At senseFly, we believe in using technology to make work safer and more efficient. Our proven drone solutions simplify the collection and analysis of geospatial data, allowing professionals in surveying, agriculture, engineering and humanitarian aid to make better decisions, faster.

(https://www.sensefly.com/home.html)

eBee Plus

The eBee Plus is a large coverage photogrammetric mapping drone featuring RTK/PPK upgradeability for survey-grade accuracy on demand. The eBee Plus system is the ultimate tool for geospatial organisations that demand photogrammetric-quality mapping. With its unique upgradeable RTK/PPK functionality and flight time of almost an hour, this simple, largely automated solution is perfect for professionals working in fields such as surveying, construction and GIS who require a highly efficient method of data collection with survey-grade accuracy. Learn more about eBee Plus

albris

albris is a sensor-rich mapping and inspection drone with the widest camera breadth of any civilian platform. It was designed from the ground up to perform close inspections of bridges, buildings, and other structures with the goal of collecting high-resolution imagery and video. The fully stabilized TripleView camera head allows the operator to capture high-resolution still images on demand and also switch between HD and thermal video imagery live during flight. Learn more about albris

AirMap is the world’s leading airspace intelligence platform for drones. Millions of drones, hundreds of drone manufacturers, developers, and airspace managers rely on AirMap’s airspace services to maintain situational awareness and communicate with others in low-altitude airspace.

(https://www.airmap.com/)

Authentication & Verification

The AirMap platform includes a suite of security solutions for reliable identification, verification, and authentication of a drone in-flight via SSL/TLS certificates. Together with DigiCert, AirMap created Drone ID, the first-ever publicly-trusted digital certificate for drones.

Digital Airspace Authorization

AirMap allows for the instant authorization of drone operations by third parties based on contextual airspace rules designated by airspace authorities for a given jurisdiction. Flight plans identified as low-risk can be pre-approved for authorization with AirMap’s easy-to-use digital airspace management dashboard.

Flight Planning with Live Telemetry

AirMap provides dynamic flight-planning capabilities based on airspace advisories, obstacles, weather, and nearby aircraft for real-time deconfliction and rules-based geofencing. Live telemetry is available for every flight, including positioning, flight path, takeoff and landing, distance, and altitude.

Unlocking connected aircraft value

We empower the air transport industry through tailored ‘nose-to-tail’ connectivity solutions that deliver true value. This is connected aircraft innovation you can trust.

(http://www.sitaonair.aero/).

PX4: THE PROFESSIONAL AUTOPILOT

PX4 is an open-source, open-hardware project with the goal of becoming the best and most popular high-end autopilot for academic, commercial and industrial uses cases (BSD licensed).

(http://px4.io/)

Skyopener & ViaDrone

A plot project deals with maintenance flights for high-voltage lines and railway tracks with a drone that has a wingspan of 4.2 meters an operating time of 10 hours and a maximum range of 1’000 kilometres. Skyopener and ViaDrone will show the use of Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) for commercial applications. Skyopener is the European funded project, while ViaDrone is funded by Switzerland. Being part of both consortiums will minimize our expenses for research & development.

Skyguide’s ILS checker

By employing a drone for checking a part of the instrument landing system ILS, we will be able to reduce the costs for flight calibration services. By 2020 we will operate drones for maintaining NAVAIDs. We will thus save 360’000 CHF per year.

Integrating drones into the airspace
Aircraft are one of the safest means of transport. This should remain the case, even with the massive increase in the use of unmanned aerial vehicles or “drones”. Skyguide has begun work, together with a number of partners, on developing a system to integrate these drones safely and efficiently into the airspace they use.
SESAR, Europe’s air traffic management research programme, estimates that some seven million drones will be flying in the continent’s airspace for leisure purposes by 2050, with a further 400 000 in use for commercial or official purposes. The development of the drone industry depends on our ability to integrate these vehicles safely and efficiently into the airspace they use. And it was to this end that the non-profit Global Unmanned Aircraft Traffic Management Association (GUTMA) was founded back in July 2016 with skyguide participation.

How this goal could be achieved was demonstrated by skyguide and its project partners in Geneva in September 2017. The “U-Space” concept will provide the digital infrastructure, services and procedures required to give drones access to airspace while still ensuring the safety of other airspace users. As the successful live demonstration in Geneva underlined, skyguide is at the forefront in the development of such systems, and is well ready for the next step in the drone integration process. Skyguide now plans to develop a fully automated and interlinked digital U-Space infrastructure between now and 2025.

U-Space should not be limited to a single country. And this is why skyguide is ensuring that it is developed in due and full compliance with all the requirements of the European Commission, which are being devised by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

A skyguide ILS checker
Skyguide intends to use drones for its own purposes, too. Up until now, the checks and calibrations of the company’s instrument landing systems (ILS) have had to be performed by an aircraft specially flown in from Germany. In future, drones will be able to perform some of this work.

By using drones equipped with measuring instruments, the number of calibration flights and their measurement programmes will be reduced by 50 per cent from 2020 and by 70 per cent from 2023, thus cutting CO2 emissions by 142 tons and energy consumption by 541 MWh per year from 2020. From 2023, we will see a reduction of 199 tons of CO2 and a cut in energy consumption of 757 MWh per year, according to skyguide’s forecast.

