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The drone in your future

Drones for field workers

But now let’s look at what all that means for field workers and the typical users of rugged mobile computers.

Quite obviously, being able to control a camera that can fly has enormous potential. It can easily go anywhere and anyplace where ladders, scaffolds, and potentially dangerous trekking would otherwise be needed. That makes it ideal for inspections, damage assessment whether it’s the big picture from way above or from very close-up.

It can be used to take breathtaking video of real estate, natural settings, bridges, tall buildings and plenty more. It can go inside of structures that may be unsafe. The application potential is endless.

Sounds almost too good to be true, doesn’t it. But it’s all real, and it’s only going get to get better and ever more sophisticated. The small 12-megapixel camera, not enough? For a mere $200 more, DJI offers the same quadcopter setup with a 20-megapixel Hasselblad camera.

Need a bigger drone with some payload capacity? They are available. Need a bigger screen? You can hook the controller up to a tablet. Is the screen not bright enough? DJI offers a controller with its own sunlight-viewable display.

And then there are the laws and regulations. Even for a small drone like the DJI Mavic 2, the controller insists on downloading the latest regulations and restrictions before each and every flight. If too close to a sensitive area, one may have to get permission to fly first.

And anything that is considered commercial use of a drone requires a license. It’s not terribly difficult to get but still requires studying and passing a test. And depending on where you are, the law of the land may make little legal difference between flying a drone and flying an actual aircraft.

That all said, it’s easy to see that drones will likely become tools for the job for many fields and other workers who now use rugged mobile electronics. So the sooner you start acquainting yourself with drone technology, the better off you are.

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By: Conrad H. Blickenstorfer RuggedPCReview.com[/mks_pullquote]

 
Conrad H. Blickenstorfer
Conrad H. Blickenstorfer, Ph.D., co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of Pen Computing Magazine, has extensive experience in all aspects of rugged computing from his many years at the helm of the Pen Computing industry journal, Digital Camera Magazine, Handheld Computing Magazine, and his years of service as Director of Information Systems and Chief Information Officer with the New York State Dormitory and project manager for the New York State Urban Development Corporation. He has also written for numerous technology journals and wrote the mobile technology section in Fortune Magazine's semi-annual technology buyers guide for years. Blickenstorfer has visited numerous rugged manufacturing operations in the US, Japan, and Taiwan.