Drones for Good - The Event!

Jonny Tooze
MD & Founder at Lab
#D4GUK
@drones4goodUK

Dr Peter Enderlein
Senior Marine Science Engineer at British Antarctic Survey

Different use of Drones in the
harsh environment of Antarctica
From animal surveys to aerial
photography
Dr Peter Enderlein
with
Jeremy Robst
Carl Robinson
(Phil Anderson)
Andrew Fleming
Andreas Cziferszky
Peter Fretwell
Norman Ratcliffe
Mike Dunn
Phil Trathan

Structure of talk:
• A little bit about the British Antarctic Survey
• Background
• Challenges
• Our Drones
• Our use of UAV’s so far...
• The future...

BAS Today
• BAS is a component of the Natural Environment Research Council
(NERC)
• Delivers world-leading, interdisciplinary research in the polar regions
• National and international collaborations
• Leadership role in Antarctic affairs
• Over 450 staff
• Five research stations in and around Antarctica (four year-round, one
summer-only)
• Two Royal Research Ships, RRS James Clark Ross and RRS Ernest
Shackleton
• Six aircraft, four de Havilland Canada Twin Otters a de Havilland
Canada Dash-7 and a Dornier 228

British Antarctic Survey
Antarctic Research Stations

Key Motivation for Polar UAV:
- More science through availability
- Long term systematic surveys
- Repeat (verification) surveys
- Ability to survey at the right time of year
- Reduced wildlife disturbance
- Can access physically inaccessible / dangerous study sites
- Smaller mission cost thus enabling science use where cost was
prohibitive for traditional platforms
- Operational
- Enhanced science by complimenting survey aircraft (UAVs
have different operational envelopes)
- Creating scalability in our airborne survey fleet (from
small scale UAVs through fixed wing UAVs to
Helicopters and planes)
- Fuel (UAVs use less)
“In Antarctica fuel can be as
expensive as single malt Whiskey”

The challenges we face:
- the environment we operate in:
- extreme temperatures (batteries can loose up to 50% of
their capacities at -20 degree Celsius)
- operating in the most remote areas possible:
- UAV have to be as reliable as possible
- in its complexity it has to be as simple as possible
- you have to take plenty of spares as there are NO shops in
Antarctica and no next day deliveries
- high risk of damage / loss
- before launch: risk analysis
- highest risks:
- Water (launch, land from and onto ships; flying over
water on the coasts)
- Wind (Antarctica is the windiest place on earth, with
quick wind changes and katabatic winds)

Platforms Fixed Wing:
• Used for local area mapping and observations for Antarctic Science Projects
• Used to allow continued operational experience while awaiting for suitable
larger fixed wing UAVs to mature and become economically viable
Quest 200 Carolo T 200

Platforms Multirotor:
Gaui 500X DJI Flamewheel F450 / F550
• Small portable platforms
• with / without GPS / sophisticated flight mode
• Used as trainers to gain experience
• Very limited pay load

3DRobotics IRIS
3DRobotics Y6
• ready to fly systems, very reliable
• with GPS and sophisticated flight modes
• Y6 with additional redundancy
• limited pay load to GoPro or small Compact

Cinestar 6
Self build “PERJ”
• professional Photo-/
Cinematography platform
• with GPS and additional sensors
• sophisticated flight modes
• including gimbal for DSLRs
• experimental platform to test
different sensors and flight controllers
• with GPS, OSD, sonar, optical sensor, ...
• sophisticated flight modes
• limited pay load to GoPro

Ground control station software
• QGroundControl (Windows, OSX, Linux)
• APM Planner (OSX)
• Mission planner (Windows)

Field operations so far...
• general flying experience in the polar environment:
• At our stations: Rothera, Halley, King Edward Point, Bird Island and Signy
and from our ships the RRS Ernest Shackleton and RRS James Clark Ross,
• Specific operations:
• Turbulence fluxes between atmosphere and the sea ice
• Sea ice reconnaissance of RRS Ernest Shackleton
• Environmental assessment (fly over) study on Penguin behaviour for
Penguin population surveys (2012), followed by
• Penguin population surveys at Bird Island and Signy
• Feasibility of mast / antenna inspection work at Halley

Flight experience in Antarctica

Turbulence fluxes between atmosphere and the sea ice
Total kinetic energy
of turbulence over
ice shelf - midday
convective
measurement

Sea ice reconnaissance of RRS Ernest Shackleton
• Max. flying height: 140m
• Air temp / speed: -14 degC @
10 knots
• ~30mins form request to
watching the recorded video

Penguin surveys at Bird Island and Signy

Feasibility of mast / antenna inspection work at Halley

Field operations so far...
Some stats:
• Min. air temperature: -30 degC
• Max. wind speed: 17 knots
• Max. dist from ground station: 920m
• Max. flying height AGL: 240m
• Max. flying time: 14m41s

