Commercial systems desk · 11 mission lanes
Choose the client mission, assemble the smallest complete system, prove the handoff, then upgrade only when paid demand creates a requirement.
Mission selector
Selected mission
Begin with RGB scouting and a real agronomic question. Add multispectral or thermal only when calibration and field validation are part of the method.
The sensor finds patterns; field evidence and an agronomist determine what those patterns mean.
Buyer
Growers, agronomists, crop consultants, researchers, and co-ops
Accepted output
A repeatable field observation layer tied to ground truth and a crop decision
Open the full mission guideMinimum viable system
Check an item only when the system meets its field acceptance test. Owning the object is not the same as being ready to sell the work.
System readiness
0/4
Stored for this visit only. Verify requirements on every assignment.
Field context, visible stress patterns, stand documentation, and repeat imagery
Why it earns a place
RGB can answer many first scouting questions without the cost and calibration burden of a specialized sensor.
Ready when
Supported repeat route, consistent camera state, complete field coverage, and field-boundary control.
Connect aerial patterns to geotagged field observations
Why it earns a place
An aerial anomaly has little agronomic value until someone inspects the plants, soil, water, or infrastructure.
Ready when
Sampling plan, location method, field photos, notes, and domain partner review.
Organize imagery, observations, zones, dates, and exports
Why it earns a place
The grower needs a field decision layer rather than an unlabeled mosaic.
Ready when
Correct field identity, CRS, date, crop stage, source record, and usable export.
Separate biological change from light, sensor, and processing change
Why it earns a place
Time of day, sun, cloud, growth stage, water, wind, and calibration can all change the observed pattern.
Ready when
Sensor, settings, time, weather, crop stage, calibration method, and deviations recorded.
Field pack
Field boots, high-visibility clothing, and landowner check-in
Work safely around equipment, roads, livestock, irrigation, and crop rows.
Ground markers and field GPS method
Return to sample areas and match aerial and field observations.
Sensor-matched calibration target
Follow the specialized sensor's documented reflectance procedure.
Biosecurity cleaning kit
Avoid moving soil, seed, or plant material between sites.
Procurement method
This page recommends capabilities and systems, not a universal shopping cart. Exact aircraft, payload, software, security, and approval requirements remain assignment-specific.
An orthomosaic, listing gallery, thermal dataset, search record, and cinema take are different products. Write the handoff before choosing hardware.
Cover aircraft, payload, power, field control, software, source custody, QA, and delivery. A drone by itself is not a working stack.
Run the complete workflow and test the output in the client's destination system before promising compatibility, accuracy, or turnaround.
Add RTK, thermal, LiDAR, zoom, FPV, or a larger aircraft only when a funded assignment creates a requirement the baseline cannot meet.
Continue the working path
Use the mission guide to learn the deliverable, the software desk to choose the production stack, the requirements checker to identify approvals, and the profit calculator to include processing, subscriptions, travel, insurance, and equipment reserve.
Source policy
Regulatory cautions link to FAA, EPA, USGS, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and other primary or official material. Product buttons route through Drone Authority's existing tracked catalog; Amazon links may earn a commission, while manufacturer options remain available when they are the useful source. Compatibility, prices, support, and rules can change.
Verify current FAA requirements