Everything new in drone-based mapping, surveying, geodesy and terrain engineering. Professional coverage of LiDAR sensors, advanced photogrammetry, digital twins for construction and infrastructure projects, and fixed-wing VTOLs and payloads for precision surveying.
The Swiss drone company is launching a new ultrasonic payload for the Elios 3 in the US, allowing corrosion measurements inside tanks and pressure vessels without draining them or sending a person inside.
French company YellowScan has launched Navigator, a drone-mounted bathymetric LiDAR system that maps underwater terrain in rivers and coastal areas without a sonar boat, combining land and water surveys in a single flight.
DJI unveiled the Zenmuse L2 in Berlin, a new LiDAR payload for aerial mapping starting at $13,560, offering 5-centimeter horizontal accuracy and a point emission rate of 240,000 points per second.
DJI unveils the Matrice 350 RTK, successor to the Matrice 300 RTK, boasting 55 minutes of flight time, improved durability and survey-grade positioning accuracy. The platform targets emergency services, energy companies, mapping firms and infrastructure operators.
US-based Ondas Holdings has closed its roughly $15.2 million acquisition of Israeli drone company Airobotics, folding it into a division alongside American Robotics, with a joint pilot program planned with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.
DJI launches the Mavic 3 Enterprise series: a compact, foldable drone with centimeter-level RTK positioning, offered in two versions, one for mapping and survey work, the other for thermal observation.
Industrial wireless communications company Ondas Holdings has announced the completion of its acquisition of American Robotics, the pioneering firm that won FAA approval to fly autonomous drones without a human operator on site. Shareholders approved the deal by an overwhelming margin of roughly 99.7 percent.
DJI has launched the Matrice 30 series, a foldable industrial drone that fits in a backpack, alongside an automated docking station called DJI Dock that lets it fly missions without a pilot on the ground.
Drone software company DroneDeploy has raised $50 million in a Series E round, bringing its total funding to $142 million. The company's platform converts aerial imagery from any drone into maps and data analytics, without selling hardware of its own.
After being announced in late 2020, DJI's first LiDAR payload, the Zenmuse L1, is now reaching customers in surveying, engineering and construction, challenging the dominance of expensive, purpose-built LiDAR drone makers.
The FAA has granted American Robotics approval to operate its Scout drone in fully autonomous flights with no human presence on site at all. It's the first time the requirement for a human observer on the flight line has been dropped entirely.
Israeli company Percepto is integrating its autonomous industrial monitoring system with Boston Dynamics' four-legged Spot robot, enabling combined deployment of drones and walking robots based on mission needs.
