UAS Consultant Report
Consultant: Jackson Radenz
Multi-rotor UAS:
DJI Phantom 4
Figure 1: Phantom 4 Pro
Figure 2: Phantom 4 Pro Specs
Summary:
Pros:- Ease of flight
- Able to take off from many different types of terrain
- Little required landing space
- Easy to transport
- Great for Reconnaissance
Cons:
- Low battery life and range
- Only one attachable payload
- Payload doesn't have great resolution and not multispectral
- In - flight issues (dropping out of the sky, battery dying quickly, problems handling wind, etc.) have been often and well documented
3DR - Solo
Figure 3. 3DR - Solo
Figure 4. 3DR Solo Specs
Summary:
Pros:
- Ease of flight
- Able to take off from many different types of terrain
- Little required landing space
- Easy to transport
- Great for Reconnaissance
- Cost Benefit
- Largely inexpensive for amount of payloads that are able to be attached
- High amount of versatility
Cons:
- Same exist as Phantom 4 Pro
- Drifts during hovers
- GPS mode and hover mode do not accurately compensate on windy day
- Hard time dealing with conditions
Fixed Wing UAS:
Topcon Sirius Pro
Figure 5. Topcon Sirius Pro
Figure 6. Topcon Sirius Pro Specs
Summary:
Pros:
- Hand launch calls for easier take off accessibility
- UAS Fly Away Protection
- Can operate in - 20 to + 45 ℃
- Can fly manually and fully automatic
- Much larger endurance than 3DR Solo and Phantom 4 Pro means that larger areas can be mapped more efficiently and faster
- Can fly up to 2600m AGL if cleared by the FAA
- Has a ceiling of 750m AGL for capturing photos
- GNSS precision technology
- Eliminates the need for ground control
- Delievers 2 - 5 cm accuracy without ground control
Cons:
- Hard to transport to remote areas
- Fixed wings require long (50 ft.), flat surface in order to land
- Would not work in forested areas or mountainous areas
- Low versatility
- Not many payload attachments options
- Hindered by environment for landing
- Restricted to mostly construction, mining, civil engineering, agricultural applications
senseFly EBEE
Figure 7. senseFly EBEE
Figure 8. senseFly EBEE specs
Summary:
Pros:
- Flight plan is able to use the 3D domain
- Can incorporate elevation change using DEM within mission flight plan
- Only available UAS on the market with this capability
- Can easily map mountainous terrain
- Hand launch calls for easier take off accessibility
- Half the cost of Topcon Sirius Pro
- Has more payload attachments than Topcon Sirius Pro
- Higher versatility
Cons:
- Needs ground control points
VTOL UAS:
BirdsEyeView Firefly 6
Figure 9. BirdsEveView Firefly 6
Figure 10. BirdsEyeView Firefly 6
Summary:
Pros:
- VTOL take off
- Adds high versatility to the drone
- Can map forested and high topographic areas using the hover landing and take off where Sirius Pro and EBEE could not without giving up fixed wing flight capabilities
- Only $6,000
- Cheap when compared to Sirius Pro and EBEE
- Supports many different sensor payloads whereas the Sirius Pro and EBEE do not
- Almost 60 minutes of endurance
- RTK unit inside of UAS which results for even higher accuracy
- Has a range of 53 km
Cons:
- Landing wheels don't always come down
- Hard to transport
- Very fragile compared to the other fixed wing and multi-rotor UAS
- High set-up/pre-flight time
- Needs large amount of attention when air, as well
Recommendation:
I recommend the Topcon Sirius Pro to purchase. The Sirius Pro eliminates the need for ground control points during a survey. That is worth the cost of $53,000 in my opinion. Whether the company is studying sedimentation deposition, vegetation across time, habitat migration, or damage after natural hazards, the need for ground control points is a must. Installing ground control points is a labor intensive process. Therefore, the time that a crew will spend in the field at least half or 3/4 of that time will be spent on GCP installation. Also, there is time for GCP correction during post-processing. The money that will be saved on GCP equipment and labor hours of installing and correcting GCPs will eventually make up for the cost of it being such an expensive UAS. Finally, the durability of the product (able to operate in extreme temperatures, equipment durability, etc.) is worth the large price to pay because it will last much longer and allows the UAS to become more versatile in harsh conditions.