Best Commercial Drones Overview: Top 5 Models for Commercial Use
Commercial drones are starting to be used more by large companies who are looking for ways to improve their services and lower labor costs. Amazon, for example, has been talking about using drones for same-day product delivery, or even for same-hour delivery, aka Prime Air. Commercial drones can be used for many other services too, like for farmers who want to either survey an area of land or to do inspections of areas that are otherwise difficult to reach in person.
Real estate agents can use camera drones to create video tours of houses they are trying to sell so that potential buyers can get a quick preview online before coming to look at the house; it saves both the buyer and the agent precious time and money that might usually be wasted.
Other businesses can use these drones for marketing purposes, security and surveillance, special events and documentation and search and rescue. The uses for drone technology are endless.
The type of commercial drone you need to invest in depends on what kind of services you’re going to be using it for. Will you be surveying a giant oil rig? Or will you be simply using it to get photos of real estate or land? Package delivery purposes would require a drone that can carry a decent amount of weight; most drones can only carry a few pounds.
Agricultural drones are usually either fixed-wing or multi-rotor. Some drones focus on complete stability and weather resistance, while other’s primary focus is the quality of photos taken.
Inspection Drone
Yuneec H520 Commercial Hexacopter
This is an example of the type of drone that should be used for inspection purposes, the Yuneec H520. It’s also useful for search and rescue teams that need help when searching among the rubble.
It has six rotors that help keep it level in the air and is wind-resistant to prevent crashing since inspection drones are sometimes used in the air above areas that aren’t easily walked into. The software made for this drone can create aerial flight paths for you and then later recall those flight paths to be used again. It can fly for up to 31 minutes at a time.
If you’re planning to use this drone to take pictures or for video documentation, note that the internal 4K camera produces 12mp still images and shoots 720p video.
This Yuneec drone can be used for a lot of different reasons but is considered a professional drone, not just for hobbyists or amateur flyers. Think about furthering your drone flight experience through online classes before purchasing a drone like this one.
High-Tech Surveying Drone
This is a very advanced and expensive enterprise surveying drone. Although, it can be used for much more than surveying, just because of how versatile it is.It’s capable of surviving in severe weather conditions and can even stay alive in sub-zero temperatures because the batteries are self-heating. Overall, it is weather and magnet resistant.
The navigation system is advanced and has three obstacle avoidance infrared sensor systems. It also has the ability to use a point of interest as it’s focal point as it flies in a circular path around the object identified.
You can also attach up to two cameras to the drone itself (which is shone in the transparent section of the picture above), including an upward-facing camera. Other than cameras, you can also buy an airspeed sensor, a thermometer, a LiDAR sensor or an accelerometer sensor to attach to the drone. It can hold up to 5lbs, which is quite a bit more weight than most other drones can hold.
Multi-Purpose Drone
Yuneec Typhoon H is very different than the Yuneec H520, the only thing they have in common is that they are both hexacopters. Unlike the 520, this drone is more suited for amateurs. It can be used for virtually anything, but it’s not as durable as some of the other drones in this article.
It has a 4K video camera that moves 360 degrees. When in flight, it can detect potential obstacles and automatically make the correct adjustments to avoid such obstacles, even when taking a video or pictures.And, if it becomes necessary, you can fly it along with a second operator.
This drone isn’t as nice as the other drones above but can serve you well in lots of ways.
Why Use a Commercial Drone?
Commercial drones can be used for many different purposes. Some businesses invest in drones to help with surveying, inspections, search and rescue, land appraisal, virtual real estate tours and much more. Companies are slowly starting to catch onto the idea and are beginning to realize that UAV’s can save them a ton of money and in some cases can save lives. In some situations, when a commercial drone is used because the area of interest is hard to reach on foot, labor costs are saved, and the risk of injury is reduced.
The drones that we talked about in this article were the Yuneec H520; the DJI Matrice 200 and the Yuneec Typhoon H. These are all high-quality and incredibly advanced professional commercial drones.For inspections, use the Yuneec H520 and for surveying use the DJI Matrice 200. Anything else commercial, try the Yuneec Typhoon H.
Don’t forget that these drones are made to be flown by a professional UAV pilot who knows what they are doing. As a business, you will want to either have one of your employees take an online flying course (click the link at the bottom of this page for an online course) or hire a commercial UAV pilot to fly the drone for you.
These types of professional drones are expensive; if you try flying one yourself without any previous knowledge or experience, you could lose or crash the drone within seconds because of the complicated controls and flying modes.
Click here to become an FAA-Certified Drone Pilot
Kennedy Martinez
kennedy@dronethusiast.comKennedy Martinez is a resident writer who joined Dronethusiast at the beginning of 2019. She has years of experience reviewing drones and other tech products. When it comes to flying drones, Kennedy loves the ability to create artistic videos from a unique point of view. Kennedy enjoys researching new drones and other exciting products that are available to consumers which is why she is committed to creating the best buyer's guides for our readers.
