WEBINAR: A BIRD S-EYE VIEW DRONES IN AGRIBUSINESS JUNE 21, 2016 Hosted by Nexsen Pruet Presented by Ernie Pearson (Nexsen Pruet); Patrick Lohman (PrecisionHawk); and Kyle Snyder (NGAT/NCSU)
FOUNDED IN 2010 OFFICES: Raleigh, NC (HQ) London, UK Toronto, CA Buenos Aires, Argentina 122 EMPLOYEES INDUSTRIES SERVED + Farming + Livestock + Mining + Oil & Gas + Forestry + Emergency Response + Research + Insurance FEATURED IN
A BUSINESS BUILT AROUND EMPOWERING THE USER TO GET TO AN ANSWER 1 2 3 4 90 87 Capture Manage Analyze React
LANCASTER VITALS WEIGHT + 4.1 Lbs WINGSPAN + 4.9 Feet PAYLOAD CAPACITY + 1.55 Lbs PROCESSORS + 720 MHz Dual Core Linux CPU NETWORK/INTERFACE + Bluetooth, Digital/Analog IO, USB, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, ICC
SENSORS
ENTERPRISE MAPPING AND ANALYSIS SOFTWARE FOR DRONES + Automated + Analysis-driven + Cloud-based
APPLICATIONS OF AERIAL DATA ANALYSIS AGRICULTURE Crop Health Indices Plant Count & Height Canopy Cover Pest, disease & weed detection Season monitoring
ANALYZE WITH THE ALGORITHM MARKETPLACE The First Drone Data Analysis App Store
ROW-BASED PLANT COUNTING INPUT SURVEY STAND COUNT ROW STATISTICS LEAF AREA FIELD Plant Count Plant Count Low Plant Count High Leaf Area (Pixels) Leaf Area (m2) Row Length VALUE 21 21 22 6466 53.0859 11.9654
WEED COVERAGE Pressure Metric BETTER ANSWERS. FASTER.
PEST DETECTION Infestation Metric BETTER ANSWERS. FASTER.
precisionhawk.com datamapper.com terraserver.com FlyLatas.com #FlyLATAS
"A Bird's Eye View: Key Developments and Critical Legal Issues Impacting Drones in Agribusiness" June 2016
NGAT Program History Launched in 2012 under NCDOT Division of Aviation Leadership Goal: Develop NC UAS Ecosystem Home: Institute for Transportation Research and Education (ITRE) Began UAS flight operations March 2013 at Hyde County Airport Now approved for nationwide operations Established as an NC State Consortium in 2015 NGAT Consortium at NC State University- a consortium of academia, industry, and government agencies created to provide a research and application oriented, technology transfer-focused organization for conducting aviation technology development, investigations, and field trials Core member of ASSURE Alliance selected May 2015 for the FAA UAS Center of Excellence research program for 5 years.
UAS: Potential Uses Emergency Response Mapping / Aerial Photography Homeland Security Agriculture Mining Forestry Wildlife Resources Transportation Investigation Drug Enforcement Anti-terrorism Law Enforcement First Responder Support Weather Research Disaster Analysis Airport Planning Entertainment Insurance Assessments Others
NGAT UAS Operations / Research Flight Summary Started 3/21/2013 Nationwide 400 Blanket COA Section 333 Exemption (6 aircraft) At least one flight per week ~900 flights ~200 hours of flight time Research: Airspace integration Agriculture Surveying Control and Communications Airworthiness Analysis Services Flight Operations Data Analysis Program Development Data Management Structure Reporting
Ag Airspace Integration
FAA UAS Center of Excellence, the ASSURE Alliance: http://assureuas.org
NGAT Imagery from Lake Wheeler Farm
NGAT Soil Science Research
UAS: Best Practices Expectation Management Operating Procedures Crew Selection and Qualifications Policies Data Management Protect the Integrity of the Airspace and the General Public!
NCDOT UAS Program Office Provide safety, guidance, and educational materials and resources Manage the UAS Working Group Ensure UAS operations in NC are safe and comply with NC law Support private sector growth by working with the Commerce Partnership Implement operator testing and permitting as required by the General Statutes Maintain the state s long-term Strategic Plan to support UAS activities ncdot.gov/aviation/uas/ 10 Transportation
NC UAS Operators Knowledge Test Ensures understanding of NC laws related to UAS Operations Download Study Guide, Take test and receive score immediately 25 questions, randomly selected from a 71 potential questions All UAS operators encouraged to take it Commercial and Government UAS Operators Required to Pass 11 Transportation
For More Information 919-515-9351 ktsnyder@ncsu.edu (704) 291-1151 cgibson2@ncdot.gov It is not really necessary to look too far into the future; we see enough already to be certain it will be magnificent. Only let us hurry and open the roads. - Wilbur Wright
TWO CATEGORIES OF DRONE USAGE Recreational or hobby use Commercial UAS Operation DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 2
WHAT IS A COMMERCIAL UAS OPERATION? Commercial UAS Operation = Anything that is even slightly business related Clearly agribusiness use would be a commercial UAS operation DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 3
FAA APPROVALS FOR COMMERCIAL UAS OPERATION Commercial UAS operation approval by FAA has a three step process 1. Apply for and receive an N-number aircraft registration for the drone 2. Obtain a special Section 333 exemption 3. Obtain a certificate of authorization or waiver (COA) to fly in specifically described airspace DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 4
N-NUMBER AIRCRAFT REGISTRATION N-number registration must be applied for and received Identifies drone is flying in inappropriate space or operating in an inappropriate manner DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 5
SECTION 333 EXEMPTION Commercial aircraft which transport people are subject to stringent airworthiness and inspection requirements But drones which do not transport people, get a Section 333 exemption because of this Section 333 petition is stringent and requires Detailed information about specific drone and its intended use The pilot(s) who will fly it must be a licensed pilot, training guidelines due before end of June Each petition is carefully scrutinized, and takes about 6 months to procure DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 6
CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORIZATION OR WAIVER (COA) COA application submitted at same time as the Section 333 petition Required if drone is to fly over 400 feet Not required if drone will only fly under 400 feet DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 7
STATE LAW VS. FEDERAL LAW Federal government considers its laws and rules to be preemptive Many states have adopted laws concerning drone operations Vary from state to state, so we will not cover here today DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 8
OTHER LIMITATIONS/REQUIREMENTS IN GENERAL Not fly within five miles of an airport Not too close to other facilities such as nuclear power plants Fly in good weather Fly within line of sight Not endanger anyone Common law principles such as private property rights, nuisance, invasion of privacy, and prudent liability will apply DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 9
PRACTICAL CONCLUSIONS As increased use of drones in agribusiness comes about, will likely be the case that: Very large farmers may fly their own drones Private companies will overfly smaller farmers operations for a fee (like crop dusters) Caution! Check contract provisions for ownership of data Photo: CBS News DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 10
ERNIE PEARSON Member, Nexsen Pruet Raleigh, NC 919.755.1800 epearson@nexsenpruet.com PATRICK LOHMAN Vice President of Partnerships, PrecisionHawk Raleigh, NC 844.328.5326 p.lohman@precisionhawk.com KYLE SNYDER Director, NGAT at NC State University Raleigh, NC 919.515.8623 kyle_snyder@ncsu.edu DRONE WEBINAR Nexsen Pruet PrecisionHawk NGAT www.nexsenpruet.com 11
THANK YOU!