Unmanned Aerial System and Drones

Law enforcement officers work in urban and civilian areas and manage situations that can place them in harm’s way. Law enforcement may be involved in narcotics investigations, hostage situations, accident investigations, bomb disposal, crime scene investigations, crowd management, and search and rescue operations. UAS excel in rapid deployment and challenging situations, day or night. UAS rapidly deploys in less than 5 minutes. With a video package, the UAS provides law enforcement with seamless incident situational awareness, tactical support, or accident photography. Using the UAS, police and SWAT can quickly assess potential threats; take HD photos of a crime scene or FLIR video of an area to find hidden threats.

Managing disasters, such as floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, or terrorist attacks, and large search and rescue operations is enormously difficult. Emergency responders must have real-time and reliable information to help them coordinate various agencies and make life-or-death decisions. The UAS rapidly deploys, allowing first responders the ability to quickly assess potential threats, manage search and rescue situations, and take HD photos or FLIR video of a scene or to find potential victims. With cutting-edge photo rendering software, first responders can produce detailed 3D reconstruction for post-disaster evaluation and assessment in a fraction of the time, which is crucial for future preparation.

Fire and rescue personnel have a constantly changing landscape of situations. Simple fire scenes can easily change into larger, more dangerous situations. The UAS utilizes high-quality aviation materials to ensure reliability and the capability to perform in extreme situations. The ability to offer real-time HD and IR video facilitates placing personnel and equipment in the right places. Also, with modern FLIR cameras, areas can be identified for potential hotspots and additional focus without putting personnel at risk.

Providing timely information on highway traffic flow and incidents — and the transmission of this information to the appropriate decision maker — are the key requirements for improving traffic and incident management. The UAS, when equipped with HD video cameras and/or other sensors, can provide timely information regarding traffic incidents while improving safety and security for the public. The UAS can cover preprogrammed sectors of a metropolitan area to collect data to aid in managing peak-period traffic.

Border patrol personnel are the first line of defense and operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. These law enforcement officers may be involved in investigating narcotics trafficking, illegal immigration, human trafficking, terrorism, crime scenes, participate in bomb disposal, crowd management, hostage situations, and search and rescue.

Managing inmates and other dangerous individuals requires constant surveillance and data gathering. Prisons must review perimeters, evaluate all aspects of the prison population, identify potential threats, perform crowd control, and respond quickly if an incident occurs. The UAS offers prison personnel the ability to quickly assess perimeters and take HD photos or FLIR video to identify heat signatures of inmates – all from a distance during a crisis.

The UAS can aid commercial agriculture, land management, and conservation efforts by assessing crops, mapping flood zones, measuring snowpack, and more. The UAS can fly pre-saved missions via the fully automated ground station, which allows for time-lapse photos of fields, crops, and known land tracts. It also can accurately recreate the same pattern during all seasons, providing invaluable data for land and soil management. Using HD video, HD photos, and IR cameras allows for detailed analysis and recording. With photo rendering software, 3D maps and topography can be used in conjunction with time-lapse photos to create highly detailed maps for erosion, flood mapping, and other critical aspects of land management.

All aspects of construction – from design to final product – depend on highly accurate site data, whether it’s a road, bridge, commercial housing project, industrial development, resort, or planned community. The UAS’s simple platform allows for multiple angles of HD photos and videos of construction sites. With the optional photo rendering software, 3D maps and topography can be created in conjunction with standard photos to provide highly detailed elevation views and detailed and exact distances with CAD-quality drawings for any photographed structure. Modern UAS offer integrated autopilots with GPS waypoint navigation, performance in altitudes up to 18,000 feet, and battery power for 45 minutes of operations – all without the expense of traditional aircraft.

