# feBee

-------- senseFiy Extended User Manual eBee and eBee Ag Revision 16 I April 2015 Copyright© 2010-2015 senseFiy Ltd



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# senseFiy

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### GENERAL INFORMATION
READ THIS USER MANUAL CAREFULLY BEFORE USING ASENSEFLY LTD PRODUCT. senseFiyLtd productsare Intendedfor professional use only. 

### Applicable Regulations senseFiy Ltd products are subject to Civil Aviation regulations. Regulations may vary depending on the country where you intend to-operate your product. ANY USE OFSENSEFLY LTD PRODUCTS IN BREACH OFTHE LAW OFTHE COUNTRYWHERE YOU OPERATETHE PRODUG IS UNDER YOUR SOLE RESPONSIBILITY. INFORM YOURSELF BEFORE USING THE PRODUCT. SOME COUNTRIES MAY HAVE LAWS THAT LIMIT THE USE OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFTTO 'LINE-OF-SIGHT' OPERATIONS AND/OR PROHIBIT THE USE OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT AT All OR IN SPECIFIC AREAS. 

### Privacy Recording and circulating an image ofan individual may constitute an infringement oftheirimage and privacy for which you can be liable. Askfor authorization beforetaking picturesofan individual, particular1y ifyou wantto keep your recordings and/or circulate images on the Web or any other medium. Do not circulate degrading images or ones that could undermine the reputation or dignity ofan individuaL Checkthat your use ofthe cameras on board senseF!y ltd products comply with the legal provision on privacy in the country where you operate yourproduct. 

### Limited Warranty SenseFly Ltd warrants that the product will be free from defects in material and workmanship for a period oftwelve (12} months from the date ofdelivery. Sensefly Ltd further warrants that the product will perform substantially in accordance with its specification. During the warranty period senseFiy Ltd's sole liability shall be at senseF!y Ltd's soleoption, eitherto repair orto replacethe defective product with another product or a product with similar**spec~** ffications, at no charge, orto reimbursethe purchase price ofthe product, or ifrepair or replacementis not possible, issue a credit note; provided however, that the defect has been confirmed by senseF!y Ltd and that the defective productIs returned to senseFly Ltd in accordance with the support and repairform together with a[[ requited flight logfiles. Warranty does not apply, without limitation, in case: a} the products are not stored and used according to their specifications, b} the products are damaged due to carelessness, negligence, or wrong use by the user, and c} for defects due to normal wear and tear including, but not limited to, deterioration to the airframe after first flight, normal degradation, misuse, moisture or liquids, proximity orexposure to heat, accidents, excessive strain, abuse, neglect, misapplication, repairs ormodifications made bythird partyotherthan senseFiy Ltd, damagedueto manual operation, damageduetotake-offorlanding locationwith obstacles, damagedueto lowaltitudeflight, damagedue to loss ofdata radiOconnection, damage dueto strong wind, rain orhumidity, orothercauses for which senseF!y Ltd has no control.THE FOREGOINGWARRANTIES ARE IN LIEU OF AllWARRANTIES, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUTLIMITATION ANY IMPLIEDWARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR APARTICULAR PURPOSE. AND OF ANYOTHER OBLIGATION ON THE PART OF SENSEFLY LTD. 

### limitation ofliability
TO THE EXTENT PERMITT£D BY APPLICABLE LAW, IN NO EVENTWillSENSEFLY LTD BE LIABLE FOR ANYLOSS OF REVENUE, lOSS OF PROFIT, lOSS OF DATA, OR INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAl OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF SENSEFLY LTD HAS BEEN NOTIAED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, AND WHETHER THIS LIABILITY ARISES FROM AClAIM BASED ON CONTRACT, WARRANTY, TORT OR OTHERWISE, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF GROSS NEGLI· GENCE AND DEATH. YOU SHAll AT AllTIMES OPERATE THE PRODUCT IN AREAS OR UNDER CIRCUMSTANCES SO AS TO GUARANTY SECURITY AND SAFETY OF PEOPLE, PROPERTY AND ANIMALS. 

### FCC and iC Compliance statement :**~** This device complies with part 15 oftheFCC Rules and IndustryCanadalicense-exempt RSS standard{s). Operation is subject to thefollowing two conditions: 1. This device may not cause harmful interference, and 2. This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation. Changes ormodifications notexpressly approved by the party responsible for compliance could void the user's authority to operate the equipment. This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a class Bdigital device, pursuant to part 15 ofthe FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide a reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy·and, ifnot installed and uses iri accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful Interference to radio communications. However, thereis no guarantee that interference will notoccurin aparticularinstallation. Ifthis equipmentdoes cause harmful interference to radio ortelevision reception, wich can be determined by turning the equipment offand on, the user is encouraged totry to correct the Interference by one ormore ofthe following measures: 1. Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna 2. Increase the separation between the equipment and the receiver 3, Connect the equipment into a an outleton acircuitdifferentfrom that to which thereceiveris connected 4. Consultthe dealer or an experienced radionvtechnidan for help.This Class Bdigital apparatus complies with canadian ICES-Q03. This equipmentcomplies With FCC's radiation exposure limits setforth for an uncontrolled environment under the following conditions: 1. This equipment should be installed and operated such that a minimum separation distance of 20cm is

maintained between the radiator (antenna) and user's/nearby person's body at all times. 2. This transmitter must not be co-located oroperating in conjunction with anyotherantenna ortransmitter. 

### Disposal of

### this product atthe end ofits life \...7 At the end ofthis product's life, please do not dispose ofthis product in your general household waste. 

## A Instead, in orderto prevent possible harm to the environmentorhuman health from uncontrolled waste

-

### =~~~~~~~~~i:O~eo:!~r~;:~~~~~~~~~~~~sa~~o:~:~~::~i:r~~~c::~~:~~~de~e~~~~~~·t:~ are available for consumers, nearyour home, free ofcharge, please contactyourlocal municipal authority. You can also contact senseFiy ltd orthe resellerfrom which you purchased your drone who may provide recycling services orbe part ofarecycling scheme. 

### Copyrights sensefly ltd reserves the right to make changes to specifications and product descriptions contained in this document at any time without notice. Please consultwww.sensefly.com for the latestrelease. Copyright© 2015 senseFiy ltd. All rights reserved. REPRODUCTION, USE ORDISCLOSURE OF AllORIN PART OFTHIS MANUAl TO THIRD PARTIES WITHOUTTHE PRIORWRlffiN PERMISSION OF SENSEFLY lTD IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.

### Address senseFiy Ltd Route de Geneve 38 1033 Cheseaux-Lausanne Switzerland Website: http://www.sensefly.com


### Technical support Ifyou have questions about any ofyour senseFly products, please visit my.senseFiy* whereyou'll find:
• Our Knowledge Base. • Aform for contacting support.

*my.sensefly.com

# Welcome to your eBee

Congratulations on your purchase ofthe 

### eBee, a complex and powerful yet intuitive autonomous mapping system. We take great care to develop and design the best possible hardware and softwaretoolsfor quick, high-quality and easy-to-use 2D and 3D aerial mapping.

## Package contents

eBee battery

packs spare propeller
remote control, cables and

propeller attachment bands
ground modem

EPP glue User manual battery charger

eBee battery charger cable

camera charger

camera

central bodyThe standard eBee package contains the following items:

• 1 xcarrying case with foam protection • 1xe8eecentral body with built-in autopilot
• 1 x pair ofdetachable wings • 1 xspare propeller • 1 Ox spare propeller attachment rubber bands • 2x Lithium-Polymer battery packs • 1 x Lithium-Polymer battery charger (including cables) • 1 x2.4 GHz USB ground modem (FCC ID: 2AC2VGMEBEE) for radio data link (including USB cable) • 1 x2.4 GHz remote control (including 3AA batteries) • 1 xstill camera (including memory card, battery and charger) • 1 x USB cable for interfacing with camera and on-board autopilot • 1xEPPglue • 1 x eBee User Manual • 1 xcamera User Manual Depending on your order, your package may also include other items, such as additional payloads. Please verify upon delivery that your package is complete. In case ofa missing item, please contact your eBee reseller immediately.

* http://my.sensefly.com

### Hardware features

data link**antenna---~ n~-·:::::~;--**  tlattervcompartment

camera lens hole

Bottomface of thecentral body Top face oftheeBee I,-,7- oiitot probe, status LED 

# ·**.H=~~~;;;;;;,** central body ---. camera compartment servo connection :::J!1f,**~-----'~_:_::_** mechanism**--~---wing** -",------'\;,--aileron

The eBeeis an autonomous flying drone comprised ofthe following components:
• Central body: This is the core ofthe eBee and includes all the electronics,

actuators and communications hardware on-board the drone.
• Wing: The two wings ofthe eBee are detachable for storage and replacement Each wing has two wing struts and two clips to hold it in placewithin the central body.• Winglets: These stru.ctures add aerodynamic stabilityto the drone while it is in flight • Ailerons: Used to control the eBee while in flight • Servo connection mechanism: The ailerons are connected to the servomotors within thecentral bodyofthe drone through this connection mechanism. • Propeller: Used to generate thrust while it is in flight

• Battery compartment: The eBee is powered by a LiPo (Lithium Polymer)

battery stored within the battery compartment.

• Cameracompartment: TheeBeefeaturesabuilt-in camerafortaking aerial images stored within the camera compartment • Data LinkAntenna: Used bythe drone to communicate with the 

### eMotion software through the USB ground modem. • Pitot probe: This is the sensor used by the eBee to detect airspeed, wind and altitude. It must be kept clean and clear of obstructions to function properly. • Status LED: This coloured LED displays the current state ofthe eBee. It is

housed underneath the pitot probe and thus illuminates the entire transparentprobe in various colours depending on the drone's state.o Ground sensor: The ground sensor, composed of a high-speed optical sensorand lens assembly, is used to detectthe proximity ofthe ground.

## Software features The eBee package allows you to download and use eMotion' and Postflight Terra3D •t atno extra cost. 

# eMotion 2 senseF/y

eMotion is the integrated software package that allows you to interact with your eBee. Its easy-to-use interface allows you to plan a mapping flight intuitivelyfrom the comfort ofyour office or directly in the field. Once the drone is launched, you can use eMotion'swireless connection with your eBeetotrack its position, monitor the progress ofyour mapping flight and send commands ifdesired. 

# Postflight**t~**

# t Terra 

# 1 _, Powered

### by Pix4D Once your eBee returns after an aerial mapping flight it is the turn of Postflight Terra 3Dto process the captured images fully automatically. Postflight Terra 3D is a full-featured mapping solution: withjust a few mouse clicks it can create highqualitygeo-referenced 20and 3D orthomosaics and digital elevation/surface models (DEM/DSM). While you are still in thefield PostflightTerra 30analyses the qualityofthecaptured images and generates an easyto understand report, letting you know immediately ifthe data you captured meets your mapping requirements.

* Software access terms and conditions apply t Postflight Terra 3Dworks withe Bee images only

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## Contents
Quick start guide 19 1 Planning and simulating aflight 20 1.1 Installing eMotion, Postflight Terra 30, and the ground modem drivers
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 1.2 The eMotion interface
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 1.3 Creating a new flight plan
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 1.4 The mission phase ofaflight
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 1.5 Simulating yourflight
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 1.6 Getting ready fora mission 2 Executing aflight 2.1 Weather check 27 29 29 2.2 Preparing the eBee forflight
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 2.3 The setup phase ofaflight
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 2.4 Take-off
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 2.5 In-flight monitoring and control
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 2.6 Landing
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 2.7 Potential in-flight errors 48 3**Pr~cessing** image data 50 3.1 Importing images and flight data
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SO 3.2 In-field image quality check
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 3.3 Creating advanced mapping products
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

### II 

### Advanced functionalities 57 4 Understanding aerial mapping with theeBee 58 58 62 4.1 Waypoints and their properties
.......... . 4.2 Advanced polygonal mission area ..... 4.3 30mission planning using elevation data
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 4.4 Flight visualization in 

### Google EarthTM
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 4.5 Autonomous controller and modes offlight
. . . . . . . . . . . . 68 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 Linear landing
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Flying multiple drones atthe same time
. . .... Individual photo targets and oblique imagery Emergency Manoeuvres 5 eMotion in-depth guide 5.1 Toolbar
..... 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 Simulator
.... Control Bar
. . . Flight Monitoring tab
. . . ............ . Setup Phase tab
. . . . ...... . Mission Planning tab
.. Mission Waypoints tab
. Camera tab
........... . 72 77 83 85 89 90 93 95 98 102 107 116 118 5.9 Flight Parameters tab
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 6 Manual control oftheeBee 6.1 Enabling manual control
...... . 127 127 6.2 Pre-flighttesting ofthe remote control
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1296.3 Full Manual mode
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 6.4 Assisted Manual mode
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

### Ill Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting 

### 135 7 Maintenance and repair ofthe eBee 136 136 7.1 Updating the eBee software
........ . 7.2 Cleaning and storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 73 Full airframe and sensor inspection
...........·. . . . . 139 7.4 Repairing the eBee airframe
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142 7.5 Proper battery care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142 8 Troubleshooting 145 146



### IV 8.1 Pre-flight errors ........ . 8.2 Take-offvetoes
........................... 149 8.3 In-flight warnings
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 8.4 Critical failures
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 8.5 Resetting default camera settings
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166 8.6 Improving radio signal communication
.............. 166 8.7 Losing and locating your eBee in thefield
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 167 8.8 Reporting a problem with your eBee
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168 

### Specifications 169 1 Software requirements 170 2 Drone specifications 171

## Part I 

# Quick start guide
The first part ofthis document introduces you to the eBee and contains the basic information you will need to plan and execute asimple mapping project. Atypical mapping project can be divided into three main phases: 1. Planning and simulating aflight: Every project begins with careful planning, whether it is a quick flight over a small area or a multi-stage flight in complex terrain. Section 'Planning and simulating aflight' on the next page describes howto use the Mission Planningfeature to quickly generate aflight plan and to test it using the built-in simulator. 2. Executing aflight: Once planning is complete, it is time for the drone to perform its flight. In section 'Executing aflight' on page 29 you Will learn how to prepare your drone for flight, connect itto 

### eMotion, and to monitor it in flight while it gathers images. Though the eBee can complete aflight fully autonomously from take-offto landing, you can also modify its flight plan at any point during flight. 3. Processing image data: The last step in aproject is converting the images taken by your eBee into usable products such as precise geo-referenced orthomosaics or 3D terrain models. section 'Processing image data'on page SO leads you through the process oftransferring images from the drone to a computer, checking ifthe image quality suits your needs while still in the field and producing advanced 2D and 3D maps.

### Quick start guide 

## 1 Planning and simulating aflight 

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## s9, '• "'"" • ·· ··· ·· · 1.1 Installing 

### eMotion, PostflightTerra3D, and theground modem drivers You can download the latest version ofeMotion 

### and Postflight Terra 30

### at: http://my.sensefly.com We recommend that you download and install Google EarthTM

### to take full advantage ofthe features of eMotion. 

### You can find more information at the following address: www.google.com/earth/ To install eMotion 

### on Windows, simplyexecutethe provided installersfor eMotion 

### and Postflight Terra 30 

### and follow the on-screen instructions. The eMotion 

### and Postflight Terra 30

### softwarewill be available inthe 'Start' menu. DriversfortheUSB ground station ground modemwill automaticallybe installed along with eMotion. 

### In case aproblem arises afterconnectingthe ground modemto the computerfor thefirst timeyou can find the drivers in one ofthe following directories (depending on yourversion ofWindows): C:\Program Files\senseFly\eMotion 2\usb_driver\ C:\ProgramFiles (x86)\senseFly\eMotion 2\usb_driver\ 

### See section 'Updating the eBee 

### software' on page 136 

### if you have any difficulty with software installation.
20Planning and simulating aflight 

### 1.2 The eMotion 

### interface Thanks tothe powerful tools available within eMotion, designing amapping flight for your eBee is a simple process. To get started, launch eMotion and choose what you would like to do
...

• To run a simulation, select the simulator, choose the drone you want to simulate and clickOK. • To fly a drone, connect your ground modem to your computer and select

Drone. Ifyou have morethan one USB device connected to yourPC. choose the ground modem you wantto connect to from the list and clickOK. Otherwise,just clickOK. • To process flight data you already created, select the Flight Data Manager and click OK. We recommend thatyou plan flights using asimulated drone. Once connected to a real or simulated drone you will see the main screen ofeMotion. The main screen ofeMotion is split into four sections:
• Map Area: The Map Area of eMotion displays a map with the drone's current position, indicated by the dl::, symbol. Asmall Status Panel floats besidethe symbol, indicating importantstatus information including the eBee's

21Quick start guide

22 Flight Parameters tab -----, Camera tab -----, Mission Waypoints tab -----.,

Mission Planning tab Setup Phase tab Flight Monitoring tab

Status Panel

current altitude (both AbovetheTake-offAltitude, marked as ATO, andAbove Mean Sea Level, marked as AMSL), battery level, flight time, and status. The Status Panel can be hidden by clicking on the drone. Moving around the map is done by clicking and dragging at any place not occupied by a symbol (such as awaypoint orthe drone symbol).

• Control Bar: TheControl Baris usedto issue various commands to the eBee

while it is in flight, such as starting the mission phase or holding position.Planning and simulating aflight
It is also used to display and acknowledge warnings that may occur either before or during aflight.
• Toolbar: TheToolbar contains buttons to control the layers, sources or map information and other display options related tothe Map Area. 

### eMotion can use many sources of mapping information.
• Sidebar: The Sidebar is split into several tabs, each with a particularfunction. The Flight Monitoring tab is used for monitoring the drone while in flight. The Setup Phase tab controls the take-off and landing portions of aflight plan (referred to as the 'setup phase') whereas the Mission Planning tab defines the image acquisition portion ofthe flight plan (referred to as the 'mission phase'). The last three tabs are used for advanced waypoint planning and parameter setting. You can hide the Sidebar by clicking on its left edge. The Sidebar also contains controls for the simulator when connected to asimulated drone. 

### 1.3 Creating a newflight plan Every mapping flight requires a flight plan, which is a path defined by a set of waypoints, or points in 3D space, and aset ofactions that can be performed at or in between waypoints, such as taking images, proceeding to the next waypoint or landing. Aflight plan is shown in the Map Area using circles to represent waypoints, lines to represent theflight path and arrows to show the direction offlight. The large circle with athick border illustrates the working area boundaries within which the 

### eBee will always remain. See section 'Waypoints and their properties' on page 58for more information on waypoints and the various symbols presented in the Map Area. Acomplete flight plan for an 

### eBee is divided into two separate phases: the setup phase and the mission phase. The mission phase includes waypoints and actions related to mapping and capturing images. The setup phase includes waypoints and actions related to take-offand landing. This phase is usually planned directly in the field and is explained in detail in section 'The setup phase of aflight' on page 39.

