Sensefly eBee Training - John Jason Fallows

Many, many months ago we had the opportunity to attend a training session on the Sensefly eBee. The eBee is one type of drone that is specifically designed for mapping applications. Specifically, it acquires data for, and generates, orthorectified photographs and photogrammetric 3D models.

The eBee is a complete system and consists of the drone (essentially a flying styrofoam wing), camera (numerous options available, including natural color, CIR, and thermal), flight planning/control software (eMotion), and post-processing software (PostFlight – made by the folks at Pix4D). Unlike many drones it does not shoot video, nor is it controlled by the user in flight (it follows a predefined flight plan). These factors make systems such as the eBee very different than most drones (e.g. quadcopters) used by hobbyists. We found that the eBee is easy to use and operate, and that one can become proficient in all aspects of using the system in a day or two. The system is also incredible safe. It will return “home” if it loses contact with the operating station and even has a sensor to detect obstructions during landing.

Systems like the eBee have limited flight times (~45 minutes) and thus will never replace broad area mapping technologies such as fixed wing orthophoto programs or satellites, but they will give us new ways in which to acquire mapping-grade imagery from above. In particular they will remove many of the acquisition barriers, such as cost and cloud conditions, that prevent us for acquiring imagery when we need it. Although our primary interest in the eBee came about from a DOT grant looking into the use of such systems for disaster response, the applications are endless. The only question now remaining is whether or not drones are going to be integrated into our nation’s airspace anytime soon.

Zack Borst put together a nice video capturing the training session.

DISCLAIMER: The views, opinions, findings and conclusions reflected in this presentation are the responsibility of the authors only and do not represent the official policy or position of the USDOT/OST-R, or any State or other entity.

from Planet GS via John Jason Fallows in Inoreader http://letters-sal.blogspot.com/2014/12/sensefly-ebee-training.html