Drone Swarms Predicted to Be the Next Big Drone Use

Drones are playing an increasingly important role in production agriculture. Nutrient ag solutions, Chief drone pilot Will Fellmeth, says he sees swarming as the next big thing when it comes to drone use.

“Having the capability to have multiple drones going at once will be key to covering the acres that you need to cover. We'll also be seeing the adoption of bigger, heavier, larger drones. In addition to the swarming capabilities, I would say that we would also see drones that are larger and also filling at the space of a manned aviation aircraft, so larger fixed wing aircraft that have larger tank capacities, more equivalent to current manned aviation area applications.”

Fellmeth notes another trend called See and Spray.

“So you send a small scouting drone up to scout your field, gather intelligence about the field, where specific applications may or may not need to be made. You then upload that data on the field on the same day, even the same morning, to your aerial applications drone, generate a prescription map, and then you go out and you fly a targeted aerial application flight.”

Once again, Nutrien Ag Solutions Chief Drone Pilot Will Fellmeth.