Category Archives: Aerial/UAS

Category Archives: Aerial, UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems), UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles), Drones & More

Paul Doersch

Paul Doersch – CEO and Founder, Kespry – California, USA Kespry is a newly formed UAS (Unmanned Aircraft System) business dedicated to delivering pragmatic uses for drones. The company was founded by computer engineer and Stanford graduate, Paul Doersch. Paul has a background working for BMW, researching everything from smart-phone integration to self-driving cars. He...

Lindsay Renkel

Lindsay Renkel – Geospatial Marketing Specialist, Trimble – Colorado USA In the not-so-recent past, segments of geospatial industries were viewed more as rigid verticals, and cross-discipline and integrated workflows were realized through innovation in applied tech. That’s when companies like Trimble began to organize under new functional divisions.  Marketing a broader range of products and services could...

Multicopter Profiles

The eXom, RiCOPTER, Aibot X6, and Trimble ZX5 SenseFly’s eXom Inspection and close-in mapping sUAS I first saw sensFly’s new eXom sUAS at the ILMF conference in Denver early this year. It’s billed as an inspection and close-in mapping platform, and I thought, “Inspection? That’s interesting” and moved on. Turns out the team at senseFly...

Utility corridor mapping and monitoring is a prime example of an application that is constrained by the current FAA Section 333 VLOS rule. (Here a hydroelectric power transmission tower being inspected by an Aeryon Scout. Courtesy of SkyDroid.)

Getting Beyond VLOS

The FAA’s streamlined Section 333 exemption and COA process is welcome, but there’s still a fly in the ointment.  While the ongoing FAA Section 333 exemption process is a big step in the right direction for UAS, all operators flying under these exemptions are constrained by the VLOS rule: all flights must be conducted within...

In the early 1990s our attempts to eliminate ground control were by establishing a fixed base at the airport and a rover on the plane. Using post-processing software, we were able to add precise coordinates to each photograph.

We Are Aviators First

With UAS, surveyors are becoming aviators. As we adopt new technology, we should heed old advice. I flew my first photogrammetric mission in the early 1980s while I was completing my geodesy degree during tumultuous times at my alma mater. While the rest of the world had disco fever, students at Universidad Central de Venezuela...

This breakwater in Costa Rica was built in the 1970s and now needs serious repair, as assessed by this image taken by a UAS.

Copter Power

A UAS rotocopter pilot directs the successful imaging of a breakwater project in Costa Rica. Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) are finding their way into geospatial applications beyond the obvious commercial topography, volumes, and inspection applications. One particular application that is poised to take advantage of the lower cost associated with UAS data acquisition is environmental...