To use commercially in the U.S. in any form (unless you have a waiver I guess):
http://geospatial-solutions.com/faa-commercial-drones-are-illegal-public-so-what/
But apparently it is so rampant it has become impossible to police. Would you use a UAV if you had the option?
UAVs Are NOT Illegal
See the post below. They are not illegal.
> ... apparently it is so rampant it has become impossible to police. Would you use a UAV if you had the option?
Difficult to catch you flying one perhaps. But if you hang out a shingle and start advertising surveying services by UAV it is you own office records they will will use to catch up with you.
UAS Are NOT Illegal and Are Illegal (depends)
> DIY developers may be in for a big surprise when the ruels for airworthiness certifications are settled.
I don't follow -- what's your meaning here?
Not sure about other markets, but photogrametric topography is dirt cheap around here. I'd rather hire an expert to do my aerial mapping and concentrate my billable time on areas where there is more profit.
I'm sorry
but uploading a video to Youtube does not make them legal:
You can get COA, operate at a test site, etc. But the default is illegal. A lot of hoops must be jumped through to be considered legal.
:good:
It would have to be dirt cheap to compete with the rapid workflow and/or auto-correlation built in to products like Agisoft. Even then you will have to take a hard look at the prudence of subbing out something you can do for the same or less cost.
Your sentiment about transferring liability by using a professional is not lost on me, but the need for conventional surveyors to start offering photo services may be approaching (if you decide you would like to compete).
I'm sorry
Commercially speaking. I don't mean to imply your apparent hobbyist video is illegal. 🙂
UAVS or not, We as a profession need to embrace the photogrammetry technology that is coming out. If we as a profession continue to snub our noses at things that are not black and white then we will be inundated with nonprofessionals preforming inaccurate and blunderous work that would have been better suited for a professional. This hit home with some of you guys that missed the "GIS" bus. I hope to have my RLPS next year and hope that I can help promote professionalism through out the industry.
Back to the UAVS, I have a Quad copter and have built up my own process to get this technology to work. I am very proud of the fact that I have been able to figure all of this out. I have been working with demo software programs so far and plan on purchasing software in the few weeks.
I have not been paid for anything that I have done with the quad copter. I am in touch with a local commercial helicopter pilot that specializes in wildlife surveys, livestock gathering, electric power-lines, etc.. basically he flies close to the ground for a living. We are coming up with a mounting system that we can mount the cameras on his Robinson R22. He is also a wealth of knowledge in the use of FLIR and other camera platforms.
This is just one way to get the data needed for the projects. I just ask that those that are seeing the same great results from these technologies that I am , please do not close your mind because they can be associated with UAVS. Don't let this be another "GIS" that skips the Professional level.
I believe that there is a place for FAA regulation in the UAVS industry. I am a Private Pilot, might be getting my commercial before this is all over with. I think that AMA rules are perfect guidelines to begin with in using UAVS. I would like to see more regulation of UAVS over 400' and out of line of site.
So drop by the airport or talk to your crazy buddy that rounds up cattle with his R22. Do anything and everything positive! This technology is looking for a Profession to latch onto. Don't let it be another GIS.
UAVs Are Targets
UAVs are useful ?
Here's a wee treat - some local footage shot recently on the eastern side of town...
I'm yet to see a way to actually make them earn the $$$ but the tech IS cool
Does copter blades disrupt precision GPS. I'd expect it would. I suppose the antenna could be mounted on the tail away from the main blades.
> Does copter blades disrupt precision GPS. I'd expect it would. I suppose the antenna could be mounted on the tail away from the main blades.
The gps in my quadcopter is the same as the gps in your cell phone. The internal gps only gives it basic navigation to preset waypoints. On my project sites that I have been playing with, I have ground control points that can be seen with the mapping camera that is mounted under the quadcopter. The images do have a exif file that contains a gps location but it is only used for rough alignment of the photos. The ground control is set with RTK and used by the software to create orthomosaics and 3d models of the project.
With what I have now, I would not put very expensive equipment in the air. I have crashed it way too many times. This is another reason to never fly over public areas of populated areas. Gravel pit in the middle of nowhere is a different story.
What about the Robinson R22. How do you mount a precision GPS on that. One that locates the exact position of your camera or sensor?
UAVs Are NOT Illegal
According to the FAA, commercial UAV ops are illegal. From the FAA link referenced below:
-----------------
Can I fly a UAS under a COA or experimental certificate for commercial purposes?
No. Currently, there are no means to obtain an authorization for commercial UAS operations in the NAS. However, manufacturers may apply for an experimental certificate for the purposes of R&D, market survey and crew training.
-----------------
Last fall, when I wrote a couple of articles about this, I was interacting with the FAA a bit on this. I asked them some very specific questions and they gave me very specific answers.
Commercial doesn't include universities, public entities, etc. It means commercial. That means you can't offer UAV ops as a commercial service, you can't use them on your own farm for your own benefit, you can't even offer UAV ops as a free service. You can't use them for anything other than a hobby.
The confusing part is that I can use my AR Drone 2.0 all day long flying it around as a hobby, as long as I stay below 400 feet. It would be illegal for me to use that same AR Drone 2.0 to generate a video "fly-through" for my consulting business, even if I didn't charge the client for the service and even if I stayed below 400 feet. That's a difficult concept for everyone to grasp, but is exactly the FAA's position.
Perhaps, a better title for the article would be "FAA says Commercial Drone Operations are Illegal...Public Says So What?", so I changed it.
I'm all for a debate on this. If you think commercial drone ops are somehow legal, I'd like to hear your argument.
> See the post below. They are not illegal.
> What about the Robinson R22. How do you mount a precision GPS on that. One that locates the exact position of your camera or sensor?
It is possible. I have not attempted to mount a rtk gps unit to a helicopter. The camera itself has a gps sensor that places the location of the camera. It is not survey grade gps but it does give the photos a rough alignment. The photogrammetry software does the fine tuning and image shape matching to find the exact place of the camera position. Very clever software. Matching the pixels to the ground control point in the images is what gets the data in the right part of the world.
UAVs Are...
> I kinda scratch my head when I hear folks say that they cannot see any commercial potential for UAS and that the regulatory issues will never be worked out. Love em or hate em, they be here...
I agree and I don't think for a second it will only be a PLS flying a sensor, in fact I expect everybody that can afford one and meet FAA requirements whatever those may be to have a UAV, mapping as the sole domain of surveyors and photogrammetrists will be a thing of the past, the free market and public demand will drive this market, you can already see that by the attitude about the FAA regulation...
All technology is great until one realizes it may put them out of a job, just take a look at the many tasks now performed by end users that in the past they hired a PLS to do, machine control, laser scanning, etc.. Of course there will be a need for surveyors at least for a while, but I am not so sure that in a generation or two we will be rendered pretty much obsolete!
SHG
UAVs are useful ?
> "There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home" - Ken Olson, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), in a talk given to a 1977 World Future Society meeting in Boston. 😉
😉 Probably that attitude is why DEC ceased to exist in 1998 (acquired by Compaq who was later acquired by HP in 2002)
SHG
UAVs are useful ?
> "There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home" - Ken Olson, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), in a talk given to a 1977 World Future Society meeting in Boston. 😉
Olson was right but he worded it wrong; no one needs a computer in their home. He just didn't understand modernity's dissolving of the gap between want and need.
