The sUAS Guide Issue 02, July 2016 | Page 64

a “Real Estate shot” may be taken to give to the prospective client to assist with the sale. Cities may ask for video of trees along a key boulevard to monitor health or overflight of a park to check water stress of trees and turf.

Although UAV flights are still seen by the public as interesting, privacy concerns are occasionally an issue in cities. This usually can be overcome – and turned into a future opportunity – by briefly visiting adjacent neighbors and informing them of the reason for the flight. Providing neighbors with your professional brochure and business card not only lends credibility, but helps your company be remembered as well. In short, a flight operation for the tree care industry is not like a typical flight for other industries and requires both flight skills and people skills to do the job well.

Large Landscapes

Large landscapes are contiguous landscapes in urban areas managed by a public entity, private company or association. Salaried staff or hired contractors usually maintain such areas, and may have varying levels of technical knowledge. There often are several types of individual landscapes in these areas, including discrete areas of turfgrass, trees, shrub and/or flower beds, water features, and sometimes recreation areas. The landscape maintenance industry is, as of this writing, just now beginning to see the potential of UAS in large landscapes.

UAS pilots may be asked by a contractor to fly visual or near infrared (NIR) or infrared (IR) missions to get a rapid view of turf health, tree nutrient deficiencies, extent of areas where plants are damaged after severe weather, or signs of pest infestation. Landscape Architects may want an aerial view to assess the differences between plans and what is on the ground, or to calculate turf area in real time prior to making bids on services. Landscape maintenance contractors may want a real-time view of a property for calculation of area for a bid submittal or severe weather clean-up.

No two flights for large landscapes will be the same, and the ultimate potential for UAS expansion in large landscapes is not certain at this time. However, it is safe to say the industry is ripe to learn what UAS can do to cut costs and improve inspections, disaster response, and monitoring.

The Recreation Industries

The recreation industries relevant to this article – sports fields and golf courses – are synonymous

Above: Typical approach to a tree to inspect for pests and disease.
Photo courtesy of Bryan Archer, Galaxy UAV

Above: Some damage can only be seen
from above, such as hail, squirrels, and
some diseases.
Photo courtesy of Joris Voeten, Roofscapes

Below: Typical flight inspection looking for
risks and hazards.
Photo courtesy of Joris Voeten, Roofscapes