Explore the different capabilities of drones as used for farming, surveying and forestry.
● Drones have a number of uses in the agri-sector, including:
○ Surveillance for harvest estimations, risk identifications or stock
management, as well as capturing thermal imagery
○ Precision spraying of pesticides, herbicides, chemicals, nutrients, and
seeds,
○ Mapping for forestry and land surveying.
○ Inventory management
● For certain jobs, drones are already a viable alternative to contracting helicopters or planes.
● Drones are controlled remotely through a phone, controller or tablet.
● Most basic models consist of four rotary arms that can control the direction of
movement or ability to hover.
● Drone speed, direction, and handling aspects are controlled by the accelerometer and the altimeter.
● Drones can be programmed to fly autonomously using software such as Pix4D, or DroneDeploy for accurate 3D mapping and models.
● Each drone will come with a preferred software package. So do your research when choosing a drone to see what application accompanies your tool.
● Drones can herd stock the same way bikes can. You can even programme your drone to bark like a dog.
● To use a drone, you’ll need to comply with a civil aviation authorities regulation, and ensure you follow any rules related to that particular drone or area.
● This information can be found on the government website, and most drone suppliers offer training courses to ensure that you understand the technology.
● Vendors to explore include:
○ DJI, Aerolab
○ Aeronavics
○ Ferntech.
● If you want to try a drone contractor, you could reach out to any of the following companies:
○ Dronezup
○ NZ Drones
○ Drone Spray
○ Agdrone
○ GPSit
○ DroneMate
○ Aerial Vision
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