The mission planning process

Being confident and familiar with Hovermap can mean the difference between great results and a failed mission. Hovermap perceives the world differently from traditional LiDAR systems, and you will need to plan your mission effectively to maximize the quality of your results.

Some environments, such as large outdoor areas, can present a challenge for Hovermap, so preparation and planning can make all the difference.

If you lack the confidence to operate Hovermap as a payload in certain areas, performing a separate walking scan is a perfectly viable solution. The data from the walking scan can be merged with the overall data later on. Make sure that you only operate to your capabilities!

The process

Questions

• What am I hoping to achieve?

• What is my subject of interest?

• What capture method will I be using?
  For example, will it be a walking scan, a vehicle or drone-mounted scan, lowering Hovermap in a cage?
  Or a combination of these?

• What level of accuracy do I need?

• Do I need to use GCPs?

• What are my limitations?

  • Are there accessibility limitations?

  • How much time do I have to do the job?

  • How many batteries do I have?

  • Are there any other equipment limitations?

• Do I want a colorized scan?

For more specific information on how to plan in some of the more common scenarios, go to the Mission planning section.

Questions

• Does the environment have enough features to provide a good quality scan?

• If not:

  • Can I add features to the environment to improve the scan quality?

  • Can I mitigate the lack of features in some areas by planning my mission path to account for this?

• Is there a good GPS signal available?

• Are there any moving objects?

• What is the best size scan for this environment?

• Do I need to break up my scan into multiple scans?

• If I need to split it up, how should I scan each different section?

Questions

• Where is the best starting point?

• What scanning pattern will I use?

  • How will I close the loop?

  • Should I use lots of little loops?

  • Should I use a grid pattern?

  • If performing multiple scans, how will I ensure that there is at least 20% overlap between these scans?

• How will I keep features in front of Hovermap as I perform my scan?

• How close can I get to environmental features?

• Where do I need to place GCPs?

• Where should I place my rally point?
  (Set your rally point in an open space, within visual line of sight. For more information, go to The Hovermap App.)

• Where should I place my waypoints?
  (For more information, go to The Hovermap App.).

• If you require a colorized scan:

  • How will I keep the GoPro within the 20 m range?

  • How will I keep the GoPro directly focused on the area of interest?

Questions

• What speed do I need to travel at?
  (Remember, the slower, the better.)

• How high should I fly?
  (The lower, the better.)

• Can I easily follow the terrain, keeping to a height of 40 m or less?

• How will I keep my scans as short as possible?

• What autonomy mode will I be using?

• What primary and secondary navigation methods should I choose?
  (Go to Understanding Hovermap for more information.)

• What is my turning technique?
  (Remember to turn slowly, and to keep features within Hovermap’s field of view while turning.)

Go to Emergency flight recovery guide for more detailed information.

Questions

• What is my emergency contingency plan?

• How will I take over control of the drone if necessary?
  (This will be platform-specific.)

• How can I abort the mission if necessary?

• How will I abort the mission if Hovermap is beyond visual line of sight?

• Do I need to think about protecting people, animals, or objects?

Questions

• Is my scan path unobstructed?

• Is my scan area free of people?

• Is my scan area free of other moving objects?

• Have I placed my GCPs around the area?

• If colorizing the scan, do I have suitable lighting to create a quality color scan?

Questions

• Have I set my primary and secondary navigation methods?

• Is Auto-enable VESH on takeoff turned on?
  (We recommend that this setting is always turned on. Go to The Hovermap App for more information.)

• What is the best name for my scan?
  (Make sure that you name your scan clearly so that you can find it again for downloading and processing. Leave no doubt as to what the scan is.)

• Have I performed all other pre-mission checks?

You can do this in the Hovermap App. You can also do this by connecting to the Hovermap’s Wi-Fi, opening a web browser (on any laptop or Android device), and then navigating to hover.map:8082.

Questions

• Have I downloaded all the data collected?

• Do I have enough free space on Hovermap for the next mission?

• If something didn’t go to plan, have I downloaded all relevant log files?

• Have I processed the scan using the Standard profile?
  (If your results are not as desired using this profile, you can then change the processing parameters. Go to the Mission planning section for more information about settings for specific environments.)

Questions

• What was successful?

• What was unsuccessful?

• What have I learned?

• What can I do better next time?

• Do I need to contact Customer Success (or my local reseller) for further assistance?