The data needs to processed, stored, and provided to the end users.
You have two options for this. You can do it all in-house, using desktop software such as Pix4D or Esri’s Drone2Map. This works well for small volumes of data, but our experience has shown that once you have a drone, the number of flights and volume of data will only increase.
The other option, one we strongly recommend for larger volumes of data, is cloud-a based solution such as Propeller, Delair.AI or Strayos. These systems will take the raw drone data – photos, point clouds, etc., and process them into final products – DEMs, orthophotos etc., suitable for use in a variety of end-user software packages. This might be a Geographic Information System (GIS) package such as Esri’s ArcGIS; any one of several Autodesk products; or more specialized software in use at your site.
Some cloud solutions, such as Propeller and Delair.AI, also include significant data analytics capabilities. Offering a portal where users can perform both simple and complex analytics, including machine learning data analysis:
• stock piles – volumes, cut and fill;
• haul roads – slope, aspect, grade;
• construction – compare actual with design to track progress;
• tailings dam monitoring – review change over time to spot problems before they become serious issues
Using a cloud-based solution has numerous advantages. It eliminates all the data management issues that inevitably arise when large volumes of data are stored in-house. You no longer need worry about naming conventions, lack of storage space, data cataloging, data searching or data retrieval. Your IT team will thank you!
In the past there were justified concerns about the security and reliability of cloud-based solutions. However, as the technology has matured these concerns have faded. These days the cloud may be more secure and reliable than your network.
Once you have selected a cloud-based service for your drone data you will sit down with them and discuss:
• what data you will be sending
• how much data you will be sending
• how often you will be sending it
• how you want the data processed, named and accessed
Once the end-users of the data are satisfied that the data they are getting is what they need, they will not care about the details of its collection, processing or storage. All they will need to know is where to find the latest version of the data they need. It can even be delivered to them as it is processed, making their work easier than ever!
If you would like to learn more about skymineUAV, our partners and the application of drones to tailings dam monitoring, please contact us at: info@skymineuav.com
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Photo by Shane McLendon on Unsplash