23Quick start guide 

### 1.4 The mission phase ofaflight The easiestwayto create amappingflightforthe systematic coverageofan area is to use the automatic mission planningfeature ofeMotion. By simplypositioning a rectangle aroundthe area you would liketo cover, eMotionwill generate amission plan optimised for the ground resolution that you desire.

mission

Step2: rotate, resize, move

Followthese steps to automatically setup waypoints for amapping mission:

24 1. Select the Mission Planning tab from the Sidebar. Agrey zone will appear in the Map Area to designate the mission area tocover. Information such as size and position is overlaid on the area. Amission plan, including the required waypoints, is automatically calculated and displayed to preview the mission plan that will be created.Planning and simulating aflight
2. Adjust the location, size, and shape ofthe mission area. The area can be relocated by dragging the grayzone. Thefour square handles on the edges ofthe area can be used to resize it and the round handles on the corners of the area can be used to rotate it. As you adjust the area the mission plan preview is continuously updated.

3. Adjustthe mapping and mission parameters in the Mission Planning tabto suityourterrain and quality requirements'. As afirst step, eMotion provides two predefined set ofparameters; 'Easyterrain' are the default parameters designedfor simplerterrain, such as mines oragriculture, whereas 'Difficult terrain' is designed for complex areas, such as forests, and provides higher image overlap at the cost ofa lower resolution. Be sure to include an estimated wind speed and direction, as this has an effect on the area that can be covered in a single flight. Once again, the mission plan preview will be continuously updated as you modify the parameters.

4. Check the resulting flight characteristics in the tab. Once you are satisfied, upload the mission plan to the simulated drone by clicking the 'Upload' button.

5. Click**the~** button in the Toolbarto open theflight plan in GoogleEarth7M2• Review the flight plan to ensure that there is sufficient clearance between the flight plan and the ground. Any updates to the flight plan that you make within eMotion will be reflected directly in Google Earth TM.

1 see section 'Mission Planning tab' on page 107 for acomplete description ofavailable parameters 2 see section 'Flight visualization in Googfe EarthTM'on**~age** 66
25Quick start guide

The final step after you have prepared aflight plan is to save it to afile that you can load into the eBee when you are in the field. Selectthe Setup Phasetab from the Sidebar, click on 'Saveflight plan to file
..; choose afilename and location and click 'Save: 

### 1.5 Simulating yourflight Simulating your flight gives you an idea ofthe position and size ofimages that will betaken during theflight. In addition, it allows you to learn to use advanced functions, such as in-flight waypoint editing and camera control, without putting your eBee at risk'. When eMotion is connected to a simulated drone an extra set ofbuttons appear in the Sidebar: fast-forward ------,,**r~-----** re-position take-off location play ----, initiate take-off pause ---, 

## r-- instant recharge of battery

You can setthetake-offlocation ofthe eBeeby clicking onthe 

### 0 icon and placing the point on the map. This simulates the action of switching on the real drone
3 see section 'Simulator' on page 93 for acomplete description ofthe simulator
26

### Planning and simulating aflight
and letting it acquire GPS signals. You can test yourflight plan by clicking the**~** 

### icon, simulating a take-off manoeuvre. The eBee 

### will then go through its flight plan in the same way it would in the field. You can pause, play or speed up the simulation by clicking the corresponding buttons in the Toolbar. You can monitor the state ofthe drone while inflight usingthe FlightMonitoringtab andthe Status Panel4• 

### You may also monitorthe flight in 3D in Google EarthTM 

### by clicking on the**~button** 

### in the Toolbar.

A

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### 1.6 Getting ready for a mission Before leavingfor thefield to perform aflight, be sureto fully charge all your eBee 

### batteries'. When delivered, the eBee 

### battery may not be fully charged.

power cable LiPo Balance



### ....**~""'!Charger** 30 20 1 0 Status

0 balance LEOs eBee battery pack (notto scale) 

### To charge an eBee 

### battery pack, connect it to the battery charger as illustrated above. During charge, the status LED on the chargeris solid red. Charging is complete when the status LED turns green. The charger provided independently balances the voltage ofeach ofthe 3 cells contained in the battery pack to ensures optimal performance and battery life.
4 see section 'In-flight monitoring and control' on page 46 5 Consult your payload user manual to know Ifthe payload battery is necessaryfor the flight

27

### Quick start guide
Ifany ofthe cells is unbalanced, its associated LED will flash red during charging until it is re-balanced. Charging can take up to an hour, depending on the charge level ofthe battery and the required cell balancing work. See section 'Properbattery care' on page 142for more information on maintaining yourdrone's batteries. Ifyou plan on performing aflight away from an Internet connection it is useful to preload map tiles by selecting 'Download maps..: from the 1ii1 

### File menu. More details on how to take advantage ofthe various map sources available in 

### eMotion can be found in section 'Toolbar' on page 90.

28

### Executing aflight 

## 2 Executing aflight**~ ~~~l',f~~issection:** **~~,i~l~cti~n desctib~~~~~~il;Brepare** your eBee



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.., ...· 

### 2.1 Weather check Before each flight, you should be aware ofthe weather conditions. The eBee 

### is a small drone that cannot fly in heavy rain or strong wind conditions. In case of doubt, make sure to check aweather bulletin including wind estimations in the flight area. Note thatwind is often stronger at higher altitudes and that the wind perceived at the surface is not always a good reference to estimate the wind at flight altitude. Cloud velocity ortall tree movements can help you to estimate the wind speed once you are out in the field. Weatherforecasts may use various units to measure wind speed. As areference,
1 

### m/s = 3.6 km/h = 2.24 

### mph= 1.94 

### kts.
29Quick start guide



### 2.2 Preparing the eBee

### for flight The 

### eBee's simple design means it can go from the box to being ready for flight in minutes. We recommend that you perform the following 6steps before every flightto ensure that the platform is best prepared forflight.

30 Central body top view Central body bottom view 3

Wing- detached

### Executing aflight Step 1: Perform ageneral inspection 

### Visually inspectthe drone for damage orwear using thefollowing steps: 1. Checkthefoam central body and wings for cracks or other damage. 2. Verifythatthe pitotprobe is properly attached to the airframe and that the holes in the probe arefree ofobstructions. 3. Verify that the ground sensor is free ofobstructions and that the sensor's lens is clean. 4. 

### Verify that the wing struts are not split or damaged in any way. 5. Verify that the tubes within the Central Body that hold the wing struts are not cracked or damaged in any way.

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31Quick start guide

# ~ propeller

# c·
attachment rubber bands
Step 2: Install the propeller Mount the propeller on the motor axis. Secure the propeller using two attachment rubber bands as illustrated above. Ensure that the propeller is lying flat against the motor mount, and thatthe rubber bands do not show cracks or any other sign ofaging.

32

### Note:.Aftere)(te~s~~~~}~,th€_rubber**bands.IP#0~,~&~~~~'2i~ck;**..rhis i_s·normal

### ~~d is

### 5a~~ed**~)'~he ageingpfth~r~p~~r~~teri~l.cFor** max### imum•sefyri\}'!in"pectth~rubberb~p9:ireg~,l~r~y~h~discardthem**iftheyshow~rac~Jo** spare**rubberbandsar~J~duded** inthe.pack-

- ....-.,..,--..·--.. ·'·<·" .,,.._'-

--- -- - ' - : - ---- ------->.:-.·.-J·>i.----<-!>.(y;':i•'', >" ------- -..**ag~.**insert camera into compartment

Step 3: Install the camera Executing aflight
plug in camera connectorto camera plug



# l 

# /**~** Ill 1;1

close camera compartment lid

Install the camera into the payload bay' within the eBee and close the camera compartment lid. Ifthe camera connector is not already connected, plug it into the connector with**the~** icon on the eBee.

6 Some payloads may require a separate battery or SD card to operate properly. Please refer to the

User Manual ofthe camera or other payload for proper installation instructions.

33Quick start guide

ensure servo connection mechanism Is aligned and engaged

Step 4: Attach the wings insert wing struts into central body

Attach the wings to the central body by inserting the wing struts into the receptacles in the central body. Ensure that the ailerons are properly aligned with the servo connection mechanism before pushing the wings fully into the central body.

34connect battery and insert into compartment close battery compartment

Startup process: connect battery - disconnect battery 

# !

- I status LED: 1 

### btue'
_ preflight**chec~-~~iled** ,pulse I • •, 

### I - "' status LED·:' red I 

## t
.**\~~~~** 

## ... ready for startup qrc-en status LED:**·~olici** Step 5: Install and connect the battery Executing aflight

lay the eBee horizontally on the ground outside in the vicinity ofthe take-offlocation, with thetop face up. To install the battery, begin by connecting the power cables to the battery. Insertthe connectors firmly to the end in orderto avoid undesired disconnection when in flight. Once connected, insert the battery into its compartment and close the compartment lid.

### C~~.f~~~~;f~li~ care

### to/~~¢~>the.**prop~ll~i ~~~)cii~~r.**  in·case it**ci-~~-.!¥;*~i:FS** :spinning_.
__**-,_;::::;~~~-;~** -**-_,:_;·_:{~-:-:.:_;~:_,,** ::
35

### Quick start guide

As soon as the battery is connected the eBee

### will performan automatic self-check ofits sensors and acquire GPS signals. Be sure nottomovethe drone during these tests. It isimportantthatthe drone is notinclined morethan 1 Odegrees in orderto startup properly. Pre-flightchecks may lastfrom afew seconds to several minutes in the case ofpoor GPS signal reception. As these satellite signals are required for the checks to complete, be sure to place the eBee 

### outside with aclearview ofthe sky. During the pre-flight checks the status LED will pulse blue. Once the pre-flight checks are completethe eBee

### will flip its ailerons up and down and the status LED will turn solid green to indicate it is ready. You may already connectthe drone to eMotion 

### (Step 6) before pre-flight checks are complete to get a better idea ofthe status ofthe checks.

36select FTDI port Step 6: Connectto eMotion**·····~·r···-,-~-·.** Gm/f<TO v··**-'~•."'fM51** iJ·i !DID:O;OO**EtL:.<,_:,iill~:** .**\R~~ojl!<~.!**

OK when position acquired Executing aflight

Startby connecting the USBground modem to yourcomputer. Then launch 

### eMotion, which will display the Connection window. Selectthe 

### eBee connection profile, choose the corresponding FTDI port and click**'OK~**

When aconnection is established 

### eMotion will display amap and the Status Panel indicating the current state ofthe drone. Ifthe 

### eBee has notyet detected its location the Status Panel will appear in the top right corner ofthe Map Area with the text 'GPS: Waiting for signals
..:. During this time the status LED on the drone will pulse blue. Once your drone has set its position using GPS signals, an icon ofthe drone will appearat its location on the map. Ifthe drone's location is notonthe map you can click**the·~** button from theToolbar to centre the map on the drone. The drone's status on 

### eMotion will be displayed as 'Idle, Ready to take-off' and the status LED will become solid green.
37Quick start guide
You can now load aflight plan you prepared earlierby selecting the Setup Phase tab from the Sidebar, clicking on 'Load flight plan from file
..: and selecting your flight planfile. Alternatively, you can planthe entire mission inthefield, following the same process outlined in section 'Planning and simulating aflight' on page 20.

38Executing aflight 

### 2.3 The setup phase ofaflight The setup phase ofaflight includes the waypoints and actions relatedto thetakeoffand landing ofthe eBee and includes the following locations:

• Take-offlocation: Jhe point from which the drone is launched, automatically set to the location calculated from GPS signals by the drone when it is launched. This location defines the altitude of 0 m/ATO (ATO stands for above take-off); the altitudes ofall other waypoints, when defined in m/ATO, are referenced to the altitude ofthis location.

• Startwaypoint:Thefirst pointthatthedrone flies towards when launched (once it reaches the take-offtransition altitude).

• Home waypoint: The safe point for the drone to circle in case of emergency, as well as its landing position at the end of a flight for both Linear and Circular landings.

39Quick start guide
It is important to carefully selectthetake-offlocation, the Startwaypoint and the Home waypoint to ensureyour drone remains at a safe distancefrom obstacles. The eBee should always be launched against the wind. Select a take-offlocation clear ofobstacles (buildings, rocks, power lines, hills, trees, etc.) within adistance of at least 40 m in the upwind direction. Immediately after takeoff it will keep its wings level and climb in the general direction it was launched until it reaches thetake-offtransition altitude', atwhich point itwill startflying towards the Start waypoint. By default, the Start waypoint is set to a distance of80 mWest ofthe initial position ofthe drone and an altitudeof75 m/ATO.It is good practiceto move the Start waypointclose to and upwindfrom thetake-offlocation to allow asmooth transition between take-offand waypoint-directed flight. You can move waypoints by clicking on them and dragging them within the Map Area'. The Home waypoint is used both as the landing location and as asafety position in case ofan In-flight warning. The eBee can perform either a Linear or a Circular landing. Linear landing is the default and recommended landing type, especially in high winds. To prepare a Linear landing, place the Home waypoint centre at a location that is at the same altitude as the take-off location and is clear ofobstacles in a 10 mradius. Choose one or several approach sectors that are free of obstacles for at least 60 mfrom the Home waypoint centre. You can drag the approach sectoraroundthe Homewaypointand change itswidth directly in the Map Area orfrom within the Setup Phase tab. Make the approach sector(s) as wide as possible to maximize the chance that the drone can subsequently land against the direction ofthe wind. Ensure that the terrain within the approach sector is flat and contains· visual contrast to allow the ground sensor to function properly during landing. When a Linear landing is initiated (either automatically or by pressing the 'Go Land' button in the control bar) the drone will fly towards the Home waypoint, circlethewaypoint (at 75 m/ATO by default) to measurethe direction ofthewind
7 By default the take-off transition altitude is set to 20m. In difficult launch conditions you can set

both the take-off heading and the take-offtransition altitude in the Setup Phase tab, as described in section 'Setup Phase tab' on page 102. 8 see section 'Waypoints and theJr properties' on page 58 for a more detailed explanation on waypoints and how to modifythem
40Executing aflight

at the landing location and choose an approach direction as much against the direction ofthe wind as possible. Itwill then fly downwind in the opposite direction ofthe approach direction, turn 180°and begin descending in the approach direc-
. tion until it lands on the ground underneath the centre of the Home waypoint. The approach angle is around 20° and the drone will reverse its thrust if needed to maintain asuitable airspeed during this phase.

If there are no suitable approach sectors to perform a Linear landing the drone can also perform aCircular landing around the Home waypoint. When initiating aCircular landing around the Home waypoint the drone will switch off its motor and glide down while circling around the Home waypoint at the waypoint's radius. During the Circular landing procedure the drone uses its ground sensor to measure the height above the ground, ifthe ground is well textured and there is enough light. When it reaches an altitude of 25 m above the ground the drone will level out, estimate the direction ofthe wind and resume its descent so as to touch down against the wind while remaining on the circle defined by the Home waypoint.

41Quick start guide
To prepare aCircular landing, place the Home waypoint in a location that has no obstacles within a radius of50 m (or 20m more than the Home waypoint radius) to give the drone enough space to land. Ensure that the entire landing area is flat to allow the ground sensorto function properly. By default, the radius ofthe Home waypoint is 30m. In high-wind conditions it is recommended to increase this diameter'
.



# •.··iii% Note:

## •ln··•~"~~·.~;~~r~B9-\'Iindfi~.~~~!~~~$t.ti~~~~nemaydrif't~~~n··· •······· .·.·,·.• ••**,.·furth~r th"'~** **~q·ljla\'layfrom,tiJ~g~~t~.r~\~~~·.~ome·waypoint\lltJ~~**•..• · ·· ··· performing**~Cirsulallandi~Q;;.;]~<fr~fw¢,it.is** safer.to**·.plan'f~r·l'•Y~[I' mor~cl~ar~[lce**  in the**do111n111i~1,l;~lr~ction.** · · · · ·· · ' By default, the Home waypoint is set to an altitude of 75 m/ATO. In case a Go to Home Waypoint procedure is triggered during flight" the drone will, by default, determine the highest altitude between its current altitude and the Home waypoint's altitude, and climb in a circle towards that highest altitude (if required). Once it reaches this highest altitude itwill then fly towards the Home waypoint. Due to this behaviour, the altitude ofthe Home waypoint should be selected with care; itshould be at least 20m higherthan the surrounding obstacles to avoid the risk of acrash, but should not be set too high to reduce the effect of potentially high winds and altitude and to preventthe drone from getting lost. Alternatively, you can change the altitudetransition behaviourwithin the Setup Phase tab. See section Waypoints and their properties' on page 58 for more information on alti-**~** see section 'Setup Phase tab' on page 102 10 either automatically due to an In-flight warning or manually using eMotion
42Executing aflight
tude transition behaviours and how to modify them.



### 2.4 Take-off Once you've planned your mission and the 

### eBee status LED is solid green you can launch it using the procedure on the following pages.



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status LED: green solid Not horizontal!

/- status LED: I blu,'**~** \PU se



### _, Step 1: Orient horizontallyand againstthe wind Orient yourself against the direction ofthe wind, and confirm that the take-off direction in front of you is free of obstacles. Firmly grasp the drone with both hands, one hand on the front ofeach wing as shown in thefigure. Holdthe drone horizontally with the nose pointed against the wind and level wings.
43

### Quick start guide

Step 2: Switch the motor on status LED: 

# I green so!ld
shake 3x 

# I motor startup begin /- status LED: t blue' ,pulse I



# _...


### Shake the eBee 

### back and forth 3times longitudinally (within approx. 3seconds) to begin the motor power-up sequence. The status LED 

### will pulse blue until the motor is at full power and ready for take-off. 

# ;1;.A**~~[t~lo/ciudo n&!\i~ecl**  to



### V

### .i)t~.~fiytoffthe!llg{&r,just

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44Caution: always orient the l!Bee againstthe wind fortake-off! Step 3: Launch the eBee Executing afiight



# --- status LED: f

### Pb~~:e**~** 

# l '-"
motor ready for take-off


### ,**/9;e~~\** status LED. \blink: 

# l · ....· place nose up 10° green status LED:**~olid** 

# l step forward and release

Once the motor is at full power the status LED will blink green. Orient the drone with approximately 10degrees nose up and levelwings. Whenthe angle is correct the status LED willturn solid green, indicating thatthe drone is ready for take-off. Launch thedrone with agentle push by walking 1-2 steps forward while releasing it with both hands in apurely forward motion. After take-off, the drone tries to maintain its initial direction, or follow the directional take-off heading you set, by keeping its wings level with full thrust until reaching the take-offtransition altitude, by default 20 mn At this point, it will switch into waypoint navigation mode and fiy towards the Start waypoint. Once it reaches the Startwaypoint location and attitudethe drone willcircle around the waypoint 1-2 times to estimate the wind and calibrate its sensors before starting the mapping mission".

11 see section 'Flight Parameters tab' on page 123 to change this parameter 12 The eBee may also be programmed to waitatthe Startwaypointfor acommand before starting its

mapping mission. See section 'Setup Phase tab' on page 102for more information.
45Quick start guide

Status Panel Control Bar



### 2.5 

### In-flight monitoring and control

You can monitorand controlyourdrone while in-flightthrough 

### eMotion using the Map Area and the Flight Monitoring tab in the Sidebar. The Map Area displays the current position ofyour drone, updated live as the drone executes its flight. Asmall arrow and infobox show the speed and direction ofthewind as measured bythe 

### eBee. The Status Panelthatfollows the position of the drone displays basic flight information including battery charge, flight time and attitude, both above the take-off location (ATO) and above mean sea-level (AMSL). This same information is reproduced in the Flight Monitoring tab, along with other useful flight data.
46Executing aflight

During the Mission phase ofthe flight the 

### eBee will automaticallytake pictures at pre-defined moments based on the parametersthatwere defined during mission planning. The estimated area captured on the ground is displayed in the form of a continuously-updating polygon in the Map Area.

