introduction
| Application/Software Types (By Function) | Purpose | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Acquisition software | Used for controlling the drone during the flight. Examples include: Pix4D Capture, Maps Made Easy, and UCGS: A Desktop software for image/video stitching software. | The grower flies a drone over the plants and field to collect images that provide information about the health, disease and, stressors affecting the crop. This new way to monitor the crop is more efficient than the traditional method of walking the field to view plant growth, size, and potential for disease or signs of environmental stressors. |
| Processing software | Typically run on a desktop PC/laptop and compatible with most Windows-based operating system. User can stitch together the many data points collected from a drone flight to create a point cloud which can be transformed into reports such as: Digital surface or terrain models, topographical maps, 3D textured mesh. | Ability to determine needs for the crop and field as well as possible disease developing early on in the growing season which increases the chance for the crop’s quality and overall yield to be greater. It allows the grower to respond to environmental stressors thus reducing the risk of crop failure. Aids the grower in determining optimal timing for harvesting. |
| Cloud-based or All-in-one software | Users can upload images to the cloud-based service for processing, analysis reports, and archiving the data and reports. | This software solution can be more cost effective because no heavy upfront cost for purchasing all of hardware/software applications needed for precision farming. Have IT support from the service provider. |