Skyfront Offers Autonomous Long-Range Terrain Worldwide

June 30, 2021--Menlo Park, California-- Skyfront, the leading manufacturer of long endurance hybrid hybrid-electric drones, now offers autonomous terrain-follow capabilities in the most rugged environments. The Skyfront system integrates active RADAR terrain sensing and SPH Engineering’s UgCS mission planning software to safely fly for hours as low as two meters above ground. Skyfront’s Perimeter 8, which holds the world record for a multirotor drone flight time, uses an eight rotor system to perform missions rivaling even the most advanced manned helicopters. Skyfront can fly for hours with sensor payloads, including specialized magnetometers and other remote sensing technologies that weigh upwards of 17 pounds. When combined with the drone’s ability to fly in close proximity to the ground, Skyfront UAVs are ready and able to detect improvised explosive devices (IED), conduct resource exploration, discover unexploded ordnance, and find oil wellheads worldwide. 

Using active RADAR sensors from the company Ainstein, Skyfront unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) respond to the terrain by automatically calculating and adjusting flight altitude based on a continuous stream of incoming measurements. The system can operate in hot temperatures and over water—when and where traditional LiDAR-based terrain sensors typically fail. Combined with UgCS mission planning software, this allows Skyfront drones to visualize complex trajectories in rugged terrain prior to takeoff and course correct in real time. Integrated into the Skyfront platform—propelled by the company’s hybrid-electric powertrain—the UAV can fly close to steep hills for hours and cover hundreds of acres in a single flight.

“Skyfront’s vision is to create the ultimate high endurance drone platform that enables real industrial work in the most challenging terrain,” said Skyfront CEO and founder Troy Mestler. “We build powerful UAVs that integrate the latest, most sophisticated sensors and perform missions only previously achievable with manned helicopters. Ainstein and UgCS bring unique capabilities to our solution, while partnerships with companies like Geometrics provide access to state-of-the-art ground penetrating payloads.”

“We created the MagArrow to offer the best-in-class airborne magnetometer,” said Stefan Burns, Sr. Geophysicist and Digital Marketing Project Lead at Geometrics. “When we designed our magnetometer, we needed a partner that fully shared our vision. Skyfront’s cutting-edge technology provides maximum endurance which amplifies the number of applications for our sensor and allows users to fully utilize its extreme capabilities.”

The Skyfront Perimeter 8 UAS with terrain-following is currently in use by aerial analytics companies, civil engineering firms, international universities, and soon by a state department of transportation.

About Skyfront

Skyfront hybrid UAVs are built for maximum endurance—from mission-critical search and rescue to the latest commercial applications. Skyfront Perimeter multirotor drones are designed to fly beyond visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) more than 60 miles away to monitor, detect, and explore for a fraction of the cost of a manned helicopter. Skyfront is mission ready and deployed worldwide. To learn more about Skyfront Perimeter drones, visit www.skyfront.com.

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