In the commercial market there are a large number of 3D modelling software available to use with your drone. When it comes to software that supports multiple brands and drone models things can get a little slow and expensive. This is what Flyability noticed and decided to create its own software for its Elios line of drones.
Unpacking the answer
Flyability's Inspector software is currently in third version, bringing impressive features to the table and improving the performance and usefulness of its Elios 2 drone.
Inspector 3.0 makes point clouds faster
Most 3D modelling software requires several hours for processing. After you upload your data, the software will need to work for one to eight or more hours, depending on the amount of data you input and the robustness of the model you’re trying to achieve.
In comparison, Inspector 3.0 can create a sparse point cloud in 20-30 minutes (although processing could take up to an hour, depending on the amount of data input). Further, Inspector 3.0 provides inspectors with a simple “one click” process for creating a 3D model, whereas photogrammetry can require a lot of fine tuning.
Inspector 3.0 makes point for less
Inspector 3.0 does not rely on data collected by more expensive sensors, such as LiDAR, to create its point clouds. Instead, it creates 3D models using only the visual data and inertial data already collected by the Elios 2. Further, Inspector 3.0 can create scaled 3D models, which isn’t possible with photogrammetry using only the data collected by the Elios 2.
Locational data
Inspectors today are faced with a significant issue when conduction inspections with a drone or any other type of device, the exact location of a defect are unknown. This results in inspectors using a mishmash of data points to localise their data, combining barometric measurements, maps, blueprints, and reference points in video feeds—all so they can know where something they see in a section of video footage is actually located within an asset.
Flyability has now fixed this issue by allowing users to see where the defect is in the scanned structure precisely. Inspector 3.0 can generate a sparse point cloud that shows them exactly where the defects they see in their inspection data are located within an asset, all based on data the Elios 2 already collects.
Source: Flyability
