Drones have multi-purpose application potential in agricultural production, forestry monitoring and for rural communities. The 5 ICAERUS use cases are here to explore that potential with drone applications selected to represent the most crucial sectoral and societal drone usage purposes in Europe. ICAERUS Use Cases aim not only to showcase the effective use of drones and study their impact as mulit-purpose vehicles in agriculture, forestry and rural logistics but also their economic viability.
Diverse geographical zones for 5 different functions
Crop monitoring in Tarragona, Spain
This use case, led by Noumena, will explore the prospects of drones in disease identification and weed detection in vineyards, by deploying drones as 3D canopy reconstruction tools and assessing their performance and creating a decision support system for this specified drone data.
Drone Spraying in Attica and Viotia, Greece
Another use case will take place in the Mediterranean – drone spraying. ICAERUS Coordinator, AUA and HCPA will investigate optimal spraying configurations in field conditions. Conventional practices’ efficiency and environmental impact will be compared to optimal drone spraying, while defining risk factors and mitigation strategies.
Forestry and biodiversity in Lithuanian scots pine forest
Forest health and biodiversity is also of critical importance, which is why this use case, led by ART21, will monitor a Scots pine forest for diseases and greater areas will be inspected and identified for high fire risk. The native ecosystems’ biodiversity and wildlife will be assessed, as well as drone capacity to inspect the spread of animal disease.
Livestock monitoring in Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and Saône-et-Loire, France
Idele drones will monitor grazing cattle and sheep to assess whether drones can reduce the labour required to observe herds. At the same time, governance models will be examined and the question of drone adoption barriers and drivers will be explored.
Rural Logistics in Vevchani, North Macedonia
In the Vevchani region of North Macedonia, GeoSense will design and develop a fleet management system for drone deliveries and automate drone navigation operations. Three different types of drones will be assessed for different parcel requirements, implementing Drone As A Service (DAAS) model principles.