Future Polar UAV Fixed Wing 2015:
Science
engagement
to get mission
requirements
Now 2015 and beyond
Write UAV
requirements
and SOW
Requirements
Sensor
requirements
Tender and
UAV
purchase
BAS
UAV/UAS/RPAS
Operations
Committee
Process (i.e. NOTAM), guidelines, advise, operational
environment constraints , platform register, reporting and logs
Training
and
integration
Science
missions
 Suitably capable and economically viable UAVs are now available
 Key high level requirements – sub 20kg (dry weight) fixed wing, autonomous,
packable into a Twin Otter, endurance greater than 5 hours (goal 14 hours), with fuel
and endurance trade offs up to 9kg payload, take off and recovery system.
 Identify science and logistic missions so platform is as effective (capable) as possible
– engagement with the science community to get mission requirements.
 Operational considerations – Air Unit / BAS pilots (aircraft operation/pilot training /
airworthiness expertise), data management, environmental management, safety
management, integration into current operations, staff training, reporting

Thank you for your attention
Flight experience in Antarctica Sea ice reconnaissance

Gerry Corbett
UAS Programme Lead at the Civil Aviation Authority

28
UK Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems Regulations
LAB – Drones For Good – 25 September 2014
Gerry Corbett – UAS Programme Lead
UK CAA Safety Regulation Group

29
Scope
- CAA UAS ‘Vision’ and basic principles
- Small UAS - Current regulations
- Next steps

30
The scale/range of the subject

31
CAA’s UAS ‘Vision’
 Enabling full and safe integration of all UAS operations into the
total aviation system
 this is a long term aim (10-15 years from now?)
 UAS still an Evolution of aviation
 CAA supports UK development and implementation of such
systems
 Leading the regulatory development
 UAS must be….
 Safe to be Flown
 Flown safely

32
Fundamental Principles
 They are Aircraft – not ‘drones’ ‘toys’ ‘UAVs’ etc
 They are Piloted – albeit remotely
 equivalence – to manned aviation
- doesn’t mean ‘identical’, looking for an equivalent capability
 No ‘automatic rights’ - to airspace or special privileges
 CAA’s responsibility is to Protect the Public – Risk?
 General Considerations
 Piloting ‘function’ same for manned and unmanned – both ‘move’ aircraft
through the air
 Same Airspace, Same Weather, Same Rules
 Operations - Avoidance of collisions/Lookout principles
 Airworthiness
 Integrity of ‘link’ to aircraft
 Complex Flight Control Systems
Pilots - Operators - Airworthy Aircraft

33
UAS Ops Within UK Airspace
Visual Line of Sight (VLOS)
 ‘See and Avoid’ responsibilities through direct visual observation
(visually managed)
 Limited range- Size/Colour, weather conditions
 400ft vertical, 500m horizontal – basic limits
 Extended VLOS -ops within/beyond 400ft/500m, RP’s ‘direct visual
contact’ requirement addressed differently – collision avoidance still
achieved through ‘visual observation’
Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS)
 Detect and Avoid System
 Segregated Airspace (if no DAA system fitted)

34
Small Unmanned Aircraft (SUA)
 “Any unmanned aircraft, other than a balloon or a kite,
having a mass of not more than 20kg without its fuel but
including any articles or equipment installed or attached at
the commencement of its flight”
 Note - this does not differentiate between model/recreational or other
uses
 SUA are exempted from the majority of the UK Air Navigation
Order (UK Air Law), but 3 specific articles apply: Arts 138, 166 &
167

35
ANO 2009 - Key Articles
 138 – Endangerment
 ‘A person shall not recklessly or negligently permit an aircraft to
endanger persons or property’
 166 – Small Unmanned Aircraft (20kg or less)
 Articles or animals must not be dropped ……so as to endanger
persons or property
 The ‘person in charge’ may only fly the aircraft if reasonably
satisfied that the flight can safely be made (note no specific
requirements for ‘airworthiness’)
 Person in charge must maintain ‘Direct Unaided visual contact’ –
for the purpose of avoiding collisions (ie. VLOS flights only)
 >7kg ATC permission for A,C,D,E airspace, ATZ’s, >400ft.
 Flights for the purpose of aerial work require specific permission
to be granted by the CAA.

36
ANO 2009 - Key Articles
 167 – Small Unmanned Surveillance
Aircraft
 ‘SUSA’ is a small unmanned aircraft equipped to
undertake any form of surveillance or data
acquisition.
 Unless in accordance with a permission from the
CAA, a SUSA must not be flown:
 Over or within 150m of congested area or assembly of >1000 people
 Within 50m of vessels, vehicles or structures (not under the control
of the person in charge of the aircraft)
 Within 50m of any person (exceptions exist for take-off/landing (30m)
and persons under the control of the person in charge of the aircraft)
 Art 167 ‘covers off’ flights which are not aerial work

37
Small UAS Operations
 Regs proportionate to the potential risk, ‘light touch’ where
suitable
 Specific aim “to protect those not involved in the activity”
 Permissions – required where greater level of risk is evident
 Aerial work, ‘camera’ flight close to people/property
 Need to be satisfied that your operation is safe
 For safety purposes only, not ‘privacy’ (Privacy aspects are
covered by the data protection regulations)
 Small UAS Currently the biggest/most notable development area
 Requests for flight close to people/property/in congested areas, is
growing – work commencing to address safety case requirements
(ie. prove it is safe)

38
Mystery as £20k 'spy' helicopter goes under
cover in city
“DESPERATE: (name
removed) searches the
skies for his missing
Draganflyer X6 helicopter”

39
Small UAS (20kg or less)
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
Permissions Issued for UAS Operations
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Number Issued
2006 8
2007 7
2008 17
2009 16
2010 59
2011 62
2012 133
2013 318
2014 336 to 30 Jun

40
But………………………
 Reason for the rapid expansion in UK ?
 Cheap and simple
 Simple/light touch – no licensing
 No ‘airworthiness’ specifications - ‘hobbyist’, no major
testing/reliability requirements
 VLOS only ops – simple collision avoidance
 Basic responsibility on ‘person in charge’
 Risk based - size of a/c, how much damage?
 Next ‘step up’ (close to/over people, BVLOS) is a big one….
Airworthiness + Collision Avoidance = Costly !

