We have all seen the very famous “Intel Inside” label. Now you will get to see “Intel” outside – on the drone that Intel recently announced. Intel is making inroads into the drone industry with the Falcon 8+, which is a complete drone package designed mainly for industrial inspection, surveying, and mapping.
Intel’s First Branded Commercial Drone
At the 2016 INTERGO drone conference in Hamburg Germany, Intel announced the Falcon 8+ drone. The Falcon 8+ is Intel’s first branded commercial drone. With the introduction of Intel Falcon 8+ system, Intel wants to set new standards for commercial-grade drones, incorporating full electronic system redundancy and automated aerial-sensing solutions. The Falcon 8+ comes with best-in-class onboard sensors and is powered with triple-redundant AscTec Trinity autopilot. The Falcon 8+ is capable of providing detailed images down to millimeter accuracy, while giving valuable structural analysis. For industries, structural analysis can be very useful, given that it helps users detect and prevent further damage to infrastructure.
Falcon 8+’s Built-in Redundancy
The Falcon 8+ features the patented V-form octocopter that provides full electronic system redundancy in the form of redundant batteries, redundant communication between all flight-relevant components and redundant sensing. It also features automated aerial sensing solutions, featuring Consistent Waypoint Automation that enables exactly reproducible flights for structural analysis. The newly designed Intel Cockpit features a water resistant, robust UI that provides scope for usage even in harsh outdoor environments. The integrated Intel-based tablet allows users to plan and execute highly complex missions with ease.
Falcon 8+ Battery
The Falcon 8+ system is powered by Intel Powerpack batteries that combine efficiency with industrial safety standards. The battery also comes with automatic balancing, storage mode, charging and LEDs that display the amount of battery remaining. The drone’s rotors are arranged in V-formation and the craft can reach speeds up to 35 miles per hour. The Falcon 8+ builds on Falcon 8 system which offers the best performance, hard-to-beat weight-to-payload ratio and a high-precision GPS.
Intel has been working hard in the drone space. It has already announced the first consumer drone – the Yuneec Typhoon H, featuring Intel RealSense technology for intelligent obstacle navigation and Intel Aero Platform that helps developers build their own drones from scratch. Intel continues to focus on creating new technologies and leads the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) segment – especially in the commercial space. But it’s important to note that Intel is primarily operating in the commercial drone space while companies like DJI are competing hard in hobby drone market segments with some fantastic drones like the DJI Mavic Pro. DJI has over 70 percent sales in hobbyist market while the industrial drone space hasn’t seen any dominant player so far.
Will Intel make it big in the commercial drone space? Only time can tell!