A webinar conducted by Pamela Gauci, Senior Marketing Manager at Velodyne Lidar, and Dr. Stefan Hrabar, CEO of Emesent, discussed how to address autonomous exploration in challenging settings such as mines, movie locations, dense forests and urban environments.
The episode was part of the Velodyne Lidar LIVE! digital learning series.
Emesent is a recognized a world-leader in drone autonomy, lidar mapping and data analytics. They are using Velodyne’s Puck LITE™ sensors to power their award-winning Hovermap mobile scanning system for mapping hazardous and GPS-denied environments. Hovermap provides high-quality data capture for the mining, construction/infrastructure, forestry, defense, oil and gas, and film industries.
Here are three takeaways from the webinar:
Stefan noted how Hovermap is a “2 in 1” system that provides both mapping and autonomy. Hovermap produces reliable, accurate mapping data, and has a colorization feature for its 3D point clouds that brings additional context for visualization and analysis. Emesent-developed SLAM capabilities allow mobile mapping even when GPS is unavailable. Stefan shared with viewers how Emesent’s Autonomy Level 2 (AL2) enables Hovermap to autonomously fly a drone beyond line-of-sight and communication range.
Stefan discussed how Puck LITE’s 360 degree, surround view technology enables Hovermap to maintain a “virtual shield” around a drone in all phases of flight. Hovermap provides industrial-grade collision detection and avoidance capabilities that keep drones safe flying beyond the line-of-sight. That includes in a wide variety of environments – underground, indoor and outdoor – and in both day and night conditions.
Stefan shared how Hovermap is bringing value in mining, forestry and mapping. He also showed the versatility of Hovermap by discussing XM2, a leader in drone cinematography in Australia. XM2 uses Hovermap to capture 3D representations of movie scenes to be provided to visual effects teams to create digital backdrops for films. Included among the films where Hovermap has been used are the latest Star Wars, Fast & Furious, James Bond and Mission Impossible.
Watch the full webinar below!
Velodyne Lidar (Nasdaq: VLDR, VLDRW) ushered in a new era of autonomous technology with the invention of real-time surround view lidar sensors. Velodyne, a global leader in lidar, is known for its broad portfolio of breakthrough lidar technologies. Velodyne’s revolutionary sensor and software solutions provide flexibility, quality and performance to meet the needs of a wide range of industries, including robotics, industrial, intelligent infrastructure, autonomous vehicles and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). Through continuous innovation, Velodyne strives to transform lives and communities by advancing safer mobility for all.