Atthetop oftheMap Area istheControl Bar, which can be used atanytimeto send commandsto yourdrone as well asto acknowledgewarning andfailure messages ifthey occur. During afully autonomous flight the 

### eBee will control its flight autonomously from take-offto landing and you do not need to use any ofthe control buttons. They can however be useful in unexpected situationstotemporarily hold position by pressing the 'HOLD POSITION' button or to send the drone to the Home or Start waypoints with the 'GO TO HOME WPT' or 'GO TO STARTWPT' buttons, respectively. Alternatively, you can direct your drone to any location by right-clicking in the Map Area and using the contextual menu. We recommend you use the simulator to learn the effects ofthe buttons on the drone. Detailed descriptions ofthe buttons and theireffects on thedrone are described in section 'Control Bar' on page 95.

47Quick start guide 

### 2.6 Landing Afterfinishing amapping mission the drone will, by default", return to the Home waypoint and automatically initiate a landing sequence. During a linear landing. the drone will land in a straight line according to the process described in section 'Linear landing' on page 72. In case ofa Circular landing the drone will land in a circle according to the process described in section 'The setup phase ofa flight' on page 39. Disconnect the battery from the drone before picking it up. We recommend you immediately import the images and flight data after each flight (see section 'Importing images and flight data' on page 50) before putting the eBee back in its case for storage. When disconnecting the wings, be sure to pull gently in the axis ofthe wing struts to prevent damage to the wing struts. Checkthewing strutsfor any damage before putting them into the storage case. Remove the propeller if you don't plan on using the eBeefor an extended period oftime.



### 2.7 Potential in-flighterrors The drone can encountertwo types oferror messages whileflying: In-flightwarnings and Critical failures. In-flight warnings typically indicate a dangerous situation such as a low battery or strong winds and typically result in a Security action such as areturn to the Home waypoint. In-flightwarnings appearin blue oryellow in the Flight Monitoring tab. Critical failures occuronly when the drone's abilityto fly is severely compromised, such as aloss ofGPS signals oran empty battery. The situation will be displayed in red in the Status section ofthe FlightMonitoring tab. When a critical failure arises, the drone will immediately perform an emergency landing.

13 see section 'Setup Phase tab' on page 102 for information on changing the default behaviours of

the drone
48

### Executing aflight

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49Quick start guide 

### 3 Processing image data


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3.1 Importing images and flight data The next stepto creating mapping products, aftercompleting aflight, is to import the raw images and logfiles to acomputer. The eBeerecordsflightdataonboard in a special Drone FlightLog file. The Drone Flight log tracks important information throughout a flight, such as sensor data, location and control inputs. The file is required for assigning location information (geotags) to the images taken by the drone. The file is also required and must be sent to senseFly ltd in case an issue occurred during the flight14• Asimilar eMotion Flight Log file is created within eMotion during a flight and serves as a backup in case the Drone Flight log file cannot be recovered. eMotion features a Flight Data Manager to help you transfer and consolidate all the data related to amapping mission. Open the Flight Data Manager by clicking on the Flight Data Manager icon when you load eMotion. Alternatively, click on the !iii button in the Toolbarand select 'Flight Data Manager
...:

14 see section 'Reporting aproblem with your eBee'on page 168
50Follow these steps to import data from the drone: Processing image data

select Flight Data Manager click OK

• Step 1 - Select a flight: If the flight was monitored from the computer

you are using to import images then the flight is saved within the local database. Select the date that the flight took place. Alist offlights (including number ofimages taken) from that date will appear in the combo box, select the one you wish to import.
The flight's trajectory will appear in the Map Area.

• Step2- Create a directory: Choose adirectory name that uniquely identifies yourflight (e.g. the date, the name ofthe area, etc.).

51Quick start guide

52 • Step 3- Preparedatafor import: To importthe Drone FlightLog, connect the supplied USB cableto the eBee's autopilot, marked with a 

### I;;;J icon. Connect the battery to the drone ifit is not already connected. The status LED will become white and a new storage drive will appear on your computer. To import images, remove the SD card from the camera, insert it into the SD card reader ofyour computer and select 'Importfrom SD-card reader: Alternatively, transfer the images from the camera by lifting it out of its compartmentjustenoughto connectaUSB cable to itand turn the camera on. Copy all the images into atemporary folder on your computer. Select 'Import from a specificfolder' and choose the temporary folder. • Step 4 - Import flight logs: Confirm that the Drone and eMotion Flight Logs found by the Flight Data Manager are correct. You may select logs manually ifthey are not correctly detected. • Step 5- Import images: Confirm that the images corresponding to your

flight were found and matched to the Drone Flight Log correctly.Processing image data

• Step6- Selectoutputs: Choosethe outputactions to execute and files to

create:

- Only uncheck the first checkbox ifyou are sure you do not need to

geo-tagyourimages. Geotagging images is necessaryto create geoinfo, KML and Postflight Terra 3Dfiles.

- Check the checkbox and choose a file format ifyou wish to export a geoinfo file. This file contains latitude, longitude, altitude (AMSL and WGS 84), heading, pitch and roll values for each image captured.

- Only uncheck the checkbox ifyou do not wantto create a Postflight Terra 3D project.

- Only uncheck the checkbox ifyou do not want to create a KML file containing the 3D flight trajectory.
• Step7: You may now disconnectthe drone. Ejectthe SO-card drive and the drone drive before removing the SO-card and the USB cable, respectively. Disconnect the battery and USB cable from the drone. Insert the SO-card backinto the camera, putitbackproperlyinto its compartmentand ensure that it is turned off. You can now open the KMLfile in Google EarthTM orthe project in Postflight Terra 3Dfor further processing. 

### 3.2 In-field image quality check Postflight Terra 3D software", available as afree download with the eBee package, can be used to rapidly create a Quality Report directly in the field. The Quality Reportthat is automatically generated as well as the orthomosaic provide immediate feedback on the quality ofthe images gathered during your mission. You can open aprojectfor processing in Postflight Terra 3Ddirectlyfrom the Flight Data Manager after importing your data by clicking the 'Open project in Terra' button. You will now see the main Postflight Terra 3D window. The position of your images will appear as red dots in the Map Area of Postflight Terra 30.
15 powered by Pix4D; see section 'hlstalling eMotion, Postflight Terra 30, and the ground modem

drivers' on page 20for installation Instructions
53Quick start guide

Project Summary

Layers

### ~c'c',''"" Cc",c',5c'!i>1'l Local

# ~~~~~~~-i~Il=l~~~:~~~~~~J Processing**~** panel Map Area Step 1: select 1. Initial Processing, Rapid Check Step 2: click 'Start'

To create aQuality Reportwhile in thefield bring up the local processing panel by selecting 'Local processing' from the 'Process' menu or by clicking the 0 icon in the Toolbar. Select only the 'Initial project processing' checkbox and the 'Rapid' button. Ifyou wish to create a low-resolution orthomosaic while generating the report, check the 'Orthomosaic and DSM generation' checkbox. Click 'Start' to begin rapid processing. Postflight Terra 30will now process the data and produce a report that includes the overall completeness and georeference quality of the images taken during your last mission. You may use this information to decide whetherfurther imaging flights are required while you are still in the field. The quality report will be displayed in a new window (clickthe GO icon in the Toolbar ifit does not appear).

54Processing image data 

### 3.3 Creating advanced mapping products Beyond Quality Reports and low-resolution orthomosaics, PostflightTerra 3Dcan generate geo-referenced high-resolution 2D orthomosaics, 3D point clouds, triangle models and DSMs or export to common third-party photogrammetry software such as Bingo, Orima or lnpho. Ground Control Points (GCP) can be added to increasethe geo-reference accuracy. PostflightTerra 3Dalso includes amosaic and a rayCioud editor, giving you more control on the quality ofyour final mapping products, as well as measurement tools. Theresulting orthomosaic and DSM may then be imported as custom background map and elevation data layers in eMotion". This data can be used for advanced flight planning in complex or uneven terrain.

16 see section 'foolbar' on page 90 for more information on importing layers into eMotion

ss

## Part II 

# Advanced functionalitiesAdvanced functionalities 

### 4 Understanding aerial mapping with the 

## eBee

4.1 Waypoints and their properties The eBeeuses aflight planconsisting ofalistofwaypoints to navigate. A waypoint essentially consists ofa circle abouta given position and information thatdefines how the drone should behave when reaching them. The entire list ofwaypoints is stored in the drone autopilot and can be remotely edited using eMotion.

# ---~~-~fl.~'!:'fl:~s--..._"":**--!..__~to**

# next

__ _ waypQ;nt-**~--** .J...- ;;..- Direct" ' ton 1 : Altitude: :AboveTake-offlocation (m/ATO) 'OR : Above Mean Sea Level (m/AMSL) ' Position (GPS coordinates) In eMotion every waypoint is defined by the following parameters:

58 • 10: Every mission waypoint has a unique ID, beginning at 1. The eBee can store up to 50mission waypoints. Setup phase waypoints (Startand Home) do not have an I D.Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee

o Active: Indicates whether the waypoint is active or not. Deactivating a

waypoint by clicking the checkboxbeside its ID will remove itfrom the current flight plan. Setup phase waypoints (Start and Home) cannot be deactivated. o Current: Astatus that indicates ifthe waypoint is currently being circled

or navigated toward (indicated by> <around thewaypoint's I D). Only one waypoint is marked Current at atime. o Change altitude: This parameterdefines the way the drone transitions to

the altitude ofthe current waypoint.

- During transit: The drone willfly in the direction ofthecurrentwaypointwhile simultaneouslychanging altitude byclimbing ordescending in a linear fashion. If the required climb or descent rate is beyond physical limits, the drone will reach the destination and keep climbing/descending around the destination waypoint. This is typically used to achieve the best efficiency when the altitude between waypoints is not constrained.

- Before transit: The drone will first climb or descend at its current position until it reaches the altitude ofthecurrentwaypoint, and then fly in the direction ofthewaypointat its altitude. This istypically used for 3D mapping.

- Keep highest: The drone will first determine whether its current altitude orthe currentwaypoint's altitude is highest. Ifthe drone's current altitude is highest, it will first fly towards the waypoint and then descentto the waypoint's altitude in a circularfashion. Ifthe current waypoint's altitude is highest, the drone will begin by climbing at its current position until it reaches the waypoint's altitude and then fly towards thewaypoint. This is typically useful to avoid hitting the terrain in mountainous landscapes and, in particular, for the Home waypoint when the mission altitude is below the take-offlocation. o Altitude: The altitude ofthe waypoint above the altitude reference. The

waypoint is considered 'reached' only when the drone starts circling about it atthe waypoint's altitude.

59Advanced functionalities

• Altitude reference: The referencepointofthe Altitude value. When setto m/ATO, the Altitude value is an AboveTake-off(ATO) altitude. When set to m/AMSL, theAltitude valueis aAbove Mean SeaLevel (AMSL). The altitudes ofSetup phase waypoints (Start and Home) are always set to m/ATO. • Turndirection: Thedirection withwhichthe drone circles aroundthewaypoint (clockwise or counter-clockwise). • Radius: The distance at which the drone circles around the waypoint.

• Auto-next: Indicates whether the drone should remain on the waypoint upon reaching it (until a new command is received) or automatically continueto the next active waypoint. • Action: The action (ifany) to be performed upon reaching the waypoint.

Supported actions include starting and stopping Continuous photo mode". Setup phase parameters (Start and Home) do not have associated Actions. • Position {coordinates): The precise latitude and longitude ofthe centre ofthe waypoint. Waypoints are represented in the Map Area as circles with their actual radius and an arrow to indicate their direction. The flightpath ofthe drone around and in between waypoints is drawn as a line ofvarying opacity; the path ahead ofthe drone's current position is dark, becoming lighterthefurther it is fromthe current position in the flight plan. The path already traversed is a uniform light colour. If a waypoint's Auto-next parameter is disabled, the path directly after it will be dashed, indicating that a command must be sent for the flightto continue. Clicking a waypoint in the Map Area will display its characteristics (waypoint ID for mission waypoints or name for setup waypoints, altitude, radius and action)
18 see section 'Camera tab' onpage 118
60Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee
and will select it for modification. It will also activate the Mission Waypoints tab and highlight the selected waypoint. Future fiight path

Current status Flight path altitude Inactive fiight path Selected

Traversed fiight path Current waypoint

You can modify the waypoint's parameters directly in the Map Area using your mouse using the following actions:

o Position: Change the position by left-clicking on the waypoint and dragging it around on the map. By default the waypoint snaps to a position inline with the current flight lines before and afterthe waypoint. Hold down the 'Ait' button while dragging to disable the snapping feature.
o Turn direction: Hold down the 'Shift' button while left-clicking on a waypoint to toggle its turn direction.
o Radius: Modify the radius by left-clicking on the waypoint's perimeterand

dragging it.
o Altitude: Hold down the 'Ctrl' button while left-clicking on the waypoint and moving the mouse up or down to increase or decrease the altitude of the waypoint, respectively.

61Advanced functionalities

• Create newwaypoint: Right-clickanywhere inthe Map Areathatdoes not contain asymbol to bring up the context menu, then select 'Add waypoint here' to add a new waypoint. • Context menu: Right-click on a waypoint to bring up the context menu. You can then selectthe following options:

- Go to: Selectwhile the drone is inflight to make this the currentdestination waypoint.

- Auto-next: Toggle the Auto-next parameter ofthe waypoint.

- Reverse turn direction: Toggle the Turn direCtion parameter ofthe ·

waypoint.

- Change altitude: Set the transition behaviour ofthe drone when

flying towards the selected waypoint.

- Remove waypoint: Remove the selected waypoint. Any modificationwill be sentdirectlyto the drone to update its onboardwaypoint list. Ifthe message is not acknowledged by the drone (forexample due to atemporary loss ofcommunication link), the waypoint will move back to its previous position on the map to accurately reflect the current waypoint list status within the drone's autopilot.



### 4.2 Advanced polygonal mission area The mission area defines the area ofinterest where the eBeewill take photos. It appears as agrey rectangle whenyou selectthe 'Mission planning' tab and to calculatetheflight plan ofthedrone. Formany casesthe rectangular-shaped mission

62Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee

area provides the simplest way to quickly create aflight plan. It can be modified as described in section 'fhe mission phase ofaflight' on page 24. For more complex areas eMotion has the option ofusing**polygona~shaped** missions areas. Begin by converting a rectangular area into a polygonal area by setting the 'Mission area' type to 'Polygonal' in the 'Mission planning'tab or by rightclicking on the area and selecting 'Convertto polygon: A

polygonal mission area is setslightly differentlythan a rectangularmission area:

• The edges ofthe rectangle now become vertices ofthe polygon. Left-click

on avertex to drag and reposition the vertex.

o Left-click and drag anywhere on the edge ofthe polygon to create a new

vertex and reposition it.

o Right-click on vertex and select 'Remove vertex' to remove avertex. Alternatively, hold down the 'Ctrl' button and left-click on a vertex to remove it.

o Left-click and drag on the dark-grey area within the polygon to reposition

the entire polygon.
• Left-click and drag the circle on the corner ofthe light-grey rectangle surrounding the polygon to rotate the direction ofthe resulting flight lines. You may also set a polygonal mission area directly from a KML file containing a polygon, such as those created by Google Earth 1M. Simply click on the

### Ct icon in the 'Mission planning' tab, select 'Load mission area from KMLfile' and choose a KMLfile that contains the desired polygon. 

### 4.3 3D mission planning using elevation data eMotion has the ability to take into account elevation data to set the altitude of mission waypoints and the resulting flight lines of a mapping mission. This not only improves the resuking ground resolution but also increases mission safety
63Advanced functionalities (particularly in uneven terrain) by keeping amore even height betweenthedrone and the ground. You can display elevation data by clicking on the@ button in the Toolbar. eMo

### tion's default Improved SRTM elevation data will be downloaded as tiles from senseFiy's servers and overlaid above the map as a colourmap". You can adjust the scale and opacity ofthe colourmap by using the associated buttons in the bottom-right cornerofthe Map Area. Auto-adjust colormap 

## l I Elevation colourmap 

## I 

# r Change opacity

### ·~~:~~--**~0**&>--270 >360

### :~**~** _**--,~** _R.ii'-fc ··'

Activate the 3D mission planning featu.re by selecting the 'Use elevation data to setabsolute waypointaltitudes'parameterin the 'Mission Planning'tab. Elevation data is used to adjust every mission waypoint altitude as follows: 1. The flight planner uses elevation datatofind the maximal terrain elevation**~~eMotion** must be connected to the internet. Once downloaded, elevation tiles are cached and can then be used off-line.
64Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee
underthe current waypoint, the previous waypoint and the flight line that connects the two. 2. This maximum value is increased bythetargetaltitude value, and the result is set as the altitude ofthe current waypoint. The altitude ofevery waypoint can always be manually adjusted in the Mission Waypoints tab. By default, the 'Change altitude' parameter for the first mission waypoint is set to 'Keep highest For all other mission waypoints the 'Change altitude' parameteris setto 'Before transit' so that the drone climbs or descends to the altitude ofthe next waypoint (and thus the next flight line) before transiting and taking pictures. It is important to understand that even ifeach flight line can have a different altitude, the altitude is constant along a given flight line. If the terrain altitude is uneven along aflight line, the resulting imagerywill have varying ground resolution and overlap. When the mission plannercomputes the altitudes offlight lines it tries to ensure that the required amount of overlap is achieved, possibly leading to a lower ground resolution in some areas. During flight planning the range ofground resolution computed by the mission planner is displayed. For optimal results, it is best to set the orientation ofthe flight lines as parallel as possible to the terrain's contour lines. One way to increase the resolution and accuracy ofthe elevation data is to fly a first mission at high altitude and then create a dataset using Postflight Terra 30. You can then automatically import the data into eMotion by selecting 'Send DSM to eMotion' from the 'Process' menu within Postflight Terra 30. The dataset can then be enabled using the**~** menu in the Toolbar. eMotion will use this custom dataset (wherever it is available) to set waypoint altitudes instead of its default Improved SRTM elevation data.

More advanced controls ofimported datasets are available in the 'Elevation data'
65Advanced functionalities panel ofthe Preferences pane ofthe liil menu. From this panel you can add, remove, activate/deactivate or reorder overlays. 

