MONTHLY ARCHIVES: APRIL 2014
ARCTURUS INTRODUCES VERTICAL TAKE OFF AND LANDING FIXED WING UAS
Rohnert Park based Arcturus UAV has introduced an aircraft that combines the long-range benefits of a fixed wing airplane with the take-off and landing capabilities of a multi-rotor. JUMP seems like the perfect platform for those anxious over the “crash landing” technique associated with most fixed wing UAVs.
Link Courtesy of UAS Vision
Drones: The Newest Water-Saving Tool for Parched Farms
Yesterday, I posted an article about thermal camera mounted drones being used to locate illegal pot farms. This morning, I wanted to share yet another application of thermal/drone technology.
California is experiencing one of the worst droughts in history, and nobody is feeling it harder than the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) farmer. The SJV is the most agriculturally rich place in the world, and considering that it only makes up 4.5% of the total land mass of the United States, it’s remarkable to imagine that that it ranks first in production of 48 different different crops.
Nevertheless, farms need water, and every drop matters, especially during a drought of this magnitude. So when a group of farmers found their irrigation lines chewed up by coyotes, the need for an aerial survey became necessary. That’s when the companyHoneyComb stepped in, providing thermal imagery from one of their drones. The thermal imagery provided the pinpoint locations of water leaks, making it incredibly more efficient to fix the problems and save water.
Zach Sheely, farmer, had this to say about the technology: “So if I can eliminate that job,” he says, “or use that person more wisely than just drive up and back mindlessly looking for leaks, it’s going to benefit my business, and he’s probably going to like his job a little bit better, too.”
European Commission Issues Call for Tough Standards to Regulate Civil UAS
Similar to the United States, many European countries find themselves in a UAS regulation limbo. Unlike the United States, however, most of those countries do not have the FAA scrutinizing the very existence of commercial drones.
The call for comprehensive UAS regulations in the United States has been voiced by everyone in the community, and the FAA has a deadline of September 2015 to appease. A similar universal set of regulations has been proposed for all of Europe by the European Commission. Recognizing the incredible growth potential of the billion dollar industry, the Europeans are trying to collectively establish guidelines by 2016.
“The standards will cover the following areas:”
- “Strict EU wide rules on safety authorizations.”
- “Tough controls on privacy and data protection.”
- “Controls to ensure security.”
- “A clear framework for liability and insurance.”
- “Streamlining R&D and supporting new industry.”
Being that each European country operates UAS under it’s own jurisdiction, this is an obvious step in the right direction of bridging the regulation gaps for all of Europe.
The full article can be found here.
Link and photo courtesy of UAS Vision.
Thieves Use Heat-Detecting UAS to Target Cannabis Farms
Here’s something you don’t see everyday. Although a day late, this article should please all of the 4/20 fans out there.
Criminals are now using drones equipped with thermal cameras to locate pot farms – only to later rob them and sell the drugs on the street.
“It is no surprise enterprising criminals would want to get the upper hand in the criminal underworld by using drones.”
Apparently, the amount of heat generated from these establishments is quite detectable, even with a low-resolution thermal camera. Take a look at the photos below, they’re pretty remarkable!
Link and Photos Courtesy of DailyMail.co.uk
Engineering Consultants Buy UAS Fleet for Energy Pipeline Inspections
As applications continue to grow, I wanted to share an article from the the U.K. about engineering firm MACAW using sUAS for pipelines, energy facilities, and other infrastructure.
“The investment in SUAS will enable us to inspect challenging or previously inaccessible locations, such as bridge crossings and wind farms, in an efficient and safe manner.” – Paul Casson, MACAW Principal Engineer
ASPRS UAS Technical Demonstration and Symposium – SAVE THE DATE! October 21-22, Reno, Nevada
SAVE THE DATE!!!
I wanted to pass along an exciting event hosted by the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) Northern California Region! The UAS Technical Demonstration and Symposium will take place October 21-22 in Reno, Nevada. An abstract of the event is below:
The ASPRS Northern California Region is hosting a 2-day symposium on unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) in Reno, NV on October 21-22, 2014. The purpose of the event is to assemble academia, UAS developers, survey and mapping companies, government agencies, and UAS enthusiasts, to share information, showcase new technologies and demonstrate UAS systems in action (in flight). The event will be held at the Reno Stead Airport, an FAA-designated UAS test site, as well as at a symposium hotel in downtown Reno. The mission of the event is to advance knowledge and improve the understanding of UAS technologies and their safe and efficient introduction into our national airspace, government programs and business.
Information about the symposium and ASPRS can be found at their website, or you can contact me and I will point you in the right direction.
Looking forward to seeing you all in Reno!
iPhoneDrone Project – Flight Planning, Imagery Acquistion, and Ground Control
Background
No matter the scale, flight planning has always been key to any successful aerial photogrammetry/remote sensing project. The rules for UAS are no different. Additionally, a successful flight plan is characterized by knowing the specifications of the camera/sensor and having a UAS that is capable of flying with that sensor mounted.
Part of the planning process involves defining a number of specifications for the desired end-product before going into the field. Some basic considerations include:
- Image resolution: How much detail is desired? A smaller ground sample distance (GSD or pixel resolution) will have a higher resolution compared to a larger one. The flying height and focal length of a cameras sensor determine the pixel resolution.
- Image overlap and sidelap: Image overlap and sidelap are essential for the establishment of tie points that orient the images and create the 3D model. Traditional standards call for 60% overlap and 30% sidelap, however, UAS acquisition usually requires higher variations of both.