41
CAP 722
“Unmanned Aircraft System
Operations in UK Airspace –
Guidance”
Edition 5, 10 August 2012
UK Policy/Regulation developed and published through CAP 722.
(1st point of reference).
Used by other nations as a reference document (and frequently
plagiarised).
Amendment currently underway – Est publication Feb 15
•More readable/useful
• Improved airworthiness (ie. Safety Assurance) guidance

42
No UK specific regulations under development
 No point in UK ‘going it alone’ – no ‘demand’ as yet
Work underway at international level (ICAO and EU) to
achieve ‘harmonised’ regulations – UK contributing to
this, but rulemaking (ie. lawmaking) takes time (rightly)
 In the meantime………
Operational
Limitations
Airworthiness
Detect & Avoid

43
Europe – EC/EASA
 EU RPAS roadmap published June 2013
 EASA rulemaking based on a high and uniform level of safety –
‘Harmonisation’ across member States – aids development for
manufacturers and ‘free movement’ for operations/operators
 EASA Rulemaking Plan 2014-2017 features 10 RPAS related
rulemaking tasks covering:
 Amendment of Basic Regulation – extends EASA scope to RPAS of any
mass (proposed to remove ‘fragmentation’ of the market) – drafting
underway
 Creation of an EC regulation on RPAS and its Annex 1 (Part ORG)
 Civil RPAS Safety Objectives (1309)
 Common rules for licensing – likely to be required for all RPAS
 Airworthiness processes (initial and continuing)
 Certification Policy
 Operations

44
JARUS
 Joint Authorities for the Rulemaking of Unmanned
Systems
 Collection of National Aviation Authorities (mostly
European, but also others including FAA, Brazil, Israel,
South Africa
 Purpose is to recommend a single set of harmonised UAS
regulations for subsequent adoption by NAAs
 7 Working Groups
 Ops/Licensing, Organisations, Airworthiness, DAA,
C2/C3, System Safety Assessment, Continued
Airworthiness
 Note – EASA intending to use JARUS as ‘Rulemaking
Group’ for much of its rulemaking tasks

45
CAA UAS Programme
‘Step by Step’ approach to expansion of UAS operations
 Initial Ops – Get things flying, learn from experience
 Accommodate activity into the aviation system, accepting that
some limitations will be required
 Integrate UAS with other aviation users as ‘routine business’
Small UAS ASTRAEA
Strategic
Projects
Initial Ops Accommodation
Spectrum/
Security
CAP722
JARUS Permissive
MoD
EASA Airspace
Integration
ICAO Industry

46
To Sum Up
 As for manned aircraft, unmanned aircraft will only be permitted to
operate in UK airspace if it is considered that it is safe for them to
do so
 In the UK today we have a growing and diverse civil UA industry
using small rotary and fixed wing aircraft under VLOS.
 UK’s SUA regulations are proportionate, scaleable and have
allowed the industry to develop, but further work now required to
adequately assure safe ops in congested areas.
 BVLOS ops (for both large and small RPAS) will require much
closer assessment but we want to encourage development – need
to know what is holding things back
 We are developing appropriate regulation as a part of an
international effort.
 ‘Safe to be Flown’- Airworthiness/Cert
 ‘Flown Safely’ – Operational

47
www.caa.co.uk/uas
gerry.corbett@caa.co.uk

Professor Nick Avis
Executive Dean, Faculty of Science and Engineering at
the University of Chester

50
Humanitarian uses of drones
25th September 2014
Royal Air Force Museum
Hendon
Nick Avis
Faculty of Science and Engineering
University of Chester
n.avis@chester.ac.uk

Drones – Non Humanitarian Uses
51

52

53
Military
• Surveillance UAVs, cargo-carrying UAVs, and weaponised UAVs.
• Dull, Dirty and Dangerous
• Military dividend – ? To what extent can these be repurposed ?

Rapid Technological Advances:
54

Vast array of sizes and capabilities!