### eMotion uses the top-most elevation data layer to calculate altitude for each waypoint and flight line, with 

### eMotion's default Improved SRTM elevation dataset always considered the bottom layer.**M""~"** MuH;d"'""' Custom elevation data



### 4.4 Flight visualization in Google EarthTM eMotion includes an interface with 

### Google Earth 7 Mto help with flight plan verification and visualization, particularly in uneven terrain. Clicking on the@ button in the Toolbar will open 

### Google Earth 7 M and zoom to the current position ofthe drone. The current position ofdrone, its planned trajectory, the working area circle and all waypoints currently uploaded to the drone (including Take-Off, Start and Home) are displayed within 

### Google Earth 7 M. Any changes to waypoints or flight parameters within 

### eMotion are updated accordingly within 

### GoogleEarth7 M The interface with 

### GoogleEarth 7 Mis particularly useful to checkthe drone's trajectory with respect to obstacles in the area20• The flight plan is projected onto the

20 While checking flight plans in Goo!Jie EarthTM is a good safety practice, sensefly Ltd provides no
66Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee ground in adarker colour, giving you an idea ofthe distance between the flight path and the ground. If you connect to asimulated drone you can simulate the entire flight and follow the drone within Goog/e EarthrM.

guarantee regarding the accuracy and completeness ofthe qoogleEarthTM terrain model

67Advanced functionalities 

### 4.5 Autonomous controller and modes offlight Autonomous operation modes

after afew seconds on ground

if Linear landing selected

Manual and emergency modes if'Waiton Start

automatically after 2complete circles if'Restart mission

after mission'

is enabled

During atypicalflight the autonomous controlleron the eBeewill switch between various modes depending on its flight plan and the commands that it receives from the Control Bar 21 • The controller changes between modes during a typical mission as shown in the figure above, and as described in more detail in the following list:
• After being switched on and running pre-flight checks the drone will enter

Idlemode until it is readyto be launched. Shakingthedrone backandforth
21 see seaion 'Control Bar' on page 95 for details on the Control Bar
68Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee
three times initiates the take-offprocedure" and changes to the Take-off mode. • After take-offthe drone climbs with level wings", gaining altitude until it

reaches thetake-offtransition altitude, bydefault20 m 24abovethetake-off location. Atthis pointthe drone heads for the Start waypoint and changes to Circle StartWaypoint mode. • Once it reaches the Start waypoint, the drone circles the waypoint several

times to estimatethe strengthofthewind. Once itcalculates the estimated wind the drone either:

- heads towards the first mission waypoint, if'Start mission' is selected in the 'After take-off' panel ofthe Setup Phase tab, and changes to Perform Mission mode.

- continues circling the Start waypoint until a command is received

from the Control Bar (typically a 'START MISSION' command that is sent once aflight plan is finalized). • While in Perform Mission modethedrone flies between all enabled mission

waypoints, taking images ofthe ground below. Once it reaches the final mission waypointthe drone either:

- heads towards the Home waypoint, if 'Land' or 'Go to Home waypoint' is selected in the 'After mission' panel ofthe Setup Phase tab, and changes to Circle Home Waypoint mode.

- heads towards the Startwaypoint, if'Go to Startwaypoint' is selected in the 'After mission' panel ofthe Setup Phase tab, and changes to Circle StartWaypoint mode.

- heads towards the first mission waypoint, if 'Restart mission' is selected in the 'Aftermission' panel ofthe Setup Phasetab, and remains in Perform Mission mode. 22 as described in section 'TakeMoff on page 43 23 or in agiven direction when using the Directional take-offfeature described in section 'Setup Phase

tab' on page 102 24 see section 'Flight Parameters tab' on page 123 for details on changing this altitude
69Advanced functionalities

o Once it reaches the Home waypoint (if in Circle Home Waypoint mode) the

drone will either:

- begin aLinear landing procedure (as described in section 'Linear landing' on page 72) and change to Linear Landing mode, if 'Land' is selected in the 'After mission' list and 'Linear landing' is selected in the Landing type list ofthe Setup Phase tab.

- begin a Circular landing procedure and change to Circular Landing mode, if'Land' is selected in the 'After mission' list and 'Circular landIng' is selected in the Landing type list ofthe Setup Phase tab.

- circles the Home waypoint and remains in Circle Home Waypointmode until acommand is sent.

o After completing alanding procedure and detecting that it has successfully landed, the drone changes to Idle mode.

o Turning on the remote control will cause the drone to enter either Assisted Manual or Full Manual mode, depending on the setting in the Flight Parameters tab". Turning offthe remote control will return the drone to its previous mode.

o Clicking the 'HOLD POSITION' button in the Control Bar at any time will

cause the drone to start circling its current position and change to Hold Position mode until it receives anew command from the Control Bar. Alternatively, right-clicking in the Map Area and selecting 'Hold here' will direct the drone towards the selected position and then circle around that position in Hold Position mode. This mode is also enabled automatically after certain In-flight warning or Critical failure conditions''.

o Clicking the 'LAND NOW' button in the Control Barthree times in quicksuccession will cause the drone to initiate a Circular landing procedure at its
25 see section 'Manual control ofthe eBee'on page 127 for information on the vari<;ms manual control

modes 26 see section 'Troubleshooting' on page 145 for afull list of In-flightwarning and Critical failure conditions andthe subsequentreactions ofthe drone
70Understanding aerial mapping with the 

### eBee

current location with its motor disabled and change to Emergency Landing mode.

71Advanced functionalities 

### 4.6 linear landing A

typical Linear landing follows these steps:

72 1. TheeBeeflies towards the Homewaypoint (defined bythe userwithin eMotion; defaultaltitude is 75 mabovethe landing altitude). The altitude change behaviour between the current location and the Home waypoint depends on the 'Altitude change' parameter ofthe Home waypoint. By default, it is defined as 'Keep highest: which means that the drone will fly at the highest altitude between its current altitude and the Home waypoint's altitude, climbing in a spiral first ifneeded. 2. Once the Home waypoint is reached the drone circles the waypoint and descends to afixed altitude of75 mabove the landing altitude. 3. The drone circles to estimatethewind speed and direction. An approachdirection is then calculated asclosetotheupwind direction as possiblewithin the allowable approach sectors (defined by the userwithin eMotion). 4. The drone flies downwind againstthe approach direction. Afterflying for a sufficient distance it turns around to align itselfwith the approach direction. 5. The drone glides down in the approach direction at a controlled speed and descent angle of approximately 20°, braking by spinning its propeller in reverse ifnecessary. 6. When the drone detects aheightofaround 20m to the ground it begins to level out its descent. 7. When the drone detects a height ofaround 3m to the ground it performs afinal brake to reduce its speed and lifts its nose. 8. The drone then glides for the final few metres in a deep stall until it lands.Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee 

### Linear landing procedure, seen from the side 1. Aproach Home

4. Fly in calculated direction

SOm SOm 60m Home

! 75m above :landing altitude

10m 

### Linear landing procedure, seen from above within eMotion2

73Advanced functionalities
The Linear landing process uses an optical-based sensor to detect the proximity ofthe ground. Anumber ofconditions on the environment and the positions of the Home waypoint and approach sectors must be met in order for the ground sensorto function correctly and ensure the accuracy ofthe Linear landing:

74 • Ifthe Linear landing location is not at the same altitude as theTake-offlocation you must adjustthe Landing altitude parameterin the 'Setup Phase' tab, as the drone uses this altitude to level out and slow down before landing (Steps 6-8). Enablethe 'Land atadifferent altitudethantake-off' checkbox and setthe altitude as an absolute value in AMSL.

• ALinear landing can only be performed over flat terrain. Ensure that the

ground is flat and at the same altitude as the Linear landing location for a distance of at least 100m from the Linear landing location within every approach sector. ltis also recommended to have flatterrain inthe opposite direction ofeveryapproach sectorin case a Linear landing is aborted in its final stages.Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee

• Ensure that there are no obstacles within 60 m of the Linear landing location within all approach sectors and within a radius of 10 m around the Linear landing location. Ifthere are some obstacles in the distance, ensure that the top ofthe obstacles is at no more than a 15°angle from the point 60 mfrom the Linear landing location, as indicated in thefigure on page 73. It is also recommended to not have any obstacles in the opposite direction of all approach sectors, in case the Linear landing is aborted before completion.

• In order to limit the ground speed when landing and to achieve the best landing accuracy, the eBeeshould only perform aLinear landing againstthe direction ofthe wind. Approach sectors should be as large as possible and in as many directions as possible to allow the drone to select the optimal approach direction based on its estimate ofthe wind. Ifall ofthe available approach sectors are in the direction ofthe wind an In-flightwarning"will appear in eMotion when the drone calculates its trajectory (Step 3).

• The ground sensor must have sufficient light and texture to accurately detect the height above the ground. Ensure that the ground sensor lens is clear ofdirt or other obstructions. Only attempt Linear landings in full daylight conditions. Ensure that there is high-contrast surfaces in all the ap27 see section 'In-flight warnings' on page 151
7SAdvanced functionalities proach sectors. Do not define approach sectors over low-texture surfaces such as large bodies ofwater, snow or sand.
• During a Linear landing the drone requires sufficient energy to slow down

its descent and perform its final brake (Steps 5-7). Ifthe Linearlanding option is active and the batterydescends below 20% an In-flight warning will appear" in eMotion. To enable Linear landing select 'Linear landing' from the 'Setup Phase' tab. Asingle approach sector appears around the Home waypoint. Rotate and resize the approach sectorto define the directions around the Home waypointthatare completely clear of obstacles. You can add additional approach sectors from within the 'Setup Phase' tab. These approach sectors will be used by the drone to plan its landing path while taking into account the wind. Defining multiple possible approach sectors can increasethe chancethatthedrone selectsafavourable landing against the direction ofthe wind. Be sure that there are also no obstacles in a 10m radius circle around the Home waypoint, as the Linear landing process may be effected by wind or positioning imprecision ofthe on-board GPS.

76Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee

## detedi~~~V~~r« an

### estiffiat~.~l~~~ GPS and**pr.e~~~{** there i

Ifthe Linear landing process is aborted (by clicking on the 'ABORT LANDING' button in the Control Bar) before completion the drone will turn on its motor in full thrust and gain altitude while continuing in a straight line in its approach direction. Once the altitude of40 m/ATO is reached the drone will turn towards the Home waypoint and continue climbing until it reaches an altitude of75 m/ATO.It then continues circling until it receives afurther command.



### 4.7 Flying multiple drones at the same time Operating multiple drones at the same time enables the coverage oflarger areas in a shorter amount oftime. This can be useful when the mission time must be kept short, for example because ofvarying lighting**condition~** To enable multi77Advanced functionalities
drone operation 

### eMotion provides the following:

• When more than one drone is connected at atime, a dedicated interface

called the Multi-drone panel is displayedto monitoreach drone and switch between them.

• A numberofsettings are offeredto keep relevantflight configurations (such asthe Startand Home waypoint) synchronised between all connected drones.

• Missions that require more than one flight can be automatically split and

uploaded individually among all connected drones.

• Anew Control Barappears at the bottom ofthe Map Area. Commands sent

using the buttons in this Control Bar, such as 'START MISSION' or'GO LAND; are sent to all the drones currently connected to your computer.

• Collision avoidance is provided by 

### eMotion". This is done by automatically

changing the altitude ofthe Start and Home waypointsforeachdrone in orderto separate them. Also, the drones are automatically put on hold when there is a collision risk during the mission. When connecting to more than one drone at a time (real or simulated), a dedicated Multi-drone Panel is displayed next to the Sidebar. Each drone is displayed with its name, battery level and status and can be selected. The restofthe Sidebar and its various tabs are associated to the currently selected drone, as indicated by the colour ofthe frame. The multi-drone interface also displays the relative altitude of all drones with respect to the selected drone. Since this is a relative altitude, a value close to 0 m means that a drone is at the same altitude as the currently selected drone. Right-clicking on adrone's tab in the Multi-drone Panel allows you to disconnect the drone or change its colour.

29 ifthe option is selected in the Multi-drones preference pane
78Understanding aerial mapping with the 

### eBee

selected drone [ : second drone connected [ · to this computer drone shared through [ network

Multi-drone panel Sidebar One advantage offlying multiple drone drones atonce is tocovermore area in less time. 

### eMotion can automatically upload a multi-flight mission to all connected drones in a single click. To achieve this, follow this procedure: 1. Go to the Mission Planning tab and preparethe required mission area (this can be done with any ofthe connected drone selected). Make sure that the number offlights required matches the number ofconnected drones. Ifneeded, the 'Maxflight time' option can be lowered to force the mission plannerto splitthe mission in severalflights (see section 'Mission Planning tab' on page 1 07). 2. Select 'Upload to all' from the drop-down list ofthe 'Upload button:

79Advanced functionalities Clicking on the 

### 0 icon in the Multi-drone panel allows you to either connect a new drone orto bring up the Multi-drones preferences pane. 

# J Multi-drone coordination

eMotionprovides Multi-drone coordination options to synchronise various waypoints and parameters among connected drones:

80 • Take-off: Synchronisingthe take-offapplies specificallyto Directional takeoffheading and transition altitude.
• Start waypoint: When the Start waypoint is synchronised, eMotion will

usethe same location and altitudefortheStartwaypointofeach connected drone. Every modification to the Start waypoint ofone drone is thus transferred to all other drones. To prevent collisions between drones, eMotion will automatically create astackbyincrementingthealtitude ofeach drone that is currently circling the Start waypoints to ensure a 15 m separation. The base altitude ofthe Start waypoint, which is the altitude ofthe lowest drone in the stack, can be set in the Multi-drone PaneL • Home waypoint and landing: Similarly to the Start waypoint, when the

Home waypoint is synchronised eMotion will us the same Home waypointUnderstanding aerial mapping with the eBee
for all connected drones. Astack will also be created to avoid collisions between multiple drones circling the Home waypoint.

• Flight parameters: This option will synchronise all the parameters in the

'Flight parameters' tab across all drones. This includes the Working area radius and ceiling, take-offtransition altitude, Security action parameters, etc.
• Mission planning: This option will sharethe same Mission Area among all

connected drones.
• Simulator: When checked, repositioning a simulated drone on the map

will reposition all simulated drones at the same time. In addition to the altitude separation on the Start and Home waypoints described above, eMotion provides two traffic control mechanisms to help avoid collision between drones in flight:

• Proximity warning: When enabled, a visual and audible warning will be

emitted iftwo drones are on a trajectory potentially leading to a collision in less than 7seconds.
• Collision avoidance: When enabled, eMotion will constantly monitor the

trajectory ofthe connected drones and automatically put one drone in a temporary hold pattern (similar to the HOLD POSITION function, see section 'Control Bar' on page 95) until it is safe to resume the flight. Priority is given to drones with the lowest battery level, engaged in a landing procedure or with an active error orwarning.

81Advanced functionalities

In more advanced scenarios you may wish to share the position and even the control ofa drone across a local area network. eMotion provides the following Network sharing options:

82 

### • Allow other computers to see my drones: All computers that are running eMotion and are connected to the same network will be able to display the position, status and otherparameters ofthe drones connected to your computer. 

### • Allowother computers to control my drones: All drones currently connected to yourcomputerare notonly displayed, but can be fully controlled by other computers running eMotion on the same network. 

### • See all drones on my local network: Check this box to display the position and other parameters ofdrones connect to other computers on the same network. 

### • Apply multi-drone coordination to local network: Check this box to

synchronise all the selected parameters in the Multi-drone coordination preferences across all drones that are connected to the same network(provided that they have checked the 'Allow other computers to control my drones' option).Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee



### • Sharesimulatorson mylocal network: lfthis boxis checked, all Network

sharing options applyto both real and simulated drones connected to your computer. In unchecked, they only apply to real drones. 

### 4.8 Individual phototargets and oblique imagery In some cases it may be interesting to take oblique photographs of objects, for example to provide a nice image for documentation or to increase the quality of3D models that contain vertical facades and surfaces. eMotion includes atool for defining photo targets with a specific distance, heading and pitch angle. The drone can then orient itselfand capturethe image using apatent-pending pitchdown manoeuvre. Capturing an oblique image can be done easily byfollowing these steps: 1. Add anew phototarget by clicking on the+button in theCamera tab. Use the cross-hairs to place the photo target on the location ofinterest in the Map Area. You may also right-dick anywhere in the Map Area and select 'Add photo target here' from the contextual menu. The photo target will appear as a circle in the Map Area with an estimated image footprint, a manoeuvre zone and a status panel with estimated altitudes before and afterthe image is taken.

resize to change ground resolution
estimated { footprint

rotate to change heading manoeuvre zone '---phc•totarget altitude --·ph,oto target move in the arrow direction to change pitch/persepctlve
:...__estiirnat•edaltltudes before/after photo

83Advanced functionalities
2. Select the desired heading and pitch angles ofthe image by rotating the image footprint and moving the photo target arrow, respectively. The estimated image footprint can help you choose the required angles. You can also set the angles manually in the 'Photo targets' section ofthe Camera tab. 3. Define the desired ground resolution at the photo target within the Camera tab. You can also adjust the ground resolution by resizing the photo footprint in the Map Area.

4. Define the altitude ofthe photo target, ifit is not the same as the take-off altitude. You may use elevation data to define this altitude by enabling the 'Use elevation data to set absolute photo targetaltitudes' checkbox. Repeat the above steps to define multiple photo targets. After launching your drone, click on the 'Begin sequence' button in the Camera tab at any time to begin taking the images. The eBee will fly to the location ofthe first photo location, measure the wind above the location, and perform a dive (pitching down) manoeuvre to take the oblique photo. It will perform this for all photo targets until it has completed the entire sequence. Taking aseries ofoblique images ofthe same phototarget at regular heading and pitch intervals allows you to create a higher quality 3D model ofa photo target. You can usethe 'New phototarget increment' to define adesired incrementangle. Clicking on the+ button will then add anew photo target at the same location as the previous target but with an incremented pitch and heading value. Amore detailed description of all the available options for taking images ofindividual photo targets can be found in section 'Camera tab' on page 118.
84Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee


### 4.9 Emergency Manoeuvres Despite careful planning, unexpected situations might place people, property, animals or your drone in danger, for example:
• Unexpected intrusions into your eBee's airspace by low-flying aircraft or

other UAVs. • Flight planning errors. • Unexpected intrusions into the landing zone. • Birds approaching or attacking your drone. • Unexpected changes in wind conditions. As aprecautionary measure to be used only when absolutely necessary, the eBee has been programmed with a series ofemergency manoeuvres:
• Landnow

The drone immediately initiates a circular landing around a 30 m radius waypoint at its current location. • Abort landing

The drone aborts its landing, climbs up to asafe altitude and circles waiting for acommand. See section 'Linear landing' on page 72 for more details. • Roll

The drone performs a roll along a linear flight path, then resumes its mission. • Fast climb

The drone suddenly climbs with full thrust approximately 40 mthen gradually descends (at approximately -4 m/s) backto its initial altitude. • Fast descent

The drone enters a spinning dive. It then pulls out ifthe dive, resulting in between 15 and 30 moflost altitude, and climbs gradually back up to its initial altitude.
85Advanced functionalities Activating Emergency Manoeuvres The land now and abort landing buttons are always available on the control bar. To activate the roll, fast climb and descent features: 1. Choose Preferences from the iii File menu. 2. Choose the User interface pane.

3. In theAdvanced buttons panel, checkthe manoeuvres you wantto activate and clickOK. Buttons that trigger the manoeuvres are added to the Control Bar:

land

### nowb~fi6ij\;i

86Understanding aerial mapping with the eBee
When to use the Emergency Manoeuvres You might need to use an emergency manoeuvre in these situations: Presence ofbirds Birds approach your drone out ofcuriosity, orthey consider it athreat and attack it.

