compatible ARM ones and of course Raspberry Pi.

If you think that WiFi would not satisfy your needs we're happy to tell that we are also working on integration with another digital link which gives up to 25km range!

Write us on contact@sokil.aero if you are interested :)

PRE-RELEASE AVAILABLE NOW

https://aero-hawk.com/software/

Capture. Analyze. Act. Drone mapping for precision agriculture:

• Aero Hawk Maps 2D is the best software tool available in the market for multi bandpass filters with narrow bandwidths. • The calculation of 52 vegetation indexes is made possible through a fast an accurate map projected interface. • The image stitching technique is based on its unique Most Important Pixel technique which allows the analysis and visualization of true data at the pixel level of your farm. • Aero Hawk Maps 2D converts your drone-captured imagery into a geo-referenced orthomosaic with all the valuable information that characterizes your farm.

Among the main features provided by the Aero Hawk Maps 2D visual interface are:

1. A user-friendly interface for stitching.


2. The isolation of regions of interest of your farm.


3. The projection of the orthomosaic on a satellite map to visualize high resolution images of specific spots of your farm.
4. The generation of small size maps (HTML) for portability among your computer devices.

We just announced the launch of our third annual Drone Market Sector Research survey, which promises to be its most comprehensive study of drone market trends and usage to date. The online portion of this research seeks to get information about who is buying and using small unmanned aircraft systems—otherwise known as drones. It improves upon the 2017 research by, among other things:

• Asking more specific questions about flight operations and flight times
• Investigating the adoption and maturity of enterprise and/or public agency drone programs
• Diving into how users geo-reference images for maps

Take the brief 10-minute survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2018_drone_market

As an incentive for participation in the survey, there will be an opportunity to:

• Receive a free summary report of the research results, a $95 value
• Enter to win a free DJI Spark mini drone package (a $425 value) or one of two $100 VISA gift cards.

What’s new?

This year’s research is designed to uncover fresh insights on which drone industry sectors are thriving (and which aren’t) and how businesses are using drone-acquired data in their day-to-day operations. Skylogic Research hopes the survey results will fill a gap in knowledge and understanding of the commercial drone industry around:

• Actual drone and drone data usage (most reports forecast use but don’t survey actual users)
• How and why operators and users are deploying drones now and how/why they plan to grow their use in the future
• Baseline statistics for market share among the brands as well as information about the size of service providers, enterprises, and businesses that have drone programs

The online portion of this year’s research seeks to get information about who is buying and using small unmanned aircraft systems. This independent study is being supported by DJI, DroneDeploy, DroneInsurance.com, and Trimble.

The survey will explore:

• Who’s buying what types of drones from which makers at which prices and for what uses?
• How large are drone-based service providers, and how and where are they positioning themselves to whom and which target industries?
• What most concerns businesses that perform drone-based projects and why?
• How much are service providers, business buyers, and public agencies using flight management and data analytic software for image-based projects?

Our previous studies have found that more consumer drones are being used for professional use than ever before, the U.S. market is flooded with service providers and remote pilots but very few make enough money to sustain a full-time venture, and film / photo / video dominates both the hobby and professional uses of drones. This year’s study will continue to challenge these insights and explore further the sustainability of drone service providers.

Who should take the survey?

• Individuals or organizations who have purchased a drone in the past 12 months for any reason
• Commercial drone service providers
• Businesses, enterprises, and public agencies that perform drone-based operations

Why this study?

We believe the consumer and commercial drone market needs this annual benchmark study. There is a lack of objective information on the drone industry. We find an absence of credible market-based research and little understanding of the difference between large industry forecasts and actual buyer adoption rates. This study will clarify much of that.

When complete, the research study will provide a complete view of topics like:

• Critical industry drivers
• Vendor and service provider market share
• Business and public agency adoption trends and issues

The survey will be open for four weeks, and the results will be available in September.

Image: Shutterstock and Skylogic Research