Drones – Humanitarian Uses
57
Platforms – Communications / broadband
Surveillance / Search
Transport / Delivery

58
– Google – Loon
– O3B
Persistent - density – cost – ease of deployment
Satellite vs. High Altitude vs. Low altitude
Coverage, control, dwell times and fidelity

59
Drones – Humanitarian Uses Eco-System of UAVs and Data Networks
NASA
Eco-system of Drones – Data + Comms

61
– Google – Loon
– O3B

62
– Google – Loon
– O3B

Drones and
crowd-sourced
“And on the day of the launch mission, 350 people from 25 countries including the US,
Africa and Europe, acted as ‘virtual’ mountain rescue search assistants as they joined
the live search and rescue trial operation from their desktop computers, tablet devices
and mobiles.”
63
analysis

[UPDATED] UAV Provides Colorado Flooding
Assistance Until FEMA Freaks Out
By Evan Ackerman
Posted 16 Sep 2013 | 14:42 GMT
64

65
– Google – Loon
– O3B

66
Transport
Grand Challenges Explorations Grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation went to a group led by George Barbastathis at Harvard-MIT
Division of Health Sciences and Technology, which is developing the idea of
delivering vaccines to people in rural communities. [by drones]

Transport – small stuff
68
Video pill
“Fantastic Voyage”

Organisations and Prizes
Civic Drone Centre civicdronecentre.org
COO, THIS WILL NEVER FLY!

Organisations and Prizes
COO, THIS WILL NEVER FLY!
Prizes
• DUBAI // Fancy winning US$1 million or Dh1m?
• Now is your chance as the Government is offering the prize money to
anyone who can invent drones to deliver services.
• The competition was launched by Mohammed Al Gargawi, Minister of
Cabinet Affairs, at the Government Summit in Duba
• http://www.thenational.ae/uae/government/million-dollar-contest-launched-
to-invent-drones-for-uae-government-services#ixzz3EAj4U9sZ

Conclusion
Technology – cool/shiny
Cost
Capability
Convenience
Acceptance
Safety concerns
71

URLs
72
http://irevolution.net/tag/uav/
http://gerardens.com/2012/08/02/wildfire-fighting-
robots/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-
28318281
http://irevolution.net/2014/08/29/google-uavs-
for-disaster-response/
http://irevolution.net/2014/06/25/humanitari
ans-in-the-sky/
http://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/
aerial-robots/falcon-uav-provides-colorado-flooding-
assistance-until-fema-freaks-out
http://irevolution.net/2014/09/07/disaster-tweets-
give-responders-valuable-data/
www.ob3networks.org
civicdronecentre.org
The Rise of the Humanitarian
Drone: Giving Content to an
Emerging Concept (forthcoming)
Sandvik, Kristin Bergtora (2014)
The Rise of the Humanitarian
Drone: Giving Content to an
Emerging Concept (forthcoming),
Millennium: Journal of
International Studies.

THANK YOU!
• n.avis@chester.ac.uk

Serge Wich
Co-Founder at conservationdrones.org

CONSERVATION
DRONES
& moni tor ing biodiversi ty ( threats)
Serge Wich
Liverpool John Moores University, UK
Lian Pin Koh
University of Adelaide, Australia

An urgent problem...monitoring of orangutans
Source: Orangutan Foundation
Source: Rainforest Rescue

Sources: nicecliparts.com, melodyshaw.com

Seed funding...
Happily we went shopping 

Drones are expensive and might
also be expensive to maintain...
Source: youtube.com/1sgttoles
...we decided to look for a cheaper
‘Do-It-Yourself’ solution...

DIYDrones.com – Amateur Drone Builders
Do-it-yourself drones

+ +
Model aircraft Autopilot Payload
+ Conservation
Software
Drone! =

Prototype Drone ... Test flights in Switzerland

First field tests in N Sumatra, Indonesia (Jan 2012)

ConservationDrones.org... Founded April 2012
253, 707 views (01/07/2014)

How does a Conservation Drone work?

Mission Planning: Clicking waypoints on Google map

Quick look River survey
Map an area Patrol forest boundary

Different models
Prototype: Bixler Raptor drone Skywalker drone
Maja drone Finwing drone Vanguard drone

Wingspan: 1-1.8 m
Weight: ~1-3 kg (inc. batteries)
Payload: ~0-1 kg
Automatic Take-off: Hand launched
Autonomous Flight: Guided by GPS
Automatic Landing: Within 100 x 100 m field
Telemetry: ‘Live’ transmission of flight data and video
Sensors: Photo, video, thermal imaging cameras
Photo Quality: ~1 – 10 cm per pixel resolution
Flight time: ~20-90 minutes
Range: ~15-70 km
SPECS

What is a Conservation Drone good for?
Super low-cost
remote sensor

Reforestation project in Sumatra
2238 images
5.22 sq. km / 1289ac
5.22cm/pixel side
91 orangutan nest in ground surveys
Aerial images being analysed
In collaboration with the Sumatran Orangutan Society and the Orangutan Information Centre (Wich et al in prep)

Bat (detecting) drones
ConservationDrones with Terry Reardon (South Australian Museum) and Alice
Hughes (Chinese Academy of Science). Detecting the Grey-headed flying-fox

Bat calls (~39kHz)
Noise from drone (<4kHz)

Elephant (Sumatra) Scale:100%|F-stop: f/2.7|Exp: 1/1000|Lens:28mm|Altitude:80m agl

Wild Rhinos (Nepal) Scale:100%|F-stop: f/3.1|Exp: 1/1000|Lens:28mm|Altitude:100m agl

Monitoring birds
A collaboration between Monash University and ConservationDrones.
Focus on Crested Terns (photo) and Lesser Frigatbird

Automatic object recognition needed due to large amount of data
(Chen et al. 2014)