• To try and escape an isolated incident, consider using the fast climb ordescent manoeuvres. • To try and startlethe birds and dissuadethemfrom approaching yourdrone,

consider using the roll manoeuvre. • In the even of a sustained attack, or a situation that may put the birds at

risk, land your drone.

Flight planning oversights You have moved the home waypoint on uneven terrain, but you have not corrected the landing altitude to compensate for the change in ground level under the new home waypoint. You thinkthere is a risk ofa hard landing for some otherreason. Unexpected wind or a flight planning oversight means that your drone will land on water or in some other unsuitable place. Consideraborting the landing, correcting the error, and landing again.

87Advanced functionalities Unexpected intrusions into airspace Your drone is about to collide with another aircraft or UAV. Consider afast climb or descent. Unexpected intrusions into landing zone Aperson orvehicle moves intoyour landing zone during landing approach. Consider aborting the landing.

88

### eMotion in-depth guide 

## 5 eMotion 

## in-depth guide

Flight Parameters tab -----, Camera tab ----, Mission Waypoints tab -----,

Mission Planning tab Setup Phasetab FlightMonitoring tab

89Advanced functionalities
The main eMotion interface is composed ofaMap Area, aToolbarand aSidebar". The Map Area displays the current location ofthe eBee, a Status Panel with important information on the drone's current status, and a Control Bar used to send commands to the drone (section 'Control Bar' on page 95). TheToolbarabove the Map Area includesthe iii! File menu, controls for selecting the source ofmap data, the display ofpicturefootprints and various othercontrols (section 'Toolbar' ). The Sidebar is separated into six individual tabs that are used during different phases of planning and monitoring a flight. The Sidebar tabs can be hidden at any time by clicking on the left-hand edge ofthe Sidebar. Each tab is described in detail in the following chapter. The Sidebar also contains controls for the Simulator (section 'Simulator' on page 93) 

### 5.1 Toolbar Google Earth display

# ll**~~** Show/hide footprints Custom map source

# l**~** Clear all footprints Map source Zoom 

## I I I I**{!iill~""''"~\'1"" ·~)j[~¥~**  

# i!<a>**\~'i¥f;~I1Bi ~** 

# .•·**~~** 

# /·.········ ••[;1.1 L File Follow drone position _J 

# I I 

# I Center on drone Center on coordinate Fullscreen--------------J
You can access the File menu byclicking onthe iii! button intheToolbar. Fromthis menu you can connectto or disconnectfrom adrone, access the Flight Data Manager, change eMotion preferences or import custom maps. Clicking the 

### 'i icon will launch GoogleEarth'Mand displaythe currentflighttrajectoriesofdrones connectedto eMotion, as described indetail in section 'Flightvisualization in GoogleEarth'M' on page 66.

30 for an overview ofthe eMotion interface see section 'The eMotion interface' on page 21
90

### eMotion in-depth guide
You can selectthe background map sourcefrom the drop-down list in theToolbar, and adjust its zoom level using the 

### If> and 

### J?l buttons. 

### eMotion can use many sources ofcommercially available and custom mapping information. Tiles from map sources with the icon @ are downloaded by 

### eMotion from the Internet as required and locally cached onthe hard drive. Dueto regulatory restrictions, map sources with the icon**iii~>** cannot be saved locally and are not recommended for use in the field. Ifyou anticipate the use of

### eMotion in conditions where connectingto Internet is impossible, you can preload the map data by selecting 'Download maps..: from the Iii File menu. Follow the instructions in the dialog box to select the zone of interest, map tile source and start downloading. 

### eMotion can also import and display custom layers which may include KML files, custom map tiles and elevation data. To import a KML file, select 'Import KML..: from the Iii File menu and select your KML file. The resulting layer will now be available in theToolbarby clicking on the* icon, and can be clicked to display or hide it. 

### eMotion can display lines, polygons, paths and points saved in KMLformat.

Custom map tiles can also be added as a layer in 

### eMotion. These tile sets must be TMS-compatible sets offiles. Select'Importcustom map..: from the IiiFile menu and selectthe folder that contains the tile set. Thetile set will then appear in the list oflayers in theToolbar, accessible by clicking the * button.

fl.. ''_'

... f_!_._l_:_( 

## Note:

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## ·**-,~{I(c~** Whenever the 

### eBee takes a picture, 

### eMotion records the location and orientation ofthe drone and computestheapproximate span ofthe photo on the ground (or

91Advanced functionalities 'footprint'). All the footprints taken by a drone are added to a shaded polygon outlined with the drone's colour and displayed in the Map Area. This polygon represents an estimate ofthe area that has been photographed bythe drone.

The footprints can be shown or hidden using the
..button. When hidden, the footprints are kept in memoryimd new photos continueto berecorded, but noth" ing is displayed in the Map Area. Footprints for all drones remain in the memory ofeMotion, even when a drone is disconnected or eMotion is shut down. Clicking on the
..button removes all footprint polygons from the Map Area the memory ofeMotion. New picture footprints will be created for subsequent pictures that aretaken.

The Toolbar also contains buttons for centering the Map Area on the current position ofthe drone(,;'button), on asearchable location or**coordinate(·~·**button) or to continually follow the position ofthe drone while it is in flight (®button). Finally you can view eMotion in full-screen mode by clicking**the~** button.
92

### eMotion in-depth guide 

### 5.2 Simulator Familiarising yourselfwith your 

### eBee and its features will allow you to more efficiently plan and execute mapping flights, saving you time and improve your imaging results. The Simulatorin 

### eMotion is designed to help you testthevarious features ofthe drone and to better prepare a mapping mission before performing it in the field. Several simulated drones can be connected at the same time, allowing you to test multi-drone functionalities
. fast-forward -----., play---, pause .-------- re-position take-off location 0 --- initiate take-off instant recharge ofbattery

The Simulatorbarappears atthe bottom ofthe Sidebarof

### eMotion when you connect to a simulated drone. The simulated drone will go through the same preflight checks as a real 

### eBee, afterwhich itwill updatethe Home to its current position (typically the last position that was used within the simulator) and the Start waypoint to 80 mWest ofthe Home waypoint. The various buttons available in the Simulator bar are described in table 1on the following page. Feel free to modify the wind speed, waypoint positions and other parameters in theToolbarand thevarious tabs ofthe Sidebarin 

### eMotion to seetheireffecton the 

### eBee while it is in flight. Also be sure to explore the effects ofthe various buttons in the Control Bar on the behaviour ofyour drone. Don't be afraid to push the boundaries! Aborting a flight or causing an emergency landing in the simulator will better prepare you for unexpected circumstances while in the field.

93Advanced functionalities

Pause

Play
Fast forward
Re-position take-offlocation

Initiate take-off Table 1: Simulator barbuttons
Clicking the pause button will pause the simulation and thus stop the drone while in flight. This can be useful when you wish to change parameters orwaypoints while the drone is already in flight. Note: this is asimulatedaction that is not possible with the real 

### eBee. Instead ofpausing while in flight we recommend that you use the 'HOLD POSITION' functionto better simulate realflight conditions. Clicking the play button returns the simulation to actual speed fromthe pause orfast-forward conditions. Clicking this button increases the speed ofthe simulation to 4x actual speed. This allows you to shorten the time required to simulate a complete mission. Clicking this button and then clicking on a location in the Map Area simulates the action of connecting the battery to the drone in a new location. The drone is returned to the ground at the new location and runs through its pre-flight checks before entering Idle mode. Clicking this button simulates a take-off procedure, including the motor power-up sequence and the hand launch".

31 see section**'Take~off**on page 43 for adescription ofthe take-offprocedure
94eMotion in-depth guide

Instant recharge of Clicking this button will instantly recharge the batbattery tery ofthe drone. Note: This is a simulated action that is not possible with the real eBee while it is in flight. Wind speed and Thesefields are usedtoinput asimulated wind speed direction and direction. Arandom wind speed and direction is set when eMotion connects to a simulated drone.



### 5.3 Control Bar Command buttons

The Control Barincludes buttons for sending commands to the drone and for acknowledging warnings while it is in flight. Certain buttons can only be used during specific flight modes". The Command buttons allows the operator to directly control the drone while it is in flight. The various buttons are described in table 2on the next page.

32 see section 'Autonomous controller and modes offlight' on page 68 for more information on flight

modes
95Advanced functionalities

Table 2: Control Bar Buttons

WARNING33 Active For yellow In-flight warnings, button text warning changes to 'ACK WARNING' and clicking will acknowledge the current warning. For red Criticalfailures, button text changes to 'CRITICAL FAILURE' and cannot be clicked. START No active Fly towards the first active waypoint in the MISSION Security action waypoint list and start the mission from the beginning. RESUME Not in Perform Return to the last position reached during MISSION Mission mode the mission and continue the flight plan. GOTO No active Fly towards the Start waypoint, circle and STARTWPT Security action wait for next command. GOTO Anytime Fly towards the Home waypoint, circle and HOMEWPT wait for next command. GOLANO Anytime Fly towards the Home waypoint and initiate landing procedure. HOLD No active Create avirtual waypoint at the current locaPOSITION Security action tion and altitude, circle around this point and wait for next command.

33 see section 'Troubleshooting' on page 145 for afull description of**ln~flight** wamings and Critical**fa~ures** that may occur
96eMotion in-depth guide

LAND NOW Anytime Initiate a Circular landing around a30 m raClick3x dius waypoint at the current location. Must be clicked 3 times in quick succession to be engaged. ABORT During Cir- Circular or Linear landing: abort current LANDING cular Land- landing procedure, return to the altitude of ing, Linear the Home waypoint, circle the Home wayLanding, or point and wait for next command. Emergency Emergency landing: (only available ifthere Landing mode is no active Critical failure) abort current (if no active landing procedure, return to the location Critical failure) where the Emergency landing was triggered, circle and waitfor next command.

97Advanced functionalities 

### 5.4 Flight Monitoring tab

Drone status

Autonomy Flight data

Instruments

Identification Payload information

The Flight Monitoring tab can be used to monitorthe e8eeduring amapping mission and is the default tab that is displayed when you click anywhere on the map area that does not have a symbol. The tab is split into the following sections:

98 • Drone Status: The status ofthe plane keeps you informed on what the drone is currently doing. This can include mission actions such as Taking photo' or 'Going to waypoint' as well as warning orfailure messages sucheMotion in-depth guide

as 'Out ofworking area' or 'High wind'".

• Autonomy: The battery level displays the current charge and voltage of

the battery. As the battery's charge level decreases, the voltage decreases as well. Afully charged battery has a voltage of 12.6 Vand is fully discharged when it reaches about 9V". This section also displays the total time in flight, the straight-line distance to the Home waypoint, the estimated time required to return tothe Home waypoint (based on estimated wind strength) and the quality ofthe radio data link between the ground modem and the drone. The strength and direction ofthe wind estimated bythe drone is displayed with an arrow.



### • Flight data: This section includes additional information that may be useful during the flight, including ground speed and height, altitude Above Mean Sea Level (AMSL) and the absolute position detected by the GPS onboard the eBee.

34 see section 'Troubleshooting' on page 145 35 see section 'Proper battery care' on page 142
99Advanced functionalities

current air speed
desired air speed current heading in degrees 

# n

attitude with respect to artificial horizon current altitude over take-offlocation desired altitude over '''**-~take-off**location

o Instruments: This display mimics the classical primary flight display used

in manned aircraft. The column on the left displays the current air speed of the eBeeas well as the desired air speed, in metres persecond. The column on the right displays the drone's current altitude over take-offlocation, as well as the desired altitude overthe take-offlocation, in metres. The barat the top displays the current heading ofthe drone". North is indicated as 0°, East as 90°, South as 180°and West as 270°. • Identification: This displays the serial number ofyour eBee and the number ofthe Drone Flight log for the current flight. This number can be used as areference when importing flight data after aflight". • Payload information: This'section displays the payload currentlyselected

and the number ofphotos that has been taken since take-off".
36 this feature is only accurate when in flight. 31 see section 'Importing images and flight data' on page 50 3i see section 'Camera tab' on page 118for instructions on changing the payload type

100eMotion in-depth guide

• Advanced Instruments: This section displays thecurrent internaltemperature ofthe drone, the number ofGPS signals detected and the estimated accuracy ofthe the position.

101Advanced functionalities 

### 5.5 Setup Phase tab

Take-off parameters [

# ~·-{

After mission and [

take-offactions Home waypoint 

### C

Landing
Setup phase reset

## C : Flight plan actions [

# lili'l'coc'cfbc~~~~~~,c;iii);
The Setup Phase tab is used to define the setup phase ofaflight plan, This phase includes the definition ofthe Home and Start waypoints and the actions to be taken before and afterthe mission phase ofthe flight plan. The Setup Phase tab is divided into thefollowing sections:
• Take-off parameters: You can predefine atake-offheading andtransition
102'"'i eMotion 

### in-depth guide
altitude. To enable this feature, expand the 'Take-offparameters' box and checkthe 'Activate directional take-off' checkbox. Anew arrow is now displayed on the map. This arrow defines the take-offheading, the drone will try to stay on the track defined by the arrow.

desired takeoff direction



### You can now grab the arrow on the map in order to modify the take-off heading. Furthermore you can also pre-set the take-offdirection and the take-offtransition altitude in the Setup Phase tab. Default value: 

### Unchecked, Heading: 0°, Transition altitude: 20m/ATO 

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• Start waypoint: 

### Here you set the position, change altitude parameter, altitude above take-off(m/ATO), turn direction and radius ofthe Start way-

.point. You can setthe location byclicking the Q 

### button and clicking on the desired location in the Map Area.

103Advanced functionalities

104 

### Default values: Change altitude: During transit, Altitude: 75 m/ATO, Turn direction: anticlockwise, Radius: 30m, Location: 80 mWest ofthe position calculated from satellite signals on start-up 

### • After take-off: You can either command the drone to start the mission

phase immediately after reaching the Start waypoint orto wait for a command from eMotion. This second option is useful ifyou wantto modify the flight plan while the drone Is already in flight, or ifyou want to resume an incomplete mission. 

### Default value: Start mission 

### • After mission: Use this panel to select the action you wish the drone to

execute once it completes the mission phase. The eBeecan eitherautomatically go to the Home waypoint and land, go tothe Home orStartwaypoint and waitfor a command orto restart the mission phase. 

### Default value: Land 

### • Home waypoint: Here you set the position, change altitude parameter, altitude (in m/ATO or m/AMSL if 'Land at a different altitude than take-off' is selected), turn direction and radius ofthe Home waypoint. You can set the location by clicking the 

### 0 button and clicking on the desired location in the Map Area. 

### Default values: Change altitude: Keep highest, Altitude: 75 m/ATO, Turn direction: anticlockwise, Radius: 30 m, Location: position calculated from GPS signals on start-up 

### • Landing: With this panel you can choose between a Circular landing or a Linear landing on the Home waypoint. Ifyou select 'Linear landing' the panel expands to show options on approach sectors. You can define up to four approach sectors, each ofwhich has a heading and a span, either by dragging in the map area or by manually setting parameters in the panel. See section 'Linear landing' on page 72 for details how to correctly select the Home waypoint and approach sectors. 

### Defaultvalue: Linearlanding, Approach sectors: single sectorwith aHeading of0°and Span of20°eMotion in-depth guide

o Landing locationaltitude: You can also configurethe altitude ofthe landing location ifit is differentfrom the Take-offaltitude. Expand the 'Landing location altitude' panel and select an altitude in m/AMSL or in m/ATO.It is also possible to predefine the landing altitude based on elevation data by clicking on the 'Set absolute landing altitude based on elevation data' button. This button will pre-set the altitude each time it is clicked (i.e. ifthe landing position is changed, the altitude is not automatically pre-set based on the Improved SRTM model, the user has to press the button each time that the landing position is changed). Default value: Landing location altitude: 0 m/ATO
o Setup phase reset: Pressing the 'Reset all setup phase parameters' will reset the Home and Start waypoints to the take-offlocation and reset the rest ofthe parameters on the tab to factory defaults. Clicking the 'Reset all waypoints and photo targets' will remove all the waypoints and photo targets in the currently loaded in the drone.
o Flight plan actions: Acomplete flight plan includes all the Setup phase (Start and Home waypoints, Take-offand Landing parameters, etc.), Mission phase (waypoints), Camera (camera model, photo targets, etc.) and Flight (working area radius and ceiling, Security actions, etc.) parameters.

- Reset flight plan resets the current flight plan to default parameters39.

- Load flight planfrom file
___ and Saveflight plan to file-.. load and save the currentflight plan (both setup and mission phases) to aXML file for later reuse.

- Click Save flight plan in droneto save the currentflight plan to the eBee's on-board memory. Once a flight plan is saved in the drone's memory, itwill becomethedefaultflight planthe nexttimethedrone is started and will appearin eMotionupon connection. The drone also keeps trackofits last waypoint during a flight. Ifyou have saved the flight plan to the drone in this way, it can resume an incomplete mission from the point it was interrupted. You can then, for example,**~** this action is only available when the drone is not in flight

105Advanced functionalities

106 land mid-mission to change the drone's battery or import images using the Flight Data Manager, then take off again and the drone 

### will complete the mission from the point it left off.

### eMotion in-depth guide 

### 5.6 Mission Planning tab The Mission Planning tab is used to automatically define aset ofwaypoints based on amission area and a set ofimage parameters. Clicking on this tab will make a grey box appear in the Map Area that represents the mission area to be mapped. You can modify this area's location, size and rotation using the handles around it, as explained in section 'The mission phase ofaflight' on page 24.

mission area

rotate, resize, displace generated flight lines

107

### Advanced functionalities

Mapping and mission parameters

Resulting flight characteristics



### The Mission Planning tab is divided in several panels. The first panel, Mapping and mission parameters, 

### contains the parameters that define the requirements ofaparticular mission:

108 • Difficult terrain: 

### Clicking this button will fill in preset values to the rest ofthe parameters. The Difficult terrain preset is meant for imaging terrain with complexfeatures such asforests. High imageoverlapis recommended to increase the amount offeatures that can be matched between images, though at the cost oflower image resolution (due to higher altitude). • Easyterrain (default): 

### This presetis meantforsimpleterrainsuch as quarries or agricultural areas where high-resolution images can be 

### taken witheMotion in-depth guide relatively low image overlap.

o 

### Mission area: You can select either arectangular mission area for simple

terrain (as described in section 'The mission phase ofaflight' on page 24) or apolygonal mission area for more complexterrain (as described in section 'Advanced polygonal mission area' on page 62). 

### Defaultvalue: Rectangular



### • Ground resolution: Thetargetground resolution to be achieved, expressed in centimetres per pixel. This parameter is directly linked to the flight altitude: a higher resolution (few cm/px) requires a lower altitude, while a lower resolution (many cm/px) requires a higher one. 

### Defaultvalue: 4.0 cm/px



### • Camera: The camera payload that is currently selected40

. Make sure the

correct camera model is set in the flight plannerto correctly calculate the required flight line spacing and distance between photos.



### • Desired altitude: The target altitude value is the desired altitude above

the ground at which the drone will take images. It is automatically calculated based on the Ground resolution and the characteristics ofthe onboard camera.

