Drone RTK

Fast, accurate, drone-based scans without GCPs

Emesent Aura now supports RTK, automating high accuracy georeferencing and drift correction for Hovermap scans on DJI’s M300 and M350 drones. This enables the delivery of fast, accurate and precise above-ground drone scans on demand, without the need to lay out and georeference ground control points.

Simply attach the Hovermap to your DJI M300 or M350 drone with the purpose-built mount, establish a connection and you are ready to start scanning. During processing Aura automatically evaluates the GPS signal quality and will intelligently choose the optimal combination of RTK and SLAM (either RTK and SLAM, or SLAM only if RTK is not of high enough quality), toggling between the two, to provide the user with the most reliable and robust point cloud.

Benefit from:

Optimized results

Intelligently leverage both RTK and SLAM to ensure the most reliable, robust point cloud.

Enhanced SLAM capabilities

Scan long linear assets or large areas.

On-demand scanning

Start scanning quicker and finish scanning sooner by eliminating the need to lay out ground control targets.

Consistent accuracy

Higher quality results for repeat scans and change detection.

Simplified, fast-tracked workflow

Automated georeferencing and drift correction.

Improved safety

Avoid high risk areas or the need to negotiate challenging terrain to establish targets.

Where to use Drone RTK

Mapping: Higher quality results for change detection and repeat scans over the same course

Surveying: More accurate solution for large, featureless environments: fields, stadiums, quarries

Agriculture: Efficient repeatable scanning for agriculture: vineyards, farming

Forestry: Faster, easier scanning in challenging terrain: landscapes, forestry, rivers, beaches

Mining: Assess haul road compliance

Public Safety: Fast results, safely for natural disasters: landslides, coastal erosion

COMPATIBLE WITH:

Hovermap (HVM100, ST, and ST-X)

DJI M300 and M350

Emlid Reach RS2+ Base Station (recommended)

DJI D-RTK2 (supported)

4G SIM Card Dongle for the DJI M300 Smart Controller to allow direct connection to the CORS network (for regions where this service is available)

360 Colorization

Handheld 360 Image Kit

ALSO AVAILABLE:

Protective Pelican case

Emlid RS2+/RS3 RTK Receiver

Emlid RS2+ Base Station Kit

Emesent Products

Case study

Drone RTK: Improved SLAM accuracy & georeferencing report

Utilizing RTK capability can improve SLAM performance in low-feature areas and/or long-duration scans as well as georeferencing the point cloud.

It also can enable Hovermap to produce high-quality point clouds when traveling at higher velocities and altitudes and mitigate the trade-off between low resolution and SLAM accuracy.

Read the report

Fast, accurate, drone-based scans without GCPs

Benefit from:

Where to use Drone RTK

Where to use Drone RTK

COMPATIBLE WITH:

COMPATIBLE WITH:

ALSO AVAILABLE:

ALSO AVAILABLE:

Emesent Products

Payloads

Software

Accessories

Extensions

Robotics platforms

Drone RTK: Improved SLAM accuracy & georeferencing report

Further Reading

M350 drone RTK sample dataset

How does Real-time Kinematics (RTK) work?

Autonomously Mapping a Complete Bridge As-Built

Want to learn more?