DJI has launched a new Local Data Mode that stops internet traffic to and from its DJI Pilot app, providing enhanced data privacy assurances for sensitive government and enterprise customers. Local Data Mode will be available in the next update on the DJI Pilot app on CrystalSky and for select Android tablets. When an operator activates Local Data Mode, the app... read more
Measure, a U.S. provider of drone services to enterprise customers, has added turnkey wind farm inspection capabilities to its portfolio of aerial data collection solutions. Wind farm operators can outsource preventive maintenance inspections to Measure’s drone pilots and data analysts for fast, accurate, safe and timely problem identification. The service helps avert critical turbine failures and efficiency losses while reducing... read more
YellowScan has again put everything together to offer you two very particular days in the beautiful area of Southern France. This year, the user conference will take place June 29-30 in Montpellier. This event will include demos and conferences about YellowScan’s lightweight integrated lidar systems and its technical specifications, the UAVs used for LiDARs, the data processing and analysis, as... read more
With a legacy of delivering reliable, robust, and highly accurate small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS), NASA has awarded Black Swift Technologies (BST), a specialized engineering firm based in Boulder, Colorado, the contract to develop and deliver a purpose-built scientific platform to explore volcanoes in order to improve air traffic management systems and the accuracy of ashfall measurements. BST will deliver... read more
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today released an updated list of pilot, air traffic controller, law enforcement and citizen reports of potential encounters with unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). The latest data cover February through September 2016. Reports of possible drone sightings to FAA air traffic facilities continued to increase during FY 2016. There were 1,274 such reports from February... read more
Bye Aerospace has announced an engineering, development and production collaboration with SolAero Technologies Corp. to put SolAero’s solar cell technology on Bye’s solar-electric unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), StratoAirNet. The StratoAirNet family of UAVs is intended to provide persistent intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) to support commercial and government security requirements. The initial medium-altitude StratoAirNet 15 proof-of-concept prototype is nearing completion and... read more
Esri’s latest version of ArcGIS Full Motion Video (FMV) presents new capabilities to improve the way analysts and managers interact with videos. ArcGIS FMV allows users to view, organize and analyze video from drones and other collection platforms. The new release includes a performance boost in playback and panning, and in zooming the video during playback. It offers full support for JP2,... read more
Mark June 21, 2016, on your calendar. This will be known as the day in geospatial history that the floodgates were opened for small drones to be used for business. On that day, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officially introduced new rules (so-called Part 107) that allow businesses to fly small (under 55 pounds) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the... read more
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) took a major step forward in expanding commercial UAS/UAV operations in the U.S. airspace. It’s chief said April 19 that the FAA is preparing to take another major step forward in further opening up commercial UAS/UAV operations by eliminating the need for a 333 Exemption for operating small UAS/UAV. On March 29, the FAA announced it was doubling... read more
