International Unmanned Aerial Systems provider, PrecisionHawk, has teamed up with Harper Adams to deliver drone training in exchange for aerial imagery of the university’s campus.
As part of a growing relationship established through the Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) Special Interest Group, PrecisionHawk visited Harper Adams to fly one of its Lancaster vehicles as part of a training and demonstration session for its users.
During this session, a range of photographs were taken of the campus, primarily a trials field used to assess to effect of farm traffic on crop yields and soil structure.
Research Assistant at Harper Adams, Jonathan Gill, who is also a qualified drone pilot, said: “Having PrecisionHawk host their training session on campus has proven a fantastic opportunity to obtain high-quality aerial images of our research, which clearly show how the plots within the field have developed.
“This visual representation from the sky gives a completely different perspective on the field, and we are delighted to be developing this mutually beneficial relationship with fellow drone enthusiasts.”
PrecisionHawk prides itself in providing highly intelligent, user-friendly, UAS for remote sensing. Neil Gabriel, PrecisionHawk’s Training and Operations Manager for Europe, said: “At PrecisionHawk, we are very keen to work with leading establishments like Harper Adams University.
“Through these links, we are able to foster the development of new techniques such as sophisticated image processing algorithms which help to translate raw aerial imagery into actionable data, enabling the farmer or agronomist to create precision field prescriptions that are an essential component of delivering a successful precision farming system.”
Chris Harry Thomas, VP Agriculture and Head of European Operations at PrecisionHawk added: “PrecisionHawk are very pleased to be working with Harper Adams University on this training initiative and other projects."
The UAS Special Interest Group is a membership group focused on the application of unmanned aerial systems in agriculture.
It is supported by the National Centre for Precision Farming at Harper Adams, and founder member URSULA Agriculture. Its membership broadly reflects the UAS in agriculture industry, including UAS operators, operations and service providers, technologists, agronomists, agricultural training and academia.
