Software to Fly a Swarm of DJI drones simultaneously - Looking for Feedback.

Varun Sarwal · Mar 8, 2018

Hello everyone,

We're a team of engineers based in the UK working on a software system that helps drone pilots fly a swarm of DJI mavic drones.

Our aim is to make commercial drone operations faster to execute.

We are industry-agnostic and would love to get user feedback through free trials, so that we are able to build a better tool for the community.

So If you're working in an industry where a swarm of drones could enable faster operations, feel free to drop me a message!

Short video of the software in action:
Many thanks,
Varun Sarwal

R.Perry · Mar 8, 2018

Here in the US I believe it would be illegal; but since it hasn't been addressed I'm not sure. How do you manage and control multiple drones if one of them decides to go astray? I could see multiple drones used for mapping of very large areas, but beyond that what would be the purpose?

Advexure · Mar 8, 2018

R.Perry said:
Here in the US I believe it would be illegal

Correct, Part 107 states that "No person may act as a remote pilot in command or VO for more than one unmanned aircraft operation at one time."

Intel has received a waiver from the FAA for nighttime operation as well as the operation of multiple small unmanned aircraft systems at night within special security notice flight restriction areas in the United States.

Varun Sarwal · Mar 9, 2018

R.Perry said:
Here in the US I believe it would be illegal; but since it hasn't been addressed I'm not sure. How do you manage and control multiple drones if one of them decides to go astray? I could see multiple drones used for mapping of very large areas, but beyond that what would be the purpose?

A very valid point, we understand the regulatory constraints involved in flying multiple drones with a single operator, but we're planning to work with the relevant aviation authorities to ensure safe and reliable operations. In the UK, flying multiple drones is legal as long as the flight can be safely made and all drones are in visual line of sight.

Mapping very large areas would definitely be one application. We also envision multiple drones being used in search and rescue missions to parallelise the search and increase the odds of finding people quicker. Having said that, we want to work closely with the ops community to understand what use-cases make sense and where the software could add value.

Rodger · Mar 9, 2018

Advexure said:
Correct, Part 107 states that "No person may act as a remote pilot in command or VO for more than one unmanned aircraft operation at one time."

Intel has received a waiver from the FAA for nighttime operation as well as the operation of multiple small unmanned aircraft systems at night within special security notice flight restriction areas in the United States.

Correct, and the Intel waiver was used with specially built Drones by Intel.

Graham Degg · Mar 10, 2018

Varun Sarwal said:
A very valid point, we understand the regulatory constraints involved in flying multiple drones with a single operator, but we're planning to work with the relevant aviation authorities to ensure safe and reliable operations. In the UK, flying multiple drones is legal as long as the flight can be safely made and all drones are in visual line of sight.

Mapping very large areas would definitely be one application. We also envision multiple drones being used in search and rescue missions to parallelise the search and increase the odds of finding people quicker. Having said that, we want to work closely with the ops community to understand what use-cases make sense and where the software could add value.

Varun, glad to see you are ignoring the US-107-centric comments. Some see the UK as part of a socialist Europe but in terms of regs the CAA are a pragmatic bunch eager to see the safe use of drones while simultaneously happy to support commercial expansion. Message me with a few details of what you are up to and I can forward to a contact in re-insurance who is VERY interested in such developments in order to collect big data quickly - specifically in post-disaster scenarios.