Drones & Aerial Survey
Drones: How It Works
The end-to-end sequence, stage by stage, with nothing skipped.
The module is modelled as an explicit state machine with 8 stages. Every record knows which stage it is at, what has to happen to move on, and what is blocking it if it cannot. Drones deliver genuine value in mapping, crop scouting, livestock checking and infrastructure inspection, and are legally constrained for pesticide application in a way the marketing rarely makes clear. This module manages operational authorisation, flight planning and logging, imagery processing, and states the aerial application position plainly so investment decisions are not made on a false premise.
End to end
How Drones runs, start to finish
The module is modelled as a state machine, so at any point the business knows exactly which stage every record is at and what has to happen next.
-
1
Confirm pilot competence and authorisation
This is where the record starts, and getting it right here removes work at every later stage.
-
2
Plan the flight and check airspace
The platform prompts only for what this stage genuinely needs, and carries everything forward.
-
3
Complete the pre-flight risk assessment
Conflicts with scheme rules, regulatory windows and existing commitments are flagged here rather than discovered later.
-
4
Fly and log
Capture works offline, so this stage is completed in the field rather than remembered afterwards.
-
5
Process imagery into the field record
Everything recorded at this point becomes evidence automatically, in every format that will later ask for it.
-
6
Act on findings within the crop record
This is the stage most businesses currently do twice, once for the operation and once for the paperwork.
-
7
Retain evidence for insurance and audit
Results feed the whole-farm view, so the effect of this stage is visible against the rest of the business.
-
8
Review currency and renew authorisations
The cycle closes here, and what is learned is carried into next season's plan rather than lost.
Sequence
The order things happen in
-
Stage 1
Confirm pilot competence and authorisation
This is where the record starts, and getting it right here removes work at every later stage.
-
Stage 2
Plan the flight and check airspace
The platform prompts only for what this stage genuinely needs, and carries everything forward.
-
Stage 3
Complete the pre-flight risk assessment
Conflicts with scheme rules, regulatory windows and existing commitments are flagged here rather than discovered later.
-
Stage 4
Fly and log
Capture works offline, so this stage is completed in the field rather than remembered afterwards.
-
Stage 5
Process imagery into the field record
Everything recorded at this point becomes evidence automatically, in every format that will later ask for it.
-
Stage 6
Act on findings within the crop record
This is the stage most businesses currently do twice, once for the operation and once for the paperwork.
Before you start
What you will need, and what the module handles for you
Most of this comes across automatically once your holding is registered. The list is here so nothing arrives as a surprise.
In practice
Six things Drones changes on day one
None of these requires a new process. They all come from recording the work you already do, once, in a form the rest of the platform can use.
Operator competence, remote pilot certification
Operator competence, remote pilot certification and currency tracking.
Operational authorisation management for Specific
Operational authorisation management for Specific category flights.
Flight planning with airspace, restriction
Flight planning with airspace, restriction and permission checking.
Flight logging with duration, area
Flight logging with duration, area, pilot and aircraft.
Aerial imagery capture planning for
Aerial imagery capture planning for crop scouting and mapping.
Orthomosaic and elevation model processing
Orthomosaic and elevation model processing and storage.
Find
Find contractors and dealers
Filter by type, nation, distance and accreditation. Results are ranked by relevance to your holding once your holding record exists, and alphabetically before that.
6 records shown from the platform’s own register
- Module Machinery, Fleet & Contracting Flagship
- Module Precision Agriculture, Guidance & Variable Rate Core
- Module Robotics & Field Automation Core
- Module Drones & Aerial Survey Core
- Module Satellite & Remote Sensing Core
- Module IoT Sensors & Rural Connectivity Core
Questions answered
What people ask about Drones
Does this replace the software I already use?
Not necessarily. Agrivencia integrates with authoritative sources and mainstream packages rather than insisting on replacing them. Where an incumbent does one job well, the platform connects to it; where the job spans several systems and nobody does it, the platform does it.
Will it work where I have no signal?
Yes. Field capture in Drones is offline first, storing locally and synchronising when a connection returns. Only around a fifth of UK farms report reliable signal across the whole holding, so this is a design assumption rather than a feature.
What happens when the scheme rules change?
Scheme rules are held as data rather than code, so a rate change, a cap change or a window closure is a content update that takes effect the same day. The platform also alerts you to what the change does to your own position.
Who owns the data I put in?
You do. The Farm Data Charter gives you a complete export in open formats at any time, and every instance of data sharing requires an explicit, revocable consent that is visible in your account.
Does it work if I farm across a border?
Yes, and that is one of the main reasons the platform exists. A business with land in more than one nation sees one reconciled view rather than two portals, with obligations and deadlines from both administrations in a single calendar.
Can my agronomist or land agent use it too?
Yes. You grant scoped, time-limited access per holding and per module, and you can revoke it in one click. Advisers never get a shared password or a blanket view.
What is the biggest limitation of this module?
Illegal aerial application. Mitigated by an explicit legality checker rather than silence. We would rather state that plainly than let you discover it after signing.
What we are hearing
The problems people describe to us
These are composite statements drawn from user research conversations, not attributed customer quotes. We publish named references only with written consent.
I am not short of software. I am short of one place where the same field means the same thing in all of it.
The scheme closed on a Tuesday evening. I had the application half built. Nobody told me the budget was nearly gone.
We farm on both sides of the border. Everything takes twice as long and I still cannot see the whole position on one screen.
Audit week costs me three days. Every single record they ask for is already written down somewhere on this farm.
See Drones running on your own holding
Thirty minutes, using your parcels, your schemes and your enterprises rather than a sample farm. No obligation and no sales script — if it does not fit your business we will say so.
- Free tier available
- No card required
- Your data stays yours