As we have all noticed recently, drone shows are becoming more and more popular.
You have probably seen one up close and personal at an event you have attended, from your home through your window, or on the national holiday for example.
Whether promoting a brand or celebrating an event, any occasion is good to deploy illuminated drones in the sky and watch them create exceptional animations.
But to get these illuminated drones into the air, we need a number of essential tools and equipment.
One of the major components of a drone light show by Drotek is the ground control station.
A ground control station (GCS), for a drone light show, is an embedded computer, a command center, and an essential and required component for managing the drones in a show.
Its purpose is simple : Real-time supervision and monitoring of the entire fleet, or of a single flying drone.
This constant monitoring ensures that images are received and recorded, and coordinates all the movements of each deployed drone so that they are perfectly synchronized with each other.
Fluidity, precision and communication are the keywords of the GCS.
You have guessed it, it is a crucial technology for the success of a drone show, but what does are his functionality?
This station has several features, useful for practical flights in various environments:
Modular: All equipment is designed to be easily adjustable. You can customize your antennas to suit the field you are operating in, or to suit your own taste. Several antennas can also be connected, greatly improving coverage of the field and making communication more reliable.
Network interface: the station can be connected to any existing network, making it very practical for travel.
IP67 certified: Finally, it is fully water- and dust-resistant, so you can practice flying in any environment, unhindered.
Now let's look at the main components, specific to the GCS: what does it contain?
As we already mentioned before, we have an embedded computer available, which is a central electronic and computer system for supervising and managing the drones fleet.
The latter can be likened to the GCS's brain, because it centralizes all the UAV's commands and data.
By centralizing these functions, the computer guarantees the stability and precision of drones in flight.
Associated with its antenna, the RTK (Real-Time Kinematic) base station is a satellite positioning technology that corrects drone positioning in instantaneous.
Our drones are themselves equipped with GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receivers, so that they can receive corrections, then use them to adjust their positioning by centimetric position.
At Drotek, we have also developed in-house a secure local application which is useful for receiving images from the RTK base station.
This application is designed to manage our drones via a web browser, simply by connecting our personal computer, our tablet to the GCS's Ethernet port or using a Wi-Fi connection.
The application facilitates real-time interaction with the drones and offers instant access to images and data.
Our drone show software include a web browser-based interface, enabling you to operate and monitor your drones on a personal computer or tablet.
This interface provides :
Instantly visualization of all drones deployed for your show and their status (connected, standby, ready, takeoff, dance, landing, RTL, failed takeoff, kill, disconnected);
Real-time data on your drones' position, speed and altitude, wind speed, etc;
An individual or collective command order if it is necessary to carry out specific maneuvers during the drone show.
You have the option of configuring the software to your own requirements, for added security.
Since you are connected to a closed local network, there is no risk of outside interference during your show.
Choreography files for your show can be set to your drones in seconds.
This is very useful for preparing your sequences, but also if you have any last-minute settings or modifications to make, you can send them instantly to your drones thanks to the drone show software.
To guarantee the best possible performance for your drone show, it is essential to execute a few GCS and drone firmware updates occasionally.
These updates can save your show, as they improve drone accuracy, provide new features and fix frequently encountered bugs, so it is recommended to be regular!
Let's find out why it is essential to have a GCS in the making of drone shows.
Before every new show, a few preparations are necessary:
Downloading sequences: The choreography files are downloaded to the drones via the GCS web application.
Pre-flight checks: The health of the sensors and the statue of the drone's battery are checked before the beginning of the show to ensure safety and that everything is working properly.
During your show, the GCS allows you to monitor your drones immediately, and gives on-site operators complete visibility of each drone's position, movements, battery health, etc.
This retransmission to the drone show software interface enables you to adjust deviated trajectories, ensure drone synchronization, and take immediate action in the event of difficulty.
Finally, once the show is over and the drones have returned to their takeoff point, their performance can be collected, and you can star analyzed in depth.
This process can include assessing the precision of movements, drone stability, etc., for example.
By examining these aspects, we can identify strengths and areas for improvement for future events.
Drotek is a French company located in South of France. The group has 2 poles of expertise : Electronics – Drone Light Show
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