Expanding Applications Beyond Cargo Delivery

German drone manufacturer Wingcopter announced the extension of its offerings beyond cargo drones to include long-range BVLOS LiDAR surveying solutions by equipping its Wingcopter 198 product with laser scanning and camera systems to enable the efficient and rapid gathering of high-quality LiDAR data.

The system will provide customers the opportunity to survey up to 37 miles (60 km) of linear infrastructure in one mission carrying a 10 pound (4.5 kg) sensor package. It can be used for inspections of power lines, pipelines, railways, and roadways as well as mapping terrain and vegetation in remote or difficult-to-access areas.

Wingcopter made the announcement at GEO WEEK being held at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, Colorado, from February 10-12, 2025. GEO WEEK is a leading trade show for geo spatial technology.

The system enables the collection of up to 570 pts/m² (points per square meter) with a sensor accuracy of 10 mm and precision of 5 mm, outperforming other solutions now on the market. Customers are able to scan up to 2,560 acres (10.3 km²) in a single 42-minute BLVOS mission.

Ansgar Kadura, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Wingcopter said, “After years of developing and relentless testing, we have frozen the Wingcopter 198 in the configuration that is currently undergoing FAA type certification in the United States.

“The drone has unique payload and range characteristics, and with a proven product lifetime of more than 1,000 flight hours, it is one of the most reliable long-range eVTOL UAS on the market. Based on this configuration, we are developing a solution to address the field of high-quality LiDAR surveying and integrating the best commercially available sensor systems. I look forward to discussing with surveyors and learning about their vision for an ideal BVLOS LiDAR surveying drone.”

FMI:  wingcopter.com/