Electricity, water, oil and gas, and nuclear facilities are always online. Personnel constantly gather data and monitor functionality, including reviewing perimeters, evaluating spills or hazardous leaks, identifying potential threats, and responding quickly if an emergency occurs. The UAS’s ability to fly pre-saved missions via modern, fully-automated ground stations allows for time-lapse photos of perimeters and large spaces. Using the UAS, facilities personnel can take HD photos, HD video, or FLIR video to identify heat signatures or problems. The UAS can also be used for training, perimeter management, and surveillance operations.

Today, maritime and shipping applications for the UAS are in the context of defense and protection. With its simple-to-use autopilot and camera systems, the UAS allows for accurate maritime surveillance and threat assessment. These systems allow operators to cover a large view of a ship, including the hard-to-view areas over the sides of a large supertanker. In addition, viewing a 2-mile perimeter at sea offers crucial time in a hostile situation when assistance is not available. With the UAS’s optional IR cameras and sensing payloads, leaks and other dangerous conditions are easily accessed and viewed from a safe distance.

All types of power and utilities, including gas, coal, power, chemical, and refineries, are in constant repair that demand expensive manpower and resources to maintain. The UAS can dramatically reduce the manpower needed to monitor and maintain pipelines by allowing operators to cover vast expanses of pipelines and transmission lines in a fraction of the time using HD photos and HD video. In addition, viewing and cataloging difficult-to-access areas of refineries and production facilities using the UAS is easy and inexpensive compared to traditional aircraft and personnel costs.

Similar to utilities, railroads and highways span a large and diverse landscape and are in constant need of maintenance, demanding manpower and resources. Using detailed HD photos and HD video, the UAS saves time and money by allowing operators to cover vast expanses of track and crossings or roads in a fraction of the time. With IR cameras and sensing payloads, the UAS allows operators to access and view dangerous conditions from a safe distance. Because of its rugged design, the UAS can handle harsh weather and extreme temperatures.

Archaeology and geology are exacting sciences that rely heavily on visual reproduction. The UAS captures highly accurate HD photos and HD videos at extreme altitudes or over large expanses. The autopilot feature, with pre-designed mission management, allows the pilot to create detailed flight plans from digitized maps with exact waypoints and automated photo management. With the optional photo rendering software, 3D maps and topography are easily created in conjunction with time-lapse photos to produce highly detailed maps for elevation, structures, measurements, volumes, and other scientific analyses. Also, the UAS uses electric propulsion and can fly at altitudes cranes can’t touch. Many also offer more than 45 minutes of hover capability and the ability to carry select professional HD video equipment and sensors.

Managing large areas of remote and isolated land, wild animals, and tourists is a complex job. Park personnel constantly need to monitor animals, land and changing weather conditions to ensure visitor safety. The UAS allows park personnel the ability to assess wildlife, changing conditions, and perform conservation monitoring as well as aid law enforcement in monitoring poaching and other illegal activity on park grounds. With the optional FLIR system, the UAS can be used in search and rescue missions by offering heat signatures of lost individuals.

Whether the shot requires unique views and expansive panning or extreme altitude with radical views, the UAS is designed to hold up under demanding conditions. Because of the autopilot feature with pre-designed mission management and R/C control interrupt, the pilot can easily create the ultimate shot with HD video or HD still photos.

Similar to movies and videography, each news assignment may require a completely different shot or view of a scene. With budgets for traditional helicopter use greatly reduced, the UAS is the perfect solution to allow for easy news gathering for a fraction of the cost.

The UAS can be used in all areas of real estate, including commercial, residential, and industrial properties. Using the UAS, real estate professionals can create promotional videos, photos, and unique shots that normal camera aspects cannot capture. The easy-to-use video and photo platform enables properties to stand out, providing dazzling views that are typically shown via expensive computer animation or costly helicopter rentals. Imagine shooting a view from a high-rise condo in stunning high definition that shows your potential customer the actual view from the residence. The remote platform is great for new planning, zoning, and large developments. Simple and easy-to-use videos and photos allow for multiple height pictures and elevation views.