Ecosystem-level Patterns
Scale:50%|F-stop: f/2.7|Exp: 1/500|Lens:28mm|Altitude:100m agl

Tree-level Phenomena Scale:100%|F-stop: f/4|Exp: 1/1000|Lens:50mm|Altitude:100m agl

Tree species identification (Gabon)
Question 1 Preliminary results:
(van Andel et al. in prep))

Human Activities: Logging Scale:30%|F-stop: f/4.2|Exp: 1/500|Lens:28mm|Altitude:100m agl

Agriculture: Oil Palm Scale:17%|F-stop: f/4.2|Exp: 1/250|Lens:28mm|Altitude:100m agl

Mosaic of multiple drone images
1000 m

Landsat satellite: 30m/pixel
Camera on UAV: 3cm/pixel

Forest monitoring in Gunung Leuser National Park
(Courtesy of Graham Usher and Matt Nowak, SOCP)

Grey = water
Blue = Forest
Green = agriculture/barren
Dark red = barren/housing
Red = roads/barren Courtesy of Ahimsa Campos-Arceiz and Wee Siong

Landsat image classified based on land cover from photomosaic from drone
(Szantoi et al. in prep)

Georeferenced photo-mosaics draped over DSM
X
Z
Y

3D ‘Forest overview’ from Drone-based Imagery
In collaboration with: Dronemapper.com & ETH Future Cities Laboratory

High Definition Video Camera
Video
camera

Youtube.com/lp76
Bird’s Eye View of Landscape

Thermal imaging
With Andy Goodwin (LJMU OpenLabs) and support from www.Xenics.com

Gabon
Kenya
Tanzania
Rep Congo Madagascar
USA
Germany
Switzerland
Nepal Cambodia
India
Indonesia
Malaysia
Greenland Scotland
Chile
Belize
Australia
Panama

VHF
Ongoing developments...
Spy mics
Camera traps Radio collars

Robin Higgons
Managing Director at Qi3

Andrew Riche
Agronomist at Rothamsted Research

Rothamsted Research
where knowledge grows
Monitoring crop
experiments by drone
Andrew Riche
Slide
156

Talk outline
• Background
• RPAs in agriculture
• Rothamsted RPA
• Monitoring field
trials
• How the RPA can
help
157

Food Security
‘Demand for food is projected to
increase by 50% by 2030 and
double by 2050’
‘The challenge for global agriculture is
to grow more food on not much more
land, using less water, fertiliser and
pesticides than we have historically
done’
Sir John Beddington
UK Government Chief Scientific Adviser 158

RPAs in agriculture
Pros
• Independent of ground conditions
• Relatively quick
Cons
• Small payload
• Short flying time
• Accidents happen
Current uses
• Bird scaring
• Mapping/scouting
• Crop Spraying
• Monitoring field experiments
Slide
159

Rothamsted RPA
Slide
160
HD video camera
RGB stills/HD
video camera
Thermal imaging
camera
Near infrared camera
Computer waypoint
control
Endurance: 10 min+
Up to 50 waypoints
Manual control

RPA Regulations
• Insurance
• CAA permission to fly
• Airspace permission (>7kg)
Flying limitations
• Maximum altitude 400ft
• Maximum distance 500m from operator
• Not within 150m of a congested area
• Not within 50m of a person not under pilots control
• Operator must maintain unaided visual contact
• Suitable weather
Slide
161

UK Cereal yields 1892-2010
• Yields increased rapidly from the
1940s
• A lot of variation between years
• Yields have not increased in the
last 10 years
• This pattern occurs in many
European countries
• Reasons for static yields not fully
understood
162

Wheat Research - Small plot field experiments
Slide 163

Phenotyping
• Anthesis
• Hyperspectral Reflectance
• Maturity
• Height
• Lodging
• Spad
• Harvest
Slide 164

Need for High Throughput Phenotyping
165
5000 plots
10 000 samples
200km
Date Times
Anthesis May - July 16
Hyperspectral Reflectance Apr - July 3
Maturity June - July 11
Height June 1
Lodging, SPAD 3
Total 34
170km

Phenotyping – the problem
• Time consuming
• Lack of person power
• Skilled
• Laborious (tedious!),
repetitive
• Weather dependant
Remote sensing options:
Slide
166

RPA Sensors
Sony RGB camera
Optris Thermal Imaging camera
ADC Near-infrared camera
Slide 167

RGB Camera
• 24 Mpixels
• Establishment/canopy cover
• Nitrogen status
• Maturity
• Height
• Lodging
Slide
169

RGB Camera – Digital Surface Models
• 10 Ground Control Points
• 40m altitude
• Imaged every second
Estimating wheat height from DSM
Slide
170 F. Holman, 2014

Thermal Infra-red Camera
• 0.11Mpixels
• 40mK sensitivity
• Stress: insect, pathogen, water
• Stomatal conductance
• Canopy architecture eg Flag leaf
angle
Slide
171

Disease
• Take-all (a root disease of
wheat)
• Symptons visible early summer
• Show as lower temperature
• Often stress will show as a
higher temperature, eg water
stress
Slide
172