While an increasing number of drones using lower airspace pose additional safety challenges, they also create new opportunities for innovation. Skyguide launched a project to use drones for maintenance of automatic landing systems at airports in 2016. Since January of this year, a specially equipped drone is operational at Zurich and Geneva airport. With this innovative approach, skyguide will in the mid-term be able to considerably reduce costs and environmental impact.

Automatic landing systems provide pilots with precision guidance for a safe approach and landing on the runway under conditions of reduced visibility. These systems have to be calibrated at Swiss airports every six months. This is currently performed by means of calibration flights operated at various heights and angles. An aircraft with specialized equipment is flown in from Germany for this purpose. This is expensive, and causes greenhouse gas emissions and noise during low traffic periods, usually during the night at international airports.

Specially equipped drone in use in Zurich and Geneva
“By employing drones to check automatic landing systems, skyguide will be able to significantly reduce costs and operational disturbance as well as CO2 and noise emissions”, says Hervé Demule, navigation engineer and project leader. Drones for regular preventive and corrective maintenance of the instrument landing system (ILS) are in use since January 2018 at Zurich and Geneva airports, and will be deployed to regional airports in the second half of this year. Additionally, a deployment to other Navigation Aid Systems is also being considered.

Hervé Demule further says: “We are now collecting data to ensure stable and precise measurement results. By the end of 2019 and once measurement accuracy and correlation to flight check have been confirmed, skyguide intends to reduce calibration flights performed by aircraft”.

Number of calibration flights halved by 2020
By using drones equipped with measuring instruments, the number of ILS calibration flights and their measurement programmes will be reduced by 50 per cent from 2020 and by 70 per cent from 2023, thus cutting CO2 emissions by 142 tons per year from 2020. From 2023, a reduction of 199 tons of CO2 will be realised per year, according to skyguide’s forecast.

Skyguide experts will be presenting their innovative solution on Thursday 19 April at the International Flight Inspection Symposium IFIS in Monterey, California. More information at: https://www.ion.org/ifis/abstracts.cfm?paperID=5590

Skyguide & AirMap Join Forces to Develop Europe’s First National Drone Traffic Management System

Today, skyguide, the Swiss air navigation service provider, and AirMap, the leading global airspace management platform for drones, announced that they will develop and deploy the first national drone traffic management system in Europe.

The system will be the first national deployment of U-space, Europe’s vision for the digital infrastructure that will support safe and secure access to European skies for millions of drones. Much like the U.S. “Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM)” initiative, U-space is a collaborative effort to enable situational awareness, data exchange, and digital communication for the European drone ecosystem.

In a pilot phase starting in June 2018, skyguide and AirMap plan to integrate the AirMap UTM platform with skyguide’s infrastructure and introduce automated flight authorization in a single airspace environment. Skyguide and AirMap will also develop a roadmap for Swiss U-space that will set the stage for the deployment of a fully operational drone traffic management system in 2019 and beyond.

Swiss U-space will ensure that all categories of drones and all types of missions can safely take flight in Switzerland’s airspace. Swiss U-space will include features such as:

• Blockchain-based registration for users and drones;
• Dynamic geofencing and instant digital airspace authorization;
• Real-time traffic alerts for drone pilots and live drone telemetry for airspace managers;
• Connectivity and communication between drone pilots and airspace administrators;
• Other services to enable simultaneous flights in shared airspace.

“After a year of successful collaboration with AirMap, we expect that the AirMap UTM platform meets the highest standards required for a Swiss U-space,” says Klaus Meier, Chief Information Officer of skyguide. “We’re looking forward to bringing U-space capabilities to Switzerland and we are excited to drive this innovation together with AirMap.”

“With Swiss U-space, Switzerland aims to safely open the skies for drone commerce,” said Ben Marcus, CEO of AirMap. “We’re proud to work with skyguide to bring AirMap UTM to Switzerland and make it possible for more pilots, more drones, and more missions to take flight in Europe.”

“The establishment of a U-space is the key to improve drone operations’ safety and to satisfy the security and privacy concerns of our citizens. In order to achieve these objectives, a seamless cooperation between all the partners involved is crucial. I am glad to see that a further important step to tackle this challenge was taken today.” said Christian Hegner, Director General of Switzerland’s Federal Office of Civil Aviation.

Swiss U-space will be a powerful catalyst for Switzerland’s drone economy. Since 2013, drone flight requests at skyguide have multiplied tenfold. Switzerland is home to a thriving community of drone companies and the world’s first autonomous drone delivery network, located in Zürich.

The partnership follows the success of skyguide’s 2017 Swiss U-space trial, the first live demonstration of sophisticated U-space services in Europe. Together, skyguide, AirMap, and SITAONAIR exhibited fully operational U-space capabilities – including registration and identification, geofencing, and flight authorization – during live drone missions performed by senseFly and PX4 in Geneva.

With deployments in Switzerland, Japan, New Zealand, and the United States, AirMap UTM is the most comprehensive and connected platform of its kind. The platform offers up-to-date airspace information for every country in the world, national airspace rules for more than 20 countries, and the largest network of drone operators, manufacturers, and airspace managers in the drone ecosystem, reaching more than 85% of the world’s drones.

View the media kit here.