The Drone Revolution Will Transform Your Life (and Business!)
Written By: Shane Clark on September 2, 2021
The use of drones for production has increased tremendously as the drone sector has evolved over the previous few years.
Many people are now utilizing drones for various tasks and recreational activities. Believe it or not, individuals are using drones to improve their fishing skills.
What Kind of Information Do Drones Gather?
Drones are an effective tool for collecting data from afar.
In inspection settings, employing a drone instead of a person to collect data can significantly influence safety. It limits staff exposure to potentially dangerous circumstances like climbing a cell tower or strolling along scaffolding inside a massive tank to gather visual data.
Many professionals are also using drones to collect data for surveying, mapping, and even assisting investigators in searching for human remains.
Data Collected by Drones Today:
- Visible area data. Drones collect visual data more than any other form of data. Operators can use drones to see objects which may not be seen otherwise. A pilot can do this simply by hovering over an object or area of interest and recording visual data.
- Thermal information. Thermal data is one of the most prevalent types of data drones gather after visual data. Aerial thermal data can assist firefighters in determining where to focus their efforts during an active fire or solar array inspectors in identifying potential problem areas.
- LiDAR data. A LiDAR sensor uses laser light to illuminate a target, then measures the reflection to generate data points that can be used to map the region. Aerial LiDAR can assist organizations in various industries in creating 3D maps of an area for project planning and progress tracking. For example, archaeologists have utilized LiDAR to assist them in uncovering new locations of interest for excavation because it can pierce tree cover and other obstructions to reveal ruins concealed underneath.
- Multispectral data. Operators configure sensors that detect reflected energy within many specific parts (or bands) of the spectrum to acquire multispectral data. Analysts can use aerial multispectral data to monitor crop and tree health for agricultural conservation. Law Enforcement also utilizes this data to locate burial sites.
- Hyperspectral information. Multispectral sensors measure energy in broad bands, whereas hyperspectral sensors measure energy in narrower bands. Growers can use hyperspectral data taken from the air to monitor crop health. Security and defense companies and forces can use hyperspectral data to detect persons who shouldn’t be in a particular area.
What Kinds of Outputs or Deliverables Are Drones Capable Of Producing?
Now that we’ve gone over some of the most common forms of data that sUAVs can collect, it’s time to talk about what happens with the data or output.
The reality is that sharing a folder with a large amount of data is unlikely to be of much use to most people. This is because they require converting raw data into deliverables, which may subsequently be used for various purposes.
The following are some of the most popular drone data deliverables:
- Images, videos, and full cinematic productions. These are among the most common deliverables for commercial drone work. These could be for professional photography/videography (such as weddings or family picture shoots), aerial real estate images to help market it, or even high-end cinematography for filmmaking.
- Three-dimensional mappings. 3D maps are becoming a typical delivery for drone data across various businesses, allowing individuals to visualize better the locations in which they work.
- Orthomosaics. An orthomosaic is a photo of a region that a program made by stitching together numerous photographs. The construction sector most often uses orthomosaics to help visualize construction sites. Government organizations use orthomosaics for public safety processes to record details of places where large groups of people frequently congregate. Civil engineers can use orthomosaics to track the progress of a significant project. For example, orthomosaics can track a large-scale rehabilitation of a coastline.
- Field reports. Industry-specific software can prepare reports as deliverables for specific businesses. Pix4Dfields, for example, is an agriculture-specific software that allows users to create agricultural indices to better analyze plant stress and aggregate vegetation index maps into various zones of interest.
What Industries and Sectors Make Use of Drones?
Here are some of the major sectors and industries that are currently deploying drones for commercial purposes, as well as how they are doing so:
- Agriculture. Farmers use drones to collect data on their crops and then use that information to increase harvests.
- Chemicals. Drones are being employed in the chemical sector to boost indoor inspections. This can be done by gathering visual data associated with significant assets in place of human inspectors.
- Conservation Efforts. Drones contribute to conservation efforts in various ways, including by providing accurate vegetation maps to follow forestry activities and water mapping to understand better how water typically moves in a given region. Drones that shoot seeds from the air have also been developed to aid reforestation efforts in clear-cut areas.
- Construction. When mapping and assessing construction sites on foot can take a long time. Drones aid in this effort by letting construction businesses provide real-time maps of development and surveys that can assist them plan projects and enhance those that are already ongoing, resulting in significant cost savings.
- Making Drone Deliveries. Although household delivery drones are yet to be widely adopted anywhere globally, it represents a significant contribution for business drones. Medical drone delivery is presently taking place in nations such as Switzerland, the US, and Rwanda.
- Filmmaking. High-end drones have been used to take aerial views for movies for years, rather than other larger human-crewed aircraft, which are several times more expensive and are typically difficult to work with.
- Mining. Mining companies are using rugged indoor drones to assist them in constructing mining maps. These mining maps promote safety while also assisting firms in locating ore that may otherwise be lost due to lack of visibility.
Summary
It’s fascinating how commercial drones have changed the landscape for so many sectors. If you are interested in using commercial drones to market your business or help others sell theirs, you need professional drone media editing services that will stand the test of time. Email me today, and let’s talk about how you can start using raw drone videos to your advantage.