Hyperspectral Camera
• 3.2 Mpixels
• Crop/canopy dynamics
• Nutrients status
• Various vegetation
indices, e.g. NDVI, SAVI.
Slide
173
Image processed to show Soil Adjusted
Vegetation index. Area of poor growth
shows up as reduced SAVI.
SAVI=(NIR-RED)/(NIR+RED+L)*(1+L)

Establishment - NDVI
• NDVI
measurements in
April showed a
correlation with
grain yield at final
harvest
Slide
174

Yield
Relationship between Grain Yield and spectral reflectance Relationship between Grain Nitrogen concentration
Slide
175
and spectral reflectance
Relationship between Grain Nitrogen uptake and
spectral reflectance

Multispectral Infra-red camera
• Anthesis
• Pests (aphids)
• Disease
• Weeds
• Nutrient stratus
• Yield
• Nutrient offtake
Future sensors
Lidar
• detailed canopy
Slide
176
modelling and
crop architecture.

Phenotypic traits at anthesis, full spectrum 350-1000nm
• Tec5 spectra at anthesis
 (8 cultivars, 3 reps, 4 N levels)
• GAI and biomass at anthesis predicted
with high confidence
• Ear population correlated poorly
Slide
177

Conclusions
• We have learnt how to fly the RPA and collect images
• We are learning how to use the data collected
• We still have much to learn about image processing and other
sensor technology
• We believe the technology will save time, collect reliable data
and enable more data to be collected than before
However:
• We could have too much data
• We need to fully utilize the technology and data
Slide
178

Acknowledgements
Malcolm Hawkesford
Saroj Parmor
David Soba-Hidalgo
Laure Beghin
Martin Suplisson
Baptiste Hamon
Computing staff
Linda Carlton
Paul Compton
Philip Webb
RRes Farm Staff
Stephen Goward
Chris Mackay
Nick Chichester-Miles
Slide 179

Simon Nielsen
CEO & Founder at Ctrl.Me Robotics

The Future of Drones
I n P h o t o g r a p h y a n d C i n ema

A DIFFERENT SOLUTION
• Cost
• Portability
• Reliability &
Safety
• Precision

NEW TRENDS
• Props
• Characters
• Creative Shots
• Follow Focus
• Semi Autonomous
• Longer Flight Times

DIRECTING DRONES
Drones are the new tripod Giving back control

DESIGNING FOR THE
FUTURE
1 - 3 Years:
Safety
Miniaturization
Autonomy
HD 3D Streaming
3 - 10 Years:
Widespread Adoption
Camera
Power
AI

Steve Roest
CEO & Co-Founder at Skycap

Anti-Poaching
and
The Drone Revolution
Steve Roest
ShadowView – SkyCap
Drones For Good
London
25 Sep 2014
SkyCap - ShadowView

ShadowView
• Grew out of work with a Sea Shepherd Conservation
Society
• Missions flown in 7 continents by end 2014
• First success in Namibia and Antarctica
• First to capture evidence of illegal hunting in the UK
• First ever to capture rhino poachers on thermal during live
mission in Greater Kruger South Africa
• Work with a large range of local and international
partners
SkyCap - ShadowView

Equipment
SkyCap - ShadowView

Thermal imagery key
SkyCap - ShadowView

Fixed Wing
SkyCap - ShadowView

Malawi – Kasungu National Park
• 2000 African elephants ten years ago
• Current population: 100

Provide UAV support during anti-poaching patrols

South Africa – Rhino Wars
SkyCap - ShadowView

South Africa - Greater Kruger area
• Over 900 rhino poached in the Greater Kruger Area in
2013
• ShadowView collaborate with local organisations
• UAVs help level the playing field when utilised effectively
SkyCap - ShadowView

Questions?
SkyCap - ShadowView

Peter Lee
Senior Associate at Taylor Vintners LLP

unmanned systems
The law
Drones4Good

Flow down Export
210
Copyright
Intellectual
property
Designs rights
Software
Patents
Who does what to whom, when and
for how much
Contracts Other IPR
Liability and risk
Termination
Airspace &
Airworthiness
regulations
National AA
ANO (UK)
CAP 722 (UK)
Insurance
EASA Regs
Privacy
Data protection
issues
Tortious
liability
Article 8 vs Article 10 (ECHR)
UAV
legal
issues
control
Funding
Surveillance
Ethics

211
@Glaciologist: if a #uav
crashes and kills you
who’s responsible if it is
automated?
@bway: I reckon
@PeterLee000 is probably
the man for that Q!...
@bway
@Glaciologist
@PeterLee000
@Glaciologist @bway my
response "if a #UAV crashes and
kills you who's responsible if it is
automated?"
http://youtu.be/Mq1ySjUkOD4
#UAV #drone

Next 5 years…
• Regulation – airspace integration
• Airworthiness
• Urban operations
• FPV flight
• Spectrum – 2.4Ghz (Ofcom)
• Data analytics
• Automation / sense and avoid
• Public perception
• Regulator prosecutions
• Privacy and data protection (ICO)

Peter Lee
Twitter: @PeterLee000
Blog: http://dronelaw.blogspot.co.uk/
Email: peter.lee@taylorvinters.com
DD: +44 (0)1223 225149
Mob: +44 (0)7969 910777

