As we prepare for our mid-2019 design and build effort (there will be news about this soon, released here) we are watching the UAV industry emerge into a first generation stage of some maturity.
Aerial survey markets using “drones” are reported to have reached $12 billion last year in North America. A lot of this will be property videos, but crop surveys, infrastructure inspections and other industrial uses are catching up fast.
What is even more interesting to the Sky Hopper team is that as uses multiply, inevitably the capability of the carry platform has to increase. Examples we have read about this week alone are tree-planting drones, drones helping to fight the Notre Dame fire and even a call for a drone that could lift a fire hose. (We’re wondering how easy that might be if the hose was turned on having seen four firefighters struggling to haul one pumping water across the paving stones of the Isle de France).
But the point is there, multiple capabilities are needed. And that means designing an adaptable, flexible use carry-platform suitable for multiple payloads. This is exactly what we have been concentrating on recently in the design of our underslung cargo module. Sky Hopper can carry cameras, detectors and sensors, field equipment as well as parts and tools; we now have design conformations of our cargo module that will suit all these uses.
This is important, as an industrial device we will be more expensive than standard drone copters, but if the industry is going to mature further to really earn revenues across multiple uses it has to be multiply capable. That’s our opportunity.
PS: Our investor hunt is moving on and we are making headway. Please consider investing in our vehicle. We are offering equity in what we believe is becoming an increasingly valuable asset. The minimum is £250, and you can make a pledge at this stage with no obligation. Eventually we will be closed to new pledges so this offer has a limited duration.