How Can Drones Be Used For Stockpile Measurement and Analysis?

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The method for using a drone to calculate stockpiles begins with preparation, initially completed off site.

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A flight plan is drawn and loaded to the drones flight control software where the flight pattern is calculated.

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The remote pilot will input some variables about the area being flown such as height, speed and camera parameters.

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Aerial Hawk use RTK equipped drones to ensure consistency and accuracy in the data collected. This is confirmed by the placement of ground control point (or GCP's) around the site.

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The drone will automatically fly the planned flight path, capturing a series of overlapped images of the site including the stockpiles themselves.

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The remote pilot does not need to move around the site as long as they can see the drone throughout the flight. This means they can stand off at a safe location and observe the drone.

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Once image collection is complete, images are certified on site before being processed using specialist software.

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This software will incorporate the GCP's to ensure the data is accurate and in the correct coordinate system.

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A digital terrain model is generated from which a triangular irregular network (TIN) surface is created of the site and the target stockpiles.

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From this TIN, the volume can be calculated and the tonnage also estimated (if we know the grade / density of the material).

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Software is used to compile a stockpile volume report to be shared with the client.

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Cloud software can also be used to share the surface model with the project team and their surveyors / engineers. They can then work with the data as if they had collected it themselves.