Alexander Burwitz
Operations Manager at Nitrofirex

NITROFIREX 2014 Copyright © All rights reserved
NITROFIREX
•Concept
•AGC Definition
•Operation Phases AGC
• Possible Uses of the Concept
FOREST FIRES
• Market Analysis
• AGC Description
• Launcher Aircraft
• Operational Advantages
• Economical Advantages
• Safety & Regulations
• Conclusions
9/29/2014

NITROFIREX, is a new approach in the world of the Aerial Vehicles,
which aims to develop the capacity of spraying or spreading a large
payload in a hostile, difficult or impossible to access environment
with a manned plane.
(WORLD-WIDE PATENTED CONCEPT, see back up slide nº 28)
)

NITROFIREX’s the main elements to be used are:
“LAUNCHER AIRCRAFT” or LA
A heavy transport aircraft with a rear ramp.
“AUTONOMOUS GLIDING CONTAINERS” or AGCs
These carry the payload from the LA to the the programed release point.

1.- LAUNCH
Initial phase of the operation in of which the AGCs are mechanically
launched from the L.A.

2.- GLIDE and GUIDANCE
The AGCs containing the payload glide to their target and are
equipped with a guidance system which makes it fully autonomous
from the launch to the targeted release point (glided-guided bomb).
.
AGM-154A (JSOW)

3.- DROP
Reaching their targeted release point the AGCs drop their content
automatically and with great precision.

4.- ESCAPE MANEUVER
Then the AGCs rapidly escape from the hostile zone taking advantage
of the amount of height gained due to the big and sudden loss of
weight. This maneuver is used as a transition into the following phase
of recovery.
(see discussion back up slides 29/30

5.- RECOVERY and LANDING
Once empty and removed of the hostile zone, the AGCs begin their
recovery phase by means of their small jet engine, recovering and landing
in the base of operation of the L.A. in a completely autonomous way
Recovery is performed at night, below 500’ and over non populated areas:
Air/ground SAFETY & PRIVACY are not affected
9/29/2014

FORESTFIRE FIGHTING AT NIGHT
OTHER FIRES
NUCLEAR, CHEMICAL or BIOLOGICAL EMERGENCIES
METEOROLOGICAL PHENOMENA
DRUG PLANTATION SPRAYING
PESTS SPRAYING or SEEDING (Remote and / or inaccessible areas)

CURRENT TECHNOLOGICAL STATUS
Current airborne firefighters are:
Slow
Manual water drops
Daytime operation
Single role aircraft
Risky operations
TECHNOLOGICAL PARADOX:
DETECTION TIME vs. REACTION TIME

Forest Fire Statistics in Spain
• Economic loss over the last 20 years (1992-2011) 6.139 mill € (307 mill €/year)
• Average affected surface last 20 years (1993-2012) 133.288 ha/year
• Average annual fires last 20 years (1993-2012) 18.322 fires/year
• Nº of fires years 05 to 12 25.492 / 16.334 / 10.932 / 11.612 / 14.793 / 11.722 / 16.028 / 15.902
• Number fires with use of aircraft 07 / 08 / 09 / 10  2.594 / 2.702/ 4.235 / 2.963
• Average number of aircraft used in firefighting (last 5 years) +160 (74 PLANES / above 85 HEL)
DATA FROM REPORT “LOS INCENDIOS FORESTALES EN ESPAÑA. AÑO 2005", Pgs 105-107 (M.M.A.)
DATA FROM REPORT “INCENDIOS FORESTALES EN ESPAÑA. AÑO 2006”, Pg 102 (M.A.R.M.)
DATA FROM REPORT “INCENDIOS FORESTALES EN ESPAÑA. AÑO 2007”, Pg 11 /108 (M.A.R.M.)
DATA FROM REPORT “INCENDIOS FORESTALES EN ESPAÑA. AÑO 2008”, Pg 6 / 45 (M.A.R.M.)
DATA FROM REPORT “INCENDIOS FORESTALES EN ESPAÑA. AÑO 2009”, Pg 10 /41 (M.A.R.M)
DATA FROM REPORT “INCENDIOS FORESTALES EN ESPAÑA. AÑO 2010”. Pg 7 / 79 (M.A.R.M)
DATA FROM REPORT “INCENDIOS FORESTALES EN ESPAÑA. AÑO 2011”. Pg 35 (M.A.G.R.A.M.A.)
DATA FROM REPORT “LOS INCENDIOS FORESTALES EN ESPAÑA. AÑO 1 ENE - 31 DIC 2012” (AVANCE INFORMATIVO) Pgs 47 (M.A.G.R.A.M.A.)

