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Mining Exploration Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data Protocol



Mining Exploration Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data Protocol

In the vast Yukon area, a mineral exploration team uses a UAV such as the eBee by Sensefly to create elevation model orthomosiac high resolution imaging.  This geospatial high definition 3D imagery is shown to clients exploring areas of particular interest such as ridge tops or areas that may be untouched and contain precious metals (Sensefly, 2015).  They can reach these regions by helicopter, set up a mobile control station, and use a hand auger to take soil samples.  Soil samples offer miners a broad idea of the mineral content.  The UAV 3D mapping allows the client to explore particular areas with quickness and leave a minimal environmental footprint.
The eBee is a small ultra- light EPP foam and carbon construction weighing 1.5 pounds with a rear facing propeller that is hand launched and navigated through predetermined waypoints.  It is designed to be user friendly and require no UAV flying experience although its sensor payloads are fairly simple.  The sensor fusion of onboard Global Position System (GPS) and Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) provides accuracy for autopilot navigation.  IMU augments GPS by providing dead reckoning where a GPS signal is unavailable.  The eMotion Flight Data Manager is the processing unit and data storage system.  The battery supply operates at 11.1 volts, and stores up to 2150 mAh.  The power drawn by its payloads is unknown.  At nominal cruise speed, its maximum flight time is 50 minutes.  The command, control and communication of the eBee are provided through a 2.4 GHz radio link to communicate with the eMotion flight data manager via ground modem.  The range is approximately 3 km.
Multiple camera options are available for image acquisition and geotagging.  The 18.2 megapixel WX RGB camera provides a ground resolution of 2.75 cm/pixel at 100 meters with a JPEG image format.  For multispectral sensor imaging, the Sequoia by Parrot contains a 64 GB built in storage and provides four visible and non-visible spectral bands in addition to RGB.  The main body operates at 5 W up to 12 W peak while the sensor body contains the 4 spectral sensors, GPS/IMU, SD card slot and draws 1 W of power.  The thermoMAP can be equipped on the eBee and captures video and still thermal imaging with TIFF and MP4 formats.  The thermoMAP power usage and data storage is unknown.  Lastly the S110 NIR/RE provides imagery of Near Infrared (NIR) and red edge band parameters by JPEG or RAW.  The cameras installed for particular flight are adapted to be controlled by the eBee’s autopilot system.
The eMotion Flight Data Manager is responsible for all processing from sensor and operator inputs.  The collection of high resolution aerial images is transformed into georeferenced orthomosaic raster or orthophoto (eBee Sensefly, 2017).  After flight the information is imported from the eBee’s flight data manager to the photogrammetry software Pix4Dmapper pro where data can be assessed and interpreted.
This small UAV is a simple design with a high tech data processing unit.  Creation of an orthomosaic photo provides a wealth of data for professionals in the mineral exploration field, or surveying and agriculture fields.

References
eBee: senseFly SA. (2017). Sensefly.com. Retrieved 17 April 2017, from https://www.sensefly.com/drones/ebee.html
Sensefly (2015, January 19). Using an Autonomous eBee for Mining Exploration [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6t4nEKtZsY

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