40 see section 'Camera tab' on page 118for details on changing the camera type
109Advanced functionalities

110 • Use elevation data to set absolute waypoint altitudes: Checking this box will enable the flight plannerto adjustthe absolute altitudes ofall mission waypoints based on elevation data. This advanced planning mode is described in detail in section '3D mission planning using elevation data' on page63. Default value: disabled • Lateral overlap: The percentage ofoverlap between the ground coverage

of pictures from adjacent flight lines. For most mapping purposes, aminimum of 50% is usually required. Higher coverage values may increase the mapping quality butwill increase the flight duration. Default value: 60 % • Longitudinal overlap: The percentage of overlap between the ground coverage of pictures taken consecutively in the same flight line. Default value: 70% • Generate perpendicularflight lines: Checking this box creates asecond pass over the desired area perpendicular to the first pass. This option will significantly increase the overall image overlap and therefore improve the resulting map quality in Postflight Terra 3D. It is particularly useful for difficult terrain at the cost ofdoubling the required flighttime. Default value: disabled • Reverse flight direction: By default, the flight plannerwill design aflight in which the drone begins amission at the farthest waypoint and finishes

### eMotion in-depth guide
closer to the Home waypoint. Checking this box reverses the order ofthe planned mission waypoints. Be cautious, however, to ensure that there is enough reserve battery to return to the Home waypoint at the end ofthe mission. 

### Default value: disabled 

### • Save parameters as default: Clicking this button will savethe current parameters ofthe Mission planning tab as the default ones in 

### eMotion. The next panel contains advanced parameters used by theflight planner:


### • Starting waypoint: The waypoint ID ofthe first waypoint used to implementthe mapping mission, as organized in theWaypoint list in the Mission Waypoints tab. This option is useful when including more than one mission areainto asingleflight. The defaultvaluefor anew mission is 1. When planning for a second area to be covered in the same flight, the 'After previous' button setsthe starting waypoint afterthe waypoints used for the previous area. 

### Default value: 1 

### • Wind estimate: The estimated wind speed and direction. Incorrectly setting the windspeed affects the estimated flight time ofthe 

### eBee and may cause it to return to Home before completing the desired flight plan. Clicking the 'Use current wind estimate' button will copy the wind speed currently estimated by the drone to the Wind estimatefield. 

### Default value: direction: 0°, speed: 0m/s 

### • Maxflight time: This parameter sets the maximum estimated flight time

for a single flight. Iftheflight planner estimates a longerflight time for the currently-selected Mission area it will split the mission into two or more flights. 

### Default value: 40 min Thethird panel, 

### Mission plan actions, includes the 'Upload' button which is used to upload the resulting mission waypoints to the autopilot. Ifthere are multiple

111Advanced functionalities flights required this button becomes a drop-down list, and you can upload each flight individually.

Clicking the 'More' button reveals several more options:

112 • Load mission area...: Click to load a previously-saved mission area and parameters from an Auto Flight Planner (.afp) file.
• Save mission area...: Click to save the current mission area and parameters to an Auto Flight Planner (.afp) file. This can be useful for example to map the same areawith different image and mission parameters, orto save and restore a large mapping mission that requires multiple flights. Note that this saves onlythe mission area shape and location along with the associated mission and image parameters, not the actual list ofwaypoints that is then generated or the camera payload model used to calculate the mission plan.
• Load last used mission area: Clicking will load the last mission area that

was successfully uploaded to an 

### eBee autopilot, whetheritwas areal orsimulated one. This option is useful when you wantto repeatyour last mission and did not explicitly use the 'Save mission area..: button.
• Loadmission areafrom KMLfile: Usethis optionto load apolygonal mission area directlyfrom a KMLfile (produced in Goog/e EarthTMfor example).
• Load mission area from map object: Use this option to load apolygonal

mission areafrom apreviously-imported map object (see section 'Toolbar' on page 90).
• Resetmission area: Clicking will resetthe mission areato the default rectangular size and reposition it inthe centre ofthe Map Area It will also reseteMotion in-depth guide
all mapping and mission parameters to their last saved default values41 •
o Restorefactory settings: Clickto restore all the parameters ofthis tab to

their default settings. The last panel ofthis tab displays the characteristics oftheflight(s) resulting from the selected image parameters:

o Numberofflights: The resulting numberofflights_thatmust be performed

to coverthe chosen mission area. Ifthe mission afea cannot be mapped in a single flight, eMotion will split it into the minimum possible number of flights. The estimated distancethat can be covered in aflight is calculated assuming afully charged battery and an accurate wind estimate.

o Flighttime: This is the estimated flight timefor 

### each oftheflights.

o Totalflight distance: Thetotal distance thatwill beflown during a// ofthe flights.

o Total ground coverage: The total area that will be mapped during 

### all of

theflights.

o Number of flight lines: The total number offlight lines in the mission phase ofthe flight plan, not including flight lines to and from the Take-off or landing locations. The second number represents the flight lines perpendicular to thefirst number.

• Flight lines spacing: The required distance between parallel flight lines, calculated using the Lateral overlap and Ground resolution parameters.

41 Default values for mapping and mission parameters are set by clicking the 'Save parameters as**de~**

fau\t'button.

113Advanced functionalities

114 

### • Mean flight lines altitude above elevation data: Mean altitude difference between all flight lines and the ground altitude, based on the topmost elevation data layer (3D flight planning only). 

### • Max flight lines altitude above elevation data: Maximum altitude difference between a flight line and the ground altitude, based on the topmostelevation data layer (3D flight planning only). 

### • Minflightlines altitudeaboveelevationdata: Minimum altitude difference between aflight line and theground altitude, based on the top-most elevation data layer (3D flight planning only). 

### • Distance between photos: The required distance between each consecutive photo taken in the sameflight line, calculated using the Longitudinal overlap, Ground resolution and Camera model parameters. The wind also has an influence as the ground speed increases with back wind.



### • Single image coverage: The estimated ground area covered by a singleeMotion in-depth guide image, based on the Altitude over take-offlocation parameter (assuming flat terrain). 

### • Number ofwaypoints: The total number ofwaypoints to cover the mission area. 

### • Elevation data sources: The elevation data sources being used to calculatethe altitudes ofthewaypoints. This can be eitherthe default 'Improved SRTM' within eMotion or imported custom data sets, depending on which one is activated and is atthe top ofthe list in the 'Elevation data' Preference pane. The flight characteristics are updated automatically as you modify the mission area in the Map Area orthe parameters in the first panel.

11SAdvanced functionalities 

### 5.7 Mission Waypoints tab

Selected mission waypoint parameters

The Mission Waypoints tab contains a list of all mission waypoints currently on the drone autopilot. It can be used for finer control ofindividual waypoints in the current mission. The list ofwaypoints displays the ID, Change altitude parameter, Altitude and Action related to each mission waypoint. Clicking on amission waypointin the list orin the Map Areawill expand the panel to display all the parameters related to that waypoint. These parameters are explained in detail in section Waypoints and their properties' on page 58. Changes made to the selected waypoint are sent to the drone immediately after selecting an item in the popup menu or upon hitting the 'Enter' key in the textfields. You can reposition thewaypoint by clicking the 

### 0 button and then clicking at the desired position in the Map Area. You can make the selected waypoint the current waypoint by clicking the C) button.

116

### eMotion in-depth guide

You can add new waypoints by clicking the+ button or by right-clicking on the Map Area and selecting 'Add waypoint here: Clicking the 

### 0 button will remove all mission waypoints from the drone.

117Advanced functionalities 

### 5.8 Camera tab

Photo targets Individual photos

The camera tab is an advanced tab that can be used to precisely control thefunctioning ofthe camera. Italso contains controls for taking oblique imagery. It is split into several sections: 'Camera**model~** 'Photo**targets~** 'Camera**control~** and 'Camera parameters for mapping:

118

### eMotion in-depth guide
The 'Camera model' section is used to definethecamera or payload currentlyconnected to the 

### eBee. The list contains all payloads currently supported on the 

### eBee. The 'Photo targets' section allows you to program a set ofphoto targets that the drone will capture with an oblique angle. You can define a photo target location, distance to the object and the heading and pitch ofthe photograph. The drone will then automatically calculate aflight plan in order to capture the photo with
· the desired parameters.
• Photo sequence control: Clicking the 'Start sequence' button will send

the drone to the first photo target location and subsequently take images ofallthe phototargets currentlyin the 'Phototargets' list. Clickingthe 'Stop sequence' will send the drone backto the Home waypoint. • Photo targets: This panel contains the list ofphoto targets to be taken in

a sequence. Clicking the 

# + button will add a new photo target. You can set the location by using the cross-hairs and clicking in the Map Area. By default, the location ofa new photo target is the same as the previous one in the list. Clicking the 

### 0 will remove all photo targets from the sequence list. Each photo target has the following properties:

- Change altitude: The way the drone transitions to the altitude of the current photo target. This parameter is set to 'Keep highest' for all photo targets and cannotbe modified.

- Minimum altitudeafter photo: This is the calculated minimum**a~**

titude the drone will reach atthe end ofaphoto capture manoeuvre, based on the desired ground resolution.

- Ground resolution: The desired ground resolution in the centre of

the image that will be pointed at the photo target position.

- Distance: The calculated straight-line distance between the drone and the photo target, and the defined pitch angle. For a given distance, as the pitch angle increases, the distance tothe ground decreases.

- Heading: The heading angle with respect to North ofthe photo target

119Advanced functionalities

- Pitch: The pitch angle with respect to vertical ofthe photo target.

- Altitude reference: The altitude reference ofthe photo target altitude, either ATO or AMSL.

- Target altitude: The altitude ofthe photo target.

- Position (Coordinate): The precise latitude and longitude ofthe centre ofthe waypoint. • New photo target increment: This panel makes it easier to make a series ofoblique photos ofthe same target with aregularangle increment in orderto aid reconstruction ofa 3D model. Every new Photo targetthat is added using the+button will be placed atthe same location as the previous one, butwith an increment in heading and pitch angles defined bythe 'Heading increment' and 'Pitch increment' parameters, respectively. Default value: Heading increment: 

## oo, Pitch increment: 0° • Automatically reset target altitude based on elevation data: Check

this box- to use elevation data to set the absolute photo target altitudes. Ifthis box is unchecked, photo targets are presumed to be at the same altitude as the take-offlocation. Default value: disabled The 'Camera control' section has the following functions:

120 • Take photo now: Clicking this button will send a command to the drone to take a single picture at its current location. This command can be sent during the mission phase ofaflight plan.

• Continuous photo sequence: These radio buttons define how the drone is taking images. When the default option 'Auto' is selected the drone will start and stop continuous photo shooting based on the actions associated

### eMotion in-depth guide
with mission waypoints. Selecting 'On' overrides waypoint actions and enables continuous shooting. Conversely, selecting 'Off' will override waypoint actions and disable continuous shooting. Default value: Auto The 'Camera parameters for mapping' section is used to define detailed parameters related to the camera and has the following functions:
• Pitch angle: By defaultthe 

### eBee takes images at adefault estimated pitch angle of7° relative to the horizon. This angle provides the best compromise between imagequality andflight endurance. In somecases, however, you may wish to change this valueto suit your imaging needs. Increasing this angle to 15° provides a slightly more perspective view of a building. Note, however, that a higher pitch angle will cause the drone to slow down every time it takes an image, losing altitude and decreasing flight time and longitudinal overlap. Decrease the pitch angle down to 

## oo can capture more vertical images of the ground if mapping precision at low altitudes is ofutmost importance. However, decreasing this angle will cause the drone to lose altitude with each imagetaken, requiring itto return to the targetaltitude beforetaking another image, once again decreasing both flight time and longitudinal overlap between images. Default value: 7° • Distance between photos: Check the 'Use manual parameters' box to

manually set the distance between photos in the direction offlight. This option may be used to override the automatic settings based on altitude and longitudinal overlap. Default value: Unchecked, Distance between photos: Automatic

121Advanced functionalities Clicking the 

### !It button will provide further options:

122 o Save parameters as default in drone: Savesthe currently-set camera parameters to the eBee's autopilot's memory. o Restorefactory parameters: Returns the parameters to their default values and automatically send them to the drone's autopilot.eMotion in-depth guide


### 5.9 Flight Parameters tab

Flightparameters

General [ information

The FlightParameters tabincludes some advancedfunctions thatgovernthe overall behaviourofthe drone while in flight. It is separated into two sections: 'Flight parameters' and 'General**information~** The 'Flight parameters' section includes the following items:
• Working area radius: This is the radius ofthe working area around the

take-offlocation. Flying outside ofthis areawill create awarning and cause the drone to return to the Home waypoint. Default value: 500 m • Working area ceiling: This is the maximum altitude above the take-off location at which the drone can fly. Flying above this altitude will create a warning and cause the drone to return to the Home waypoint. Default value: 300m/ ATO

123Advanced functionalities

o Manual control mode: Selects between Full Manual control and Assisted Manual control when the remote control is turned on42• Default value: Full Manual control o Securityactions: The next checkboxes are used to disable certain Security

actions43

. o Ignore RC signals: Checking this option will result in the drone ignoring

any signals coming from a remote control (RC) transmitter on the ground. Default value: unchecked

o Returnto Home in case ofstrongwind: Checking this boxwill enablethe

Security action related to high wind strength (return to Home waypoint). Un-checking this box will disable the Security action, however the drone will continue to estimate the wind strength and direction and the In-flight warning will continue to appear. Default value: checked

o Return to Home in case of poor GPS coverage: Checking this box will

enable the Security action (return to Home waypoint) related to poor GPS signal coverage Un-checking this boxwill disablethe Securityaction, howeverthe In-flight warning will continue to appear. Default value: checked 42 see section 'Manual control ofthe eBee'on page 127 for more information 43 see section 'In-flight warnings' on page 151 for more information on Security actions related to

specific In-flight warnings
124eMotion in-depth guide

• Return to Home in case of camera malfunction: Checking this box will enable the Security action (return to Horne waypoint) related to a camera malfunction. Un-checking this box will disable the Security action, howeverthe In-flight warning will continue to appear. Default value: checked • Return to Home after 30s in case of link loss: Checking this box will enable In-flight warnings and Security actions related to aloss ofthe communications uplink between eMotion and the drone (return to Home after30 s oflink loss). Un-checking this box disables both the In-flight warning and the Security action and will result in the drone continuing on its flight path even ifit does not re-connect with eMotion. Default value: unchecked • Climb in case of detected ground proximity (<30 m): The eBee features aground sensorthatcontinuously checks the presence oftheground. If this box is checked and the ground sensor detects a height above the ground ofless than 30 rn, the drone will climb to asafe height of60 rn before continuing the mission. Default value: checked • Use ground sensorfor landing: The eBeeuses its ground sensortogether

with its estimate ofthe wind speed during its landing manoeuvre to calculate the ideal rnornent to perform afinal brake and enter deep stall. Ifthis box is unchecked the drone will ignore the ground sensor during its approach and will assume that the landing location is precisely at the same altitude as indicated in eMotion. This will result in a landing precision that is decreased and dependent on the strength ofthe wind. Default value: checked

125Advanced functionalities Clicking the 'More' list will provide further options:
• Save parameters as default in drone: Saves the currently-set flight parameters to the eBee's autopilot's memory. • Restore factory parameters: Returns the flight parameters to their default values and automatically sends them to the drone's autopilot. The 'General information' section displays information specificto your eBee. This includes the current firmware and bootloaderversions loaded into the autopilot, the serial numbers ofthe airframe and the autopilot, the total number offlights performed by drone andthetotal time spent in the air.

Clicking 'View flight database
..: will bring up awindow that presents a summary ofall the flights performed bythe drone using this computer.

126

### Manual control ofthe eBee 

## 6 Manual control ofthe 

## eBee

6.1 Enabling manual control By default, the e8eeflies autonomously and does not need the provided remote control to be 

### operated. However, by using the remote control, it is possible to overridethe drone's autopilot by switching to oneoftwo availablemanual modes: Full Manual or Assisted Manual. In Full Manual mode the sticks ofthe remote control directly setthe motor power and the angle ofthe ailerons ofthe drone. In Assisted Manual mode the sticks ofthe remote control are used to setthe speed, turn rate and climb or sinkrate.

Turning on the remote control will cause the drone to change to either Assisted Manual or Full Manual mode, depending on the 'Enable assisted manual control' setting in the Flight Parameters tab45 

### of eMotion. 

### Turning offthe remote control will cause the drone to return to the last autonomous operation mode it was in
45 see section 'Flight Parameters tab' on page 123 for more details on this setting

127Advanced functionalities
before Manual mode was enabled.

Manual control ofthe eBeecan be achieved atany time ifthedrone is within range ofthe remote46•
on: manual off: auto

FM: Full Manual AM: Assisted Manual FM: elevator AM: climb/sinkrate FM: ailerons AM: turn rate right stick

46 see section 'Drone specifications' on page 171 for the rang·e ofthe remote control
128Manual control ofthe eBee


### 6.2 Pre-flighttesting ofthe remote control Ifyou plan to use the remote control during aflight we recommend that you first test iton the ground. Ensure thatthe eBee is setto Full Manual mode47 and follow these steps: 1. Checkthatthe left stickon the remote control is in the low position to prevent the propellerfrom spinning. 2. Turn on the remote control. 3. Turn on the eBee by connecting the battery. Once the drone detects the signal from the remote control itwill change to one ofthe manual modes.

4. Move the right stick on the remote control toverify proper reception bythe drone and correct servo direction. 5. Turn offthe remote control fortake-off.

For more information on using the remote control, refer to the original user manual, available from the Knowledge Base within my.senseFiy 48•

47 see section 'Enabling manual control' on page 127 48 http://my.sensetly.com
129Advanced functionalities 

### 6.3 Full Manual mode Full Manual mode allowsyou to have directcontrol overthe

### eBee's actuators, overriding all control from the on-board autopilot. The left stick controls the thrust For safety reasons, the left stick should remain at the lowest position at all times, except during flight The right stick controls the elevator and the ailerons in the same way as atypical aircraft control stick (orthejoystickwith aflight simulator). Note thatthe drone uses its ailerons to fulfil the functions ofboth ailerons and elevator in a classical airplane. When the ailerons function in the same direction, they act as the elevator. When the function in opposite motion, they act as ailerons. We recommendyou perform astandard take-offprocedure in autonomous mode and only switch to Full Manual mode when the drone is in the air. Ifyou wish to take-offin Full Manual mode, however, you must use thefollowing steps:

130 1. Prepare the drone for flight as described in section 'Preparing the 

### eBee for flight' on page 30 while keeping the remote control turned offand the left stick at its lowest position. 2. Turn on the remote control. You now have manual control over the main thrust motor and the servo-motors.

3. Firmly grasp the 

### eBee horizontally with level wings using both hands, one hand on the front ofeach wing. Shake the drone back and forth 3times longitudinally (within approx. 3 seconds). The status LED will pulse blue while the drone's autopilot performs a start-up sequence. As the motor is now controlled by the remote control, it will not begin spinning. Once the sequence is complete, the status LED will turn green (solid or blinking, depending on the angle atwhichyou are holding the drone).Manual control ofthe eBee

4. The eBee is now ready for manual take-off. Orient yourselfinto the wind, and confirm that the take-off direction in front ofyou is free ofobstacles. We recommend thatyou take offatfull powerand into the wind by setting the leftstickto its highest position and releasing thedrone when the status LED is solid green. 

