Drone Flight

Intro

Once you've gathered all your ground data, you'll want to move on to the Drone part of the survey. You'll take images of the roof condition, shade obstructions, and individual roof images.

You’ll want to focus on the parts of the roof where the solar panels are going to be installed. Your client should have given you a layout, or if you were hired by DroneQuote we will have provided you with the checklist mentioned earlier that also includes the layout of the solar panels.

Obstruction Measurement Demo

When it comes to solar panels, shade can cause a significant drop in electricity generation. One of the big takeaways from a solar site survey is getting a good understanding of the amount of shade that should be accounted for when engineering a solar panel system. During this process you will want to look at the location of the solar panel layout and take panoramic images from the ridge of the roof on which the panels will be landing. 

Roof Pitch

The pitch of the roof is important because it is factored into the estimate of annual electricity generation.

Orthomosaic Images

Ortho mosaic images are extremely useful because if they are scaled properly, these images allow for very accurate measurements. 

I can't tell you how many times orthomosaic measurements proved to be more accurate than hand measured roof surfaces.

The big catch here is that you must lay out a reference measurement so that the images can be scaled accurately. If you forget to lay out a measurement tape for the scale, then it renders your orthomosaic image useless.

Note: While you do not have to use automation software to fly the drone, doing so will make your images easier to develop, require you to take less pictures, and move less data. This will make the job a little bit easier.