NITROFIREX PATENTED COUNTRIES PERIOD (YEARS)
EUROPE, 4,9
RUSIA
AUSTRALIA,
FEDERATION,
16.0
CANADA , 21.3
USA, 17.2
40.6
AVERAGE YEARLY
BURNT AREA (HECTARES)
BURNT AREA
PER REGION
SPAIN: 37,1% OF EUROPE
1,8% OF TOTAL

ECONOMIC LOSS AIRCRAFT
1,8 %................307 M€ 1,8 %……………….160 ACFT
100 %..........17.028 M€ 100 %....................8.800 ACFT
8.500 M€ 4.000 ACFT
EUROPE, 4,9
RUSIA
AUSTRALIA,
FEDERATION,
16.0
CANADA , 21.3
USA, 17.2
40.6
(1/2 Planes + 1/2 HEL)
BURNT AREA
PER REGION
SPAIN: 37,1% OF EUROPE
1,8% OF TOTAL

DROMADER : 2.200 L
NITROFIREX: 2.500 ±250 L
AIR TRACTOR: 3.100 L
CANADAIR CL-215/415: 5.500 L
5.0 M
AGCs TOTAL WEIGHT : 3.000 kg ( +/-250 kg)
AGCs EMPTY WEIGHT : 500 KG (~20 % TOTAL WEIGHT)
AGCs PAY LOAD : 2.500 (+/- 250) LITRES (48 -58 % total volume / 73 -60 % AGCs volume)
AGCs DIMENSIONS (meter): 5,00 LENGTH, 1,25 HIGH, 0,75 WIDTH
AGCs VOLUME: 3,75 M³ (80 % total volume)
TOTAL VOLUME NECESSARY : 4,6875 M³
1,25 M
0,75 M

AIRCRAFT PAYLOAD USEFUL WATER NUMBER OF
TYPE (T.M.) LITERS AGCs
C-130 (WT) 19,4 -28,9 16.356 - 22.000 6 / 8
AN-12 20 16.500 6
A-400M 37 31.000 12
IL-76
(T / MD / TD / MF)
40 /47/50/60 33.000 - 50.000 14 / 20
C-17 77,3 65.290 24

OPERATIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

• 24H OPERATION
• REDUCED REACTION TIMES
• HIGHER WATER DROP CAPABILITY PER OPERATION HOUR AS COMPARED TO
CURRENT MEANS
• MAXIMUM WATER DROP EFFICIENCY DUE TO SEQUENTIAL DEPLOYMENT OF
THE AGCs
• MAXIMUM PRECISION OF THE WATER DROP
• MAXIMUM CONCENTRATION OF EXTINGUISHING AGENT AT RELEASE POINT
• UNAFFECTED BY WIND, TURBULENCE, CLOUDS AND SMOKE
• UNAFFECTED BY GEOGRAPHICAL BARRIERS
• POSSIBILITY OF ATTENDING MORE THAN ONE FIRE SIMULTANEOUSLY BIG
DISPLACEMENT CAPACITY: HEAVY TRANSPORT L.A. PROVIDE THE LONG
RANGE AND HIGH SPEED
• NO RISK FOR FLIGHT CREWS
• GIVES DIRECT SUPPORT TO GROUND CREWS

ECONOMICAL CONSIDERATIONS I

ECONOMICAL CONSIDERATIONS II
COST OF DROPPED LITERS IN FUNCTION OF DISTANCE

• MUCH HIGHER WATER DROP CAPABILITY PER FLIGHT HOUR AS COMPARED
TO CURRENT MEANS
• LOWER COST PER DROPPED LITER
• AGCs CAN BE LAUNCHED FROM MANY KINDS OF TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT
• MINIMUM FLEET DEPLOYMENT
• NON EXCLUSIVE L.A. - ONE AIRCRAFT TWO MISSIONS
• BIG SAVINGS IN AMORTIZATIONS, PERSONNEL, MAINTENANCE AND
SUPPLIES.
• GREAT AVAILABILITY OF HEAVY TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT WORLDWIDE TO BE
USED AS L.A.
• L.A. REQUIRE NO MODIFICATION
• TECHNOLOGIES USED ARE ALREADY DEVELOPED AND AVAILABLE

EMERGENCY MODE / FLIGHT ABORT:
- ONE MAN IN THE LOOP
- Automatic / Manual abort mode
- Automatic GPWS system utilization
GPWS
FINAL GUIDANCE
EMERGENCY MODE
A.G.C.
RECOVERY
L.A.

WHY AT NIGHT?
• TO BE A COMPLEMENT OF DAYTIME AERIAL MEANS
– NON STOP FIGHTING / H-24
• BETTER REGULATORY OPTIONS
NITROFIREX OPERATIONS DO NOT AFFECT
AIR/GROUND SAFETY AND/OR CITIZEN´S PRIVACY
- NIGHTTIME LAUNCH & APPROACH TO FIRE IS DONE IN SEGREGATED AIR SPACE UNDER L.A.
- NIGHTTIME RECOVERY IS AT VLL (500’) FROM THE FOREST FIRE TO THE OP´S BASE
- PROGRAMED TO RETURN OVER NON POPULATED AREAS
- STANDARD EQUIPMENT FOR AGCs IS A PARACHUTE AND AN AIRBAG DEPLOYED IN CASE OF
ENGINE FLAME OUT AND/OR ANY ANOTHER MALFUNCTION

CHANGE OF PHILOSOPHY
ACKNOWLEDGE THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE PROBLEM
APPROACH A NEW STRATEGY:
• NIGHT OPERATION
• NO RISKY OPERATION FOR AIRBORNE CREWS
• BIGGER DROPPING CAPACITY
• REACTION TIME REDUCTION
• SIGNIFICANT COST REDUCCTION
FACE THE TECHNOLOGICAL CHALLENGE

Drones for Good - The Event!

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