### 6.4 Assisted Manual mode In Assisted Manual mode the sticks on the remote control set the desired speed, turn rate and climb or sink rate. These commands are then transferred to control signals for the individual actuators by the autopilot based on feedback from its sensors. This control scheme simplifies control ofthe eBee.

In this mode the left stickis used to set the desired speed ofthe eBee. Setting the left stickbetween 10% and 100% sets a desired speed between 10.5 and 20 m/s. · Setting the stickbelow 10% turns offthe motor, allowing the drone to slowly descend in a glide. The drone may even engage reverse thrust to limit its speed during descent. The right stick is used to set the direction offlight ofthe eBee. Moving the stick
131Advanced functionalities
left or right will set a left or right roll angle ofup to 45°

### Is, respectively. Moving the stick down will set a climb rate ofup to 3.5 m/s. Moving the stick up will set a sink rate ofup to 3.5 m/s. Releasing the right stick at any point will return the drone to astraightflight path at a constant altitude. It is not possible to take-offin Assisted Manual mode. You may only switch to Assisted Manual mode after completing the standardtake-offprocedure49•

To perform a manual landing we recommend the following procedure: 1. The drone should always perform alinear landings into the wind. Face the downwind direction and confirmthatthere are no obstacles in an area ofat least 100 mdownwind and awidth of20 min either direction from downwind. 2. Set the drone to an altitude of around 50 mfrom the landing altitude by moving the right stick up or down. 3. Ry downwind until the drone is around 100mawayfromthe landing location. 4. Turn the drone upwind and towards the landing location by moving the right stick left or right. 5. Setthe speed to alow value by moving the left stick down to around 25% ofits maximum value. 6. Bring the drone closer to the ground by controlling the sink rate with the right stick. Keep the drone descending until it is around 5-10 mfrom the ground.
49 as described in section**1"ake~off** on page 43
132

### Manual control ofthe eBee


### 7. Oncethe drone is around 5-10mfromthelanding location, cutmotorpower using the left stick and allow the drone to glide down to the ground.

133

## Part Ill 

# Maintenance, Repair and TroubleshootingMaintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting 

### 7 Maintenance and repair ofthe eBee

7.1 Updating the eBee

### software Occasionally, senseFly Ltd releases a software upgradefor the eBeeto provide additional features to our users or to correct potential issues. As ofversion 2.0.2, eMotion will checkfor new versions during start-up" and will display a message with update instructions ifa new version is available. We recommend, however, that you check my.senseFiy52 regularly for updates to ensure you have the latest version ofthe software.

To upgrade eMotion or Postflight Terra 3Dto the latest version, download the installerfrom my.senseFiy andfollow the standard install procedure (see section 'Installing eMotion, Postflight Terra 3D, and the ground modem drivers' on page 20). It is not necessary to uninstall previous version of eMotion before installing the 

### new one. Every version of eMotion is packaged with an accompanying firmware revision which mustbe installedonthe drone before itcan be used. Toupgrade thefirmware

51 provided that there is an internet connection 52 http:f/my.sensefly.com

136Maintenance and repair ofthe 

### eBee
ofthe 

### eBee follow these steps: 1. Connectthe batteryto the drone. 2. Connectthe USB cable between the computeron which you installed 

### eMotion and the autopilot ofthe 

### eBee as shown in thefigure. The connectoris beside the camera connectorand is marked with a 1;1 icon. The status LED will turn white as soon as you connectthe cable. 3. Launch 

### eMotion".

4. In 

### eMotion, dickthe Iii icon and select 'Updater

### eBee
..:. 5. Click 'Update'to beginthe updating process. Waituntil the process is complete, which is indicated by the text 'File downloaded successfully'.

53 you can also update without launching eMotion using the separate Updater eBee program in the

Windows Start or Apps menu
137Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting

Click Update Wait for update to complete

6. Disconnectthe USB cable and the battery. File downloaded successfully

It is important that both the drone and eMotion have the same software version for them to work properly together. Make sure that you keep both up-to-date. To check which version of eMotion you have installed, use the 'About eMotion
..: item in the 'Window' menu. The eBeefirmware version can be seen in the Flight Parameters tab once connected (see section 'Flight Parameters tab' on page 1 23). 

### 7.2 Cleaning and storage Use adamp clothto wipe offdirtfrom the eBee. In orderto avoid structural deformation ofthe wing, it is recommended to store the drone either in its transport case or on aflat surface at room temperature.

138Maintenance and repair ofthe eBee 

### 7.3 Full airframe and sensor inspection Beyond the general airframe inspection that is performed before every flight, we recommend that you perform afull airframe and sensor inspection regularly to keep your drone in good operating condition.

The inspection includes the following checks: Check 1: Motor and Servos The eBee uses a brushless DC motorto turn its propeller and generate thrust. The servos are the two actuators connected through aservo connection mechanism to both ailerons. Damaged actuators can prevent the drone from flying correctly and thus it is important to ensure their properfunctioning.

To checkthe actuators, follow these steps: servo connection '-----f-7---'<;,.----- mechanisms 

### '-"11?:-----"\;,------ motor

1. The motor must be clean and spin smoothly without friction to function
139Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting correctly. Ensurethatthere is no sand orotherobstructions within the motor. Ifthere is something blocking the motorfrom spinning smoothly blow some airthrough the motor to dislodge the obstruction. 2. Make sure the left stick ofthe remote control is all the way down to keep the motor off'. Place the eBee at the edge of aflat surface and keep the area around the propeller clear.

# ~~·

.. •.·•. 1 .•.

# '.~ .•. , .. i.;.c·:
.......... ;•.•t ...•.;

...

# ·.·fi!EFBII!I

., /:;''.)_f;J'f_ '
.·.·:::;.,:(;fi};:;>**··,·,•.\·;·~··.·;·,;•** 3. Switch the drone on by connecting the battery. 4. Connect to eMotion. Ensure that 'Manual control mode' is set to 'Full Manual control' and that the 'Ignore RC signals' setting is not checked". 5. Switch the remote control on. 6. Move the right stick on the remote control and check the aileron motion. The ailerons must smoothly and quickly follow the stick. When the stick is notmoved, the ailerons must stay stm. Whentravelling from one end to the other, fast or slow, the ailerons must smoothly follow without twitching. 7. Hold down the drone against the flat surface with one hand to prevent it from moving. Gently move the left stickon the remote control to spin up the motor and propeller. The motor should run smoothly without making excessive noise. 8. When done, switch the remote control off. In case ofdoubt, take ashort video and follow the instructions in section 'Reporting a problem with your eBee'on page 168for advice.
54 see section 'Manual control ofthe eBee'on page 127 for details on using the remote control ss see section 'Flight Parameters tab' on page 123 for more details on these settings
140Maintenance and repair ofthe 

### eBee
Check2: Inertial sensors The inertial sensors are used by the autopilotto compute the attitude (i.e. its orientation in space) ofthe drone. The attitude is displayed by the artificial horizon in the FlightMonitoring tab of

### eMotion. To checkthe inertial sensors, follow these steps: 1. Switch the 

### eBee on by connecting the battery and connectto 

### eMotion. 2. Putthe drone on aflat surface (typically an office floor) and checkthatthe artificial horizon is level. 3. Take the drone with yourhand andput itin differentorientation. Make sure that the artificial horizon displays the corresponding orientation. The artificial horizon shouldfollow smoothlythe motion ofthe 

### eBee and it should not drift when the drone is not moving. In case of doubt, take a short video and follow the instructions in section 'Reporting a problem with your 

### eBee' on page 168for advice. Check 3: Barometric pressure sensor The barometric pressure sensoris used to measure the altitude from the take-off location. To checkit, follow these steps: 

### i. Switch the 

### eBee on by connecting the battery and connectto 

### eMotion. 2. Movethe drone from yourfeetto above yourhead (about2m altitude variation). 3. Checkthe altitude on the vertical bar rightofthe artificial horizon or in the Status Panel nextto the drone icon on the map). The displayed altitude should follow the drone motion, i.e. ifthe drone is raised by 2m, the altitude reading should increase by about 2m. When the drone is not moving, the altitude reading may slowly drift by up to ±10m. Check4: Air speed sensor The air speed sensor is connected to the pitot probe by a pair oftubes. To check it, follow these steps:

141Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting
1. Visually check the pitot probe. Make sure that it is properly fixed to the airframe and that bothtubes are properly attached and not damaged). The holes in the probe must be clearand free ofdirtorothersmallobstructions. 2. Switch the drone on by connecting the battery and connect to eMotion. 3. Gently blow into the front opening ofthe pitot tube from a distance of around 5 em. The airflow direction should match the natural flow experienced in flight. 4. Checkthe air speed displayed onthevertical barleftoftheartificial horizon. At rest, the displayed air speed should be close to zero (it may drift up to about 2m/s). When blowing in the pitot probe there should be an airspeed indicated in the 'Flight Monitoring' tab ofeMotionthat should easily reach values above 8m/s. Check 5: Ground sensor The ground sensor is composed ofahigh-speed optical sensor and alens assembly. The lens assembly must be clean and unobstructed for the sensor to work correctly. 

### 7.4 Repairing the eBee 

### airframe Small repairs of cracks in the airframe can be done using contact glue such as UHU• POR glue. Take care to use only contact glues that are specifically designed for Expanded Polypropylene (EPP). If you have doubts about the extent of the damage, always contact your eBee reseller to verify ifthe damage can be easily repaired by yourselfor ifyou need to send your drone in for repairto.



### 7.5 Proper battery care Proper care ofyour eBee's battery is important to prevent damage to your drone and to maximize flight time. With afully charged battery, the drone will fly for

142Maintenance and repair ofthe eBee
about 45 minutes. Frequent altitude changes, presence ofwind, use of old batteries and/or frequent photo acquisition may significantly reduce the flight endurance. Batteries perform better at medium or high air temperature and it is normal to observe shorterflighttimes in cold weather. The eBee is powered by aLithium Polymer (LiPo) battery composed ofthree cells connected in series. Asingle LiPo cell can have a range between 3 V(empty) and 4.2 V(full) in its normal operating range. This results in an empty battery voltage of9 Vand afully-charged battery voltage of 12.6 V. Awell-balanced and healthy battery should have all three cells at avoltage very close to each other and between 3 and 4.2 V. The charger delivered with your drone automatically checks for healthy voltages of all three cells and only attempts charging ifthey are within limits. Ifthe cells are out of balance, the charger will take care of balancing them. Ifthe charger detects avoltage outside ofthe allowable range itwill indicate an error either by flashing the status LED red, or bythe LED staying off. This means that the battery is over-discharged and should be discarded.

LiPo batteries do not exhibit any memory effect. We recommend thatyou always fully charge them after use even when they are only partially discharged. When not using the battery store itin the carrying case provided with your drone. Avoid leaving the battery in direct sunlight.

143Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting

144Troubleshooting 

## 8 Troubleshooting

The 

### eBee can generate several types oferror messages depending on its flight mode. Some ofthese messages are minor and simply need to be acknowledged through 

### eMotion, whereas others require more specific action from the user. As long as the droneis connectedto 

### eMotion, errormessageswill appearinthe Status Panel 

### in the Map Area, as well as inthe Drone Status panel ofthe FlightMonitoring tab.



### ACK WARNING Status Panel

Error messages are divided into four categories: Pre-flight errors, Take-offvetoes, In-flight warnings and Critical failures.

145Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting 

### 8.1 Pre-flight errors As soon as the battery is connected to the drone it performs a series ofpre-flight checks to thoroughly test its on-board systems. The start-up process is described in detail in section 'Preparing the 

### eBee for flight' on page 30. If an error occurs during these pre-flight checks the status LED will blink red and a description of the error will appear in 

### eMotion. In most cases, re-connecting the battery will sufficeto removetheerror. Table 3 presents allthe Pre-flight errorsthat may occur and possible actions to fix the error. If the problem is related to the firmware in the on-board autopilot, try re-loading the firmware using instructions in section 'Updating the 

### eBee software' on page 136. Ifan error persists after reconnecting thebattery severaltimes we recommendyou reportthe problem byfollowing the instructions in section 'Reporting aproblem with your

### eBee' on page 168.

Incorrect firmware detected Battery too low for take-off Drone flight log memory full Table 3: Pre-flight errors

There is an error with the current version of the firmware in the 

### eBee's autopilot User action: Re-load the correctfirmware". The battery level is too low to perform atake-off. User action: Re-connect afully-charged battery. The memory card used to storethe Droneflight log is full. User action: Empty the memory card by following the instructions in section 'Importing images and flight data' on page 50.

56 see section 'Updating the eBee software' on page 136
146Troubleshooting

Pitot malfunction Ahigh**~irs**peed was detected while on the ground. User action: Be sure to protect the drone from the wind and re-connectthe battery. Ifthe problem persists, perform Check 4 in section 'Full airframe and sensorinspection' on page 139. Ifthis does not solve the problem contact your eBee reseller. High current A too high' current was detected, which may be caused by an internal problem. User action: Re-connect the battery. Ifthe problem occurs twice, contact your eBee reseller. Magnetometer There is an errorwith the drone's magnetic field senmalfunction sor. Useraction: Re-connect the battery. Ifthe problem persists, contact your eBee reseller. EEPROM There is an errorwith the memory chip ofthe drone's malfunction autopilot. User action: Re-connect the battery. Ifthe problem persists, contact your eBee reseller. Barometer There is an errorwith the drone's barometer. malfunction User action: Be sure to place the drone on a flat surface, reconnect the battery and do not move the drone until pre-flight checks are complete. If the problem persists, perform Check 3in section 'Full airframe and sensor inspection' on page 139. If this does not solve the problem contact your eBee reseller.

147Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting

De-calibrated The orientation sensors were not calibrated correctly. INS or Attitude User action: Be sure to place the drone on a flat malfunction surface, reconnect the battery and do not move the drone until pre-flight checks are complete. If the problem persists, perform Check2 in section 'Full airframe and sensor inspection' on page 139. If this does not solve the problem contact your eBee reseller. Ground sensor There is an errorwith the drone's ground sensor. malfunction User action: Ensure that the ground sensor on the bottom ofthe drone is clear ofdebris and is not damaged, then re-connect the battery. If the problem persists, perform Check4 in section 'Full airframe and sensor inspection' on page 139. Ifthis does not solve the problem contact your eBee reseller
.

. Invalid flight There is an errorwith the firmware in the drone's aucontroller gains topilot. User action: Re-connect the battery. Ifthe problem persists, contact your eBee reseller.

148Troubleshooting 

### 8.2 Take-offvetoes After successfully completing pre-flight checks the status LED becomes a solid green to indicate that the drone is ready for take-off. At this point the eBee continues to monitor its sensors and battery level. Ifat any point the drone detects a condition that prevents it from beginning the automatic take-offprocedure it displays aTake-offveto in eMotion and the status LED changes to a blue pulse. Once the Take-offveto is cleared the status LED returns to asolid green colourto indicate thatthe drone is ready for take-off. Table4on the next page presents all theTake-offvetoes that may occur and possible actions to remove theveto. Ifaveto persists after performing the suggested action, we recommend you report the problem by following the instructions in section 'Reporting aproblem with your eBee'on page 168.

149Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting

Drone not horizontal (roll or pitch) Motor is blocked
Battery too low for take-off Wings not detected

USB cable detected

150 Table 4: Take-offvetos
The eBee must be held horizontally with level wings to initiate take-off. Useraction: Hold the drone horizontally. Excessive current was detected from the motor. User action: Check that the propeller is mounted correctly and that the motor is freely turning and try the take-offprocedure again. The drone requires a fully-charged battery for the take-offprocedure. Useraction: Change the battery. The drone's wings are not attached correctly or the wing struts are damaged. Useraction: Ensurethatthe wings are fully inserted into the main body and that the wing struts are not damaged, as described in section 'Preparingthe eBee for flight' on page 30. The eBee has detected a USB cable connected to the drone's autopilot. Useraction: Remove the USB cable before take-off.Troubleshooting 

### 8.3 In-flightwarnings While itis inflightthe eBeecan generatetwotypes oferrors: warnings and failures. In-flight warnings occur when there is an event that requires user attention but does not compromise the drone's ability to continue flying. When an In-flight warning is activated the warning will appear in yellow in eMo

### tion and cause the 'WARNING' button in the Control Barto change to 'ACKWARNING; turn yellow and activate. The drone will then perform aSecurity action depending on the active In-flightwarning. Some In-flight warnings simply need to be acknowledged by clicking on the 'ACK WARNING' button. Others require action by the user before the warning is cleared and the drone can return to full functionality. The full list of"possible In-flight warnings and required User actions can be found in table 5on the following page. The In-flight warnings marked with a* can have their Security actions disabled, whereas the In-flight warnings marked with a** can have both the warning and the Security action disabled. See section 'Flight Parameters tab' on page 123 for instructions on disabling warnings and Security actions.

151Maintenance, Repairand Troubleshooting

Failure occurred: (failure description)

Low battery Table 5: In-flight warnings

This warning ensures that the user is aware that a Critical failure has occurred even ifit is no longer active57. Security action: The eBee flies towards the Horne waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest'). User action: Ensure that the failure condition is no longer present before acknowledging the error and continuing normal operation. The remaining battery level is too lowto continuethe flight plan. Security action: The eBee flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest') and automatically initiates an expedited landing procedure (without performing a full wind estimation) once it reaches the waypoint. Useraction: Land as soon as possible. Re-charge the drone battery before performing anotherflight.

57 see section 'Critical**failure~'** on page 163 for adescription of possible Critical failures
152Troubleshooting

Drone flight log There is an error saving data to the on-board memmalfunction ory card which will prevent the images from being geo-tagged. Images may still be geo-tagged using the eMotion Flight Log file but may be less precise. Securityaction: The drone continues normal flight. User action: Land as soon as possible. Once on the ground, connecttothe on-board memory card as described in section 1mporting images and flight data' on page 50 and re-formatthe memory card. Flight controller The flight controllerhas encountered an unexpected malfunction state, such as an incorrectwaypoint type. Security action: The drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest'). User action: Land as soon as possible and re-start the drone. Ifthe problem persists, contactyour 

### eBee reseller. Camera sync There is a problem with the wiring ofthe on-board malfunction 

### camera. Security action: If required parameter set in the Flight Parameters tab, the drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest'). Otherwise it continues its mission without taking further images. User action: Land as soon as possible and re-start the drone. Reset the camera settings as described in section 'Resetting default camera settings' on page 166.

153Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting

Camera power The camera is no longer responding, most likely bemalfunction cause it is no longer powered. Security action: If required parameter set in the Flight Parameters tab, the drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest'). Otherwise it continues its mission withouttaking further images. User action: Land as soon as possible. Checkthecable connection between the camera and the drone and charge all the batteries before perfonning anotherflight. Barometer The barometer used to sense the current altitude is malfunction malfunctioning. Security action: The drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by**defaul~** set to 'Highest') using altitude calculated from GPS signals only, potentially causing large fluctuations in altitude. User action: Land as soon as possible and perform Check 3 in section 'Full airframe and sensor inspection' on page 139.