- Sun angle and weather: Reducing the amount of shadows is very important when capturing aerial imagery. Having the sun at it’s peak height in the sky minimizes shadows and allows the sensor to receive as much light as possible. Wind also plays an important factor. How powerful is your UAS? How powerful of wind gusts can in handle and still maintain a level position?
So you are ready to make a successful flight and have all of the flight planning figured out. The next question, however, is how geographically accurate should it be? If one is only interested in a product that is marginally accurate, say within 5-10 meters, than the GPS from the flight log file or camera would be sufficient.
For survey grade accuracy however, having a set of survey control points measured from a professional land surveyor is necessary. Control points are the most accurate way to ground truth any georeferenced product. Land surveying is expensive, however, so a product with an accuracy within 5-10 meters may be enough for some.
Software
For flight planning, I use Mission Planner, sponsored by 3D Robotics. It is free to download and very easy to use. I have an ideal ground station by combining this software and the supplied telemetry antennas that came with the 3DR IRIS. With a few simple clicks, Mission Planner is able to display flight data in real-time through a series of interchangeable gauges.
The Flight Plan tool allows the user to plan varies autonomous missions and tasks by establishing GPS waypoints. For my project, I used the survey (grid) tool. Within minutes I had my area of interest (AOI) polygon, entered my camera specifications (the iPhone 5s’ focal length is 4.12 mm) and set my overlap and sidelap (70 and 60 percent).
On top of flight planning, Mission Planner also acts as the control station for the IRIS. By using the supplied telemetry kit, my laptop was able to send and receive data in real-time to the copter. A log file was also recorded storing all of the flight parameters.
Imagery Acquisition
The desired pixel resolution for this project was 1 cm. Considering the highest resolution from traditional manned aircraft missions averages between
1-3 inches, resolution to this degree from a consumer grade product like an iPhone is quite remarkable.
During the flight, the camera shutter was activated using an intervalometer feature from an app called CameraSharp. The app allows you to set the seconds interval at which you wish to snap photos. For this project, I went with one photo every second. I have yet to determine the exact amount of overlap I averaged, but considering the flying speed of the IRIS was well below the necessary limit for 70%, I’m guessing I achieved an overlap somewhere in the 75-80% range. I’ll post those results in a few months when my research is complete.
The flying height was set at 28 m to obtain a pixel resolution slightly better than 1 cm at the sites lowest point. The figure to the right illustrates the iPhone 5s and flight specifications.
Ground Control
Having a professional land surveyor measure ground control points (GCPs) is the best way to accurately ground truth any geospatial data. Thankfully, I have some friends who had experience and equipment to measure GCPs for me at the Lime Ridge site. The control was measured using a Trimble real time kinematic (RTK) device. The RTK provides real-time corrections of GPS information by way of a network base station enabling the measurements to be accurate with 1 cm.
Aerial targets were fabricated using some poster board that were cut 5 cm wide at the edges. Nine targets were placed around the site providing a sufficient ground truth throughout. The targets were measured during image processing.
- AOI in Red and Flight Lines in Yellow
Creeped Out SF Alamo Square Residents Searching For Owner Of Crash-Landed Mystery Drone
Creeped Out SF Alamo Square Residents Searching For Owner Of Crash-Landed Mystery Drone
“She says her boyfriend noticed the blinking aircraft sitting in the middle of Fulton street on Saturday night, and decided to bring it in for a closer look.”
A drone, like this Phantom 2 model, was found Saturday on Fulton Street in San Francisco. (ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images
Link courtesy of CBS San Francisco
iPhoneDrone Project – Lime Ridge Open Space Site
The site I chose for my project was an area of the Lime Ridge Open Space in Concord, CA. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, limestone was mined in this area for cement production leaving behind a number of quarry ruins. Digging stopped in 1946, and in 1974, the land was purchased through a bond measure. It is 2nd largest open space in CA.
There are two large areas of the open space separated by Ygnacio Valley Rd. This project site is just north of Treat blvd. The terrain is perfect for showcasing topography while still being small enough to acquire imagery in one flight.
Drones Go Mainstream: Highlights from the “60 Minutes” Piece
A few weeks ago, “60 Minutes” dedicated an entire story titledDrones Over America highlighting the proliferation of drones in the civilian world. The juxtaposition of veteran Morley Safer (82) interacting with a technology so virgin yet relevant made for quite an entertaining program. Overall it was an excellent showcase of the technologies growing capabilities, and true to 60 Minutes form, it featured proponents and opponents from both sides of the coin.
Below are some highlights:
- Domestic drones are poised to become a multibillion dollar industry, revolutionizing everything from crop management to package delivery.
- For the moment, their barely regulated
- We’re looking at the future, and whether you like it or not, the future is looking back at us.
- Sophisticated as they are, an idiot can fly one.
- Guinn: “Man, I’m not really too sure what I’m going to take aerial photos or video of, but that thing is really cool, and I want one.”
- Toscano: “We build drones for the 4 D’s: dirty, dangerous, difficult, and dull missions.”
- The common denominator in the world of most drones is the camera.
- Cummings: “Using a drone for pictures is no different than using high-powered binoculars or a telephoto lens.”
- Feinstein: “When does it become stalking? When does it invade privacy?”
- Cummings: “It’s revolutionizing the aerospace industry in a way not seen in 25 years.”
- When will a drone be at your front door? Time and technology will wait for no one.
iPhone Drone Imagery 