154Troubleshooting

Motor The motor is drawing too little or too much current. malfunction This may be caused by damaged wires or connectors leading to the motororby sand orotherdebris within the motor. Security action: The drone attempts to re-start the motor. Ifthe first attempt fails a Failure: Motor malfunction Critical failure is announced". User action: Land as soon as possible and perform Check 1in section 'Full airframe and sensor inspection' on page 139. Battery The sensor used to measure the battery voltage and malfunction current is registering invalid values, indicating that the sensoris de-calibrated or damaged. Security action: The drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest'). User action: Land as soon as possible and re-start the drone. Ifthe problem persists, contact your eBee reseller.

.

58 see section 'Critical failures' on page 163
155Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting

Airspeed The differential pressure sensor used to measure airmalfunction speed is registering invalid values. This may be due to adamaged sensor orto aclogged pitot probe. Security action: The drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest') at a constant thrust value instead of controlled speed, potentially resulting in low or high flight speeds depending on wind. Once it reaches the Home waypoint it initiates a landing procedure. User action: Try to provide a maximum amount of approach sectors to ensure that the drone can land against the direction of the wind. Land as soon as possible and perform Check4 in section 'Full airframe and sensor inspection' on page 139. Low airspeed Detected airspeed is unusually low or close to zero. This may be due to a collision with the ground or a clogged airspeed sensor. Security action: The drone shuts off its motor and tries to continue its mission. User action: If the warning is due to a clogged airspeed sensor it may be due to moisture in the air. Try commanding the drone to descend closer to the ground and out ofany cloud cover.

156Troubleshooting

Overspeed Detected airspeed is unusually high, possibly due to aloss ofcontrol. Security action: The drone applies a 50% reverse thrustto try to slow down. User action: Keep track of the drone's position in case it is unable to slow back down to a regular airspeed. Ground sensor The ground sensor used to detect the proximity of malfunction the ground is malfunctioning. Security action: The drone continues normal flight. User action: Land as soon as possible and perform Check 5 in section 'Full airframe and sensor inspection' on page 139. Wings detection The sensor used to detect the presence ofthe wings malfunction malfunctioning. Security action: The drone continues normal flight. User action: Land as soon as possible and inspect the wing struts as described in section 'Preparing the eBeefor flight' on page 30.

157Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting

Temperature out The temperature sensor on the drone is registering ofworking levels internal temperatures of less than -50° Cor more than 90° C. This may occur in extremely hot or cold environments or if the on-board autopilot is damaged. Security action: The drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest'). User action: Land as soon as possible. If the outside temperature is above 35°C or below -1

### ooc, disconnect the battery and wait until the temperature changes to within these limits. Above working The drone has passed the verticid boundary ofthe area ceiling working area, defined by the working area ceiling. This may occur ifwaypoint altitudes are set close to or outside the working area or due to strong wind. Security action: The drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest'). It also turns offits motor as long as it remains above the working area ceiling. User action: Limit the altitude of all waypoints to less than the working area ceiling.

158Troubleshooting

Out ofworking The drone has passed the lateral boundary of the area radius working area, defined by the working area radius. This may occurifwaypoints are set closeto oroutside ofthe working area or due to strong wind. Security action: The drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highest1. Useraction: Limitthe plannedflight path within the working area boundaries. Far outside of The drone has passedfar outside oftheworking area. working area This may be caused by very high winds or due to mechanica! failure. Securityaction: The dronetries to orient itselfinthe direction ofthe Homewaypoint and begins descending immediately until it lands on the ground or returns within the working area. Useraction: Keep track ofthe location ofthe drone during landing. Ifthe drone lands outside ofview follow the instructions in section 'Losing and locating your eBeein the field' on page 167.

159Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting

PoorGPS GPS signal coverage is low. This maybe due to mouncoverage* tains ortall buildings blocking satellite signals. lfcoverage degrades any more a Critical failure will be activated and an emergency landing will be initiated". 

### Security action (if enabled): The drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, setto 'Highest1. 

### User action: Ifthis occurs once or twice, click 'ACK WARNING' and continue normalflight. Ifthis warning appears more often, land as soon as possible andwait for betterconditions for satellite signal reception. AIternatively, move away from objectsthat may disturb satellite signals such as mountains or cellular antennas. Data uplink lost'' This warning occurs ifthe 

### eBee does not receive any (ifenabled) data from 

### eMotion for more than 30 s. This can be due to a large distance between drone and ground station, a problem with the USB ground modem, antenna positioning or interference
.. 

### Security action (if enabled): The drone flies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to Highest). 

### User action: Try to improve radio signal quality by following the instructions in section 'Improving radio signal communication' on page 166.

59 see section 'Critical failures' on page 163
160Troubleshooting

Ground proximity The ground sensor on the drone has detected a detected'* ground height above the ground of less than 30 m (ifenabled) during normal flight. Note: thisfeature should not 

### be depended on for avoiding obstacles, as the ground sensormayfail todetectobstaclesin certain environmental conditions60• Security action (if enabled): The drone circles the current position while climbing to an altitude of60 m abovethedetected ground height. Oncethis altitude is reached thedrone continuestowardsthe nextwaypoint but sets the waypoint's target altitude at 60 m above the last detected ground height. User action: Ensure thatthere are no obstacles such as hills orbuildings higherthanthe waypoints ofyour flight plan. Ground proximity The ground sensor on the eBee was unable to detect not detected the proximity ofthe ground during a Linear landing landing precision procedure. This may be due to an obstruction in the decreased** sensor, low ambient light or low contrast in the environment61

. Security action: The drone continues the Linear landing procedure but will initiate its final brake at an estimated altitude of20m instead of3 m(assuming the Linear landing location is atthe same altitude at the Take-offlocation), resulting in decreased precision in the landing location. User action: Be ready for the drone to overshoot its planning Linear landing location by preparing a larger obstacle-free zone around the location.

60 see section 'Linear landing' on page 72 61 see section 'Linear landing' on page 72

161Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting

Backwind, There are no approach sectors available against the landing precision direction ofthe wind. The eBee has calculated a lindecreased*** earlanding approach direction in the direction ofthe (in blue) wind. Security action: The eBee continues normal flight. User action: Add anew approach sectoragainst the direction ofthe wind, if possible, abort the landing and try landing again. If not, be ready for the eBee to overshoot its planning linear landing location by preparing a larger obstacle-free zone around the location. Strong wind' The wind is too strong forthe eBeeto navigate safely. Security action {ifenabled): The eBeeflies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, set to 'Highes\1. User action: Land as soon as possible and wait for betterflight conditions. Cannot maintain The eBee cannot maintain the altitude that is comaltitude manded by the flight controller. This may be due to a damaged motor, airframe or ailerons or astrong vertical wind. Security action: The drone continues normal flight. User action: Ifthe condition persists during aflight, land and wait for the wind to decrease, as explained in section 'Weather check' on page 29. Ifthe problem occurs in low-wind conditions perform Check 2 in section 'Full airframe and sensor inspection' on page 139.

162Pitch or Roll instability Troubleshooting

The orientation sensors on the eBeedetected unusually high pitch or roll values even after performing stabilization. This may be due to strong winds or damaged airframe. 

### Security action: The drone continues normal flight whiletrying to stabilizethe pitch as much as possible. 

### User action: lfthe condition persists during aflight, land and wait for the wind to decrease, as explained in section 'Weather check' on page 29. If the problem occurs in low-wind conditions perform Check 2 in section 'Full airframe and sensor inspection' on page 139.



### 8.4 Critical failures Acritical failure is an error that occurs in flight that prevents the continuation of normal flight. This is the most serious type of error that can occur with the eBee, and is indicated in red in eMotion. The 'WARNING' button in the Control Bar changesto 'CRITICAL FAILURE; becomes red and cannot be acknowledged. When a critical failure occurs flight is aborted and the drone initiates an Emergency action in which it is immediately directed to the ground. The Emergency action for each Critical failure is designed to minimize the airspeed and thus impact energy with the ground using the sensors that are still functioning. Table 6 on the following page describes the critical failures that may occur and what action is taken by the drone. In some cases it may be possible to manually control the drone using the remote control". If such a critical failure occurs that results in an Emergency landing we recommendthatyou keep trackofthe drone's

62 see section 'Manual control oftheeBee' on page 127
163Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting
last known position in the airand in 

### eMotion ifpossible andfollow the instructions in section 'Losing and locating your 

### eBee in the field' on page 167.

Failure: loss ofGPS signals

Failure: empty battery

Failure: INS malfunction

164 Table 6: Critical failures

Your 

### e8ee can no longer calculate its position, making it impossiblefor itto know where it is andthus to navigate. Emergency action: The drone turns off its motor, sets a bank angle and glides in a large circle towards the ground. Ifthere is a strong wind the drone may be pushedfarfrom its currentposition. Ifsatellite signals are re-acquired the drone will abort the landing procedure and go to the Home waypoint. The battery is completely empty. Emergency action: The drone turns off its motor and glides towards the ground in the direction ofthe Home waypoint. This error is always preceded by a Low battery In-flight warning. There is a failure with the orientation sensors which makes it impossible for the drone to stabilise itself and thus initiate agliding emergency landing. Emergency action: The drone turns off its motor and fully deflects its ailerons which resutts in an uncontrolled descentwith limited impact energy (deep stall or spin).Troubleshooting

Failure: motor The motor is not working even after an attempted malfunction re-startcommanded byaMotormalfunction ln-fiight warning. Emergencyaction: The drone orients itselfinthe direction ofthe Home waypoint and glides towardsthe ground while continuously trying to re-start the motor. If motor re-start is successful the drone cancels the landing and fiies towards the Home waypoint at an altitude defined by the Home waypoint's Change altitude parameter (by default, setto 'Highest'). Failure: CPU Over- The autopilot processor is overloaded and can no load longer control fiight. The drone turns off its motor and fully defiects its ailerons which results in an uncontrolled descent with limited impact energy (deep stall or spin).

16SMaintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting 

### 8.5 Resetting default camera settings .In case ofunwanted configuration changes, the camera can be re-configured to a suitable state. Please refer to your camera user manual for the procedure. You can find camera manuals in our Knowledge Base within my.senseFiy" 

### 8.6 Improving radio signal communication You may occasionally lose the data connection between eMotion and your eBee while in the field. Whether there is a loss in uplink or downlink communication, the drone will continue flying along its Flight Plan and should re-establish the connection as itflies closerto the base station or changes direction. If the drone stops receiving messages from eMotion (uplink direction) for more

. than 30 syou will see a'Data uplink lost' In-flightwarning appear in eMotion. Iffor

safety reasons you would like the eBeeto automatically return to the Home waypoint when this warning appears, select the corresponding option in the Flight Parameters tab". Ifthere are no more messages received by eMotionfrom the drone (downlinkdirection), a 'Data downlink lost' message will appear in eMotion. Ifthere is still an active uplinkconnection you may still command yourdrone to returnto the Home waypoint using the Control Bar. Data connection range can be effected by many external factors such as antenna height, terrain and obstacles or radio interference. We recommend the following tips to improve the range ofyourconnection in the field: 1. Place the USB ground modem as high as possible (for example, on top ofa car, ladder or nearby building). Aheight ofat least 2 mis recommended. 2. Ensure that the USB ground modem's antenna is pointing straight up. 3. Disable any 2.4 GHz-based communication devices (or put them into 'Airplane mode') in the vicinity ofthe USB ground modem. This includes all
63 http://my.sensefly.com 64 see section 'Flight Parameters tab' on page 123 for more details
166Troubleshooting
Wifi and Bluetooth devices such asthe ground station computeror mobile phones. The strength ofthe connection between the drone and eMotion is indicated in the Flight Monitoring tab". The three LEDs next to the antenna on the ground modem also indicate the strength ofthe connection. The connection is strongest when all three LEDs are a solid red, and weakestwhen a single LED is blinking. 

### 8.7 Losing and locating your eBee 

### in thefield We recommend thatyou write your address and phone number on your eBee (by putting your business card on top ofthe camera for example) in case it gets lost and subsequently found by athird party. In case you lose your drone in the field for whatever reason, whether from a loss ofcommunications, a Critical failure or an accidental collision, use the following steps to try to recover it: 1. Do not disconnectthe connection in eMotion! Ifit is simply out ofcommunication range the drone should reconnect automatically as it returns to the Home waypoint after completing its mission. 2. Notethe last known location ofthe drone in eMotion byprinting the screen or writing down the location displayed in the FlightMonitoring tab. 3. Mqve towards this last known direction with the computer running eMotion in the hope ofregaining aconnection. Be sure to take the remote control with you as well. 4. Ifyou have reached the last known location ofyourdrone and have notyet found it, turn on the remote control. 5. Try moving both the control sticks around. Ifthe drone is within range it may start making noise with its main motor or servo motors. 6. Try moving downwind from the last known location in case the drone was pushed by the wind while still in the air.
65 see section 'Flight Monitoring tab' on page 98
167Maintenance, Repair and Troubleshooting


### 8.8 Reporting a problem with your 

### eBee Ifthere is a problem with your eBee, whether it is a software malfunction, damaged airframe or any other problem, we recommend the following actions: 1. Ifthere Is an errormessage displayed in eMotion, begin by checking section 'Troubleshooting' on page 145 to see ifthere is asolution to the particular message. 2. Check our Knowledge Base, part ofmy.senseFiy", to see ifthere is a solution to your problem. 3. Ifyou have still not found a solution, contact your eBee reseller. Please include the following information**w~h** your inquiry: • The serial number ofyour drone, in the format EB-XX-XXX. You can

find this number inside the battery enclosure. • Ashort description ofthe problem. • The Drone Flight Log file ofthe flight that had aproblem". • The eMotion Flight Log file ofthe flight that had a problem. You can

find this file in the eMotion/logs/ directory which is created in My Documents on Windows. • Photos or video ofthe eBee airframe, ifrequired.

66 http://my.sensefly.com 67 see section 'Importing images and flight data' on page 50 for information on retrieving this filefrom

the eBee
168

## Part IV 

# SpecificationsSpecifications 

## 1 Software requirements eMotion has thefollowing minimum software requirements:



### Operating system Hardware


### Screen Microsoft Windows 7/8 1.6 GHz processor 2GB RAM 500MB free storage space recommended resolution: 1920x 1080 visible outdoors 

### Postflight Terra3D has thefollowing minimum software requirements:



### Operating system Hardware



### Screen

170 Microsoft Windows 7/8,64-bit only 1.6 GHz processor (2 GHz Intel i5/i7/Xeon recommended) 4GB RAM (16GB recommended for large projects) 10 GB free storage space (1 TB recommended for large projects) min. resolution: 1024x768Drone specifications 

### 2 Drone specifications
Size Wingspan: 96 em Wing area: 0.25 m2 Weight withoutcamera andbattery approx. 0.42 kg (0.93 lbs)

Nominal take-offweight(approx.) eBee: 0.67 kg (1.48 lbs) eBeeAg: 0.71 kg (1.56lbs) (with standard camera & battery) Maximum take-offweight 0.75 kg (1.6Sibs) Material EPP foam, carbon structure & composite parts Battery 3-cell Lithium-Polymer (0.14 kg) Nominalendurance (flight time)" eBee: 50 minutes eBeeAg: 45 minutes (with standard camera) Propulsion Electric brushless motor Nominal static thrust: 0.63 kgf (6.2 N) Nominalcruise speed 40..90 km/h (11-25 m/s or 25-56 mph) Windresistance up to 45 km/h (12 m/s} Max. single flightcoverage" eBee: 12 km 2 (4.6 mi2) eBeeAg: 10 km 2 (3.9 mi2) (on asingle battery charge)

68 can vary greatly depending on external factors such as wind, altitude change and temperature. 69 calculated based on the following test conditions: GSD of 30 em (11.8 in) per pixel, no wind, moderate air temp. (18 C/64.4 F), new fully-charged battery, flight altitude of 1,000 m(3,280 ft) above ground &take offat approx. sea level from centre ofcoverage area.
171Specifications
Communication devices Ground modem: • Frequency: 2.4 GHz • Range": approx. 3 km
o Certification: FCC Part 15.247, IC RSS210, CE Remote control: • Frequency: 2.4 GHz • Range: approx. 1 km
o Certification: CE, FCC Navigation Up to 50 waypoints GSD (perpixel) eBee: Down to 1.5 em (0.6 in) eBeeAg: Down to 2 em (0.8 in) Absolute horizontal eBee (with GCPs): Down to 3 em (1.2 in) accuracy eBee (no GCPs): 1to 5 m (3.3 to 16.4 ft) eBeeAg (with GCPs): Down to 4 em (1.6 in) eBeeAg (no GCPs): 1to 5 m (3.3 to 16.4 ft) Absolute vertical eBee (with GCPs): Down to 5 em (2.0 in) accuracy eBee (no GCPs): 2to 5 m (6.6 to 16.4 ft) eBeeAg (with GCPs): Down to 7 em (2.8 in) eBeeAg (no GCPs): 2to 5 m (6.6 to 16.4 ft) Relativeorthomosald 1-3 times GSD

30modelaccuracy Carrycase dimensions 55 x45 x 25 em (21.6x 17.7 x9.8 in)

70 can vary greatly depending on external factors such as cruise altitude, presence of obstacles and

radio-frequency interference.
172

## Glossary AMSL Above Mean Sea Level Your eBee's altitude can be shown and set in eMotion using ATO or AMSL. Your drone uses the EGM96 mean sea level standard for navigation. ATO Above the Take-offAltitude Your eBee's altitude can be shown and set in eMotion using ATO or AMSL. Altitudes in ATO are relative to the place your eBee started its motorjust before take-off. DSM Digital Surface Model A3D digital representation ofasurface. FTDI FutureTechnology Devices International AScottish semiconductor device company specialising in Universal Serial Bus (USB) technology. FTDI cables allow serial connections through aUSB cable. eMotion uses FTDI technology to connect to the ground modem. You can often connect a computer to aGNSS base station using FTDI. geo-reference A data point associated with aspecificlocation ontheearth's surface. GSD Ground Sampling Distance The distance measured on the ground between pixel centres in an image or DSM.The smallertheGSD, the higherthe spatial resolution ofthe image. For example, a GSD of5 em means that one pixel in the image represents 5em on the ground. mosaic Asingle map or terrain model created from several map sections that have been placed side-by-side and merged together. orthomosaic Asingle, corrected image constructed eitherfrom several images taken from different angles, or from several orthophotos. Distortions dueto different camera positions, ground curvature and reliefare corrected for so thatthe image displays accurately in the given map projection. 

### photogrammetry A technique inwhichmeasurements takenfrom photographs are used to reconstruct a 3D surface or a series ofpoints in space. 

### point cloud Aset ofdata points within acoordinate system. 

### rayCioud A feature uniqueto PostflightTerra 3Dthatcombines the 3Dpointcloud with the original images. Multi ray matching with the rayCioud extends the stereo view triangulation and increases the accuracy of3D point estimates while providing afull understanding of3D results. 

### triangle model An approximate representation of a surface, constructed from connected triangles.

### 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1 1 1 

### 1 1 1