如今，几乎所有无人机都可以获取全球精确的3D数据，必须在站点周围设置地面控制点。一个占地100英亩的网站需要大约10个GCP，这需要一支大约两个小时的团队才能放置。占地100英亩的地点的航班可能需要半小时，这意味着80％的劳动时间仅用于铺设GCP。

For companies performing hundreds of surveys per year, time spent on GCPs adds up. Last year, one of our clients, Komatsu, realized it was spending hundreds of man-hours every month setting up, maintaining, and retrieving GCPs. In no uncertain terms, GCPs were slowing it down.

多亏了客户的投入，我们意识到当今无人机的最大问题不是数据质量或准确性，而是可以收集，处理和分析数据的速度。

Fortunately, next-generation drones leverage existing real-time kinematic (RTK) GPS correction networks to eliminate the need for GCPs. With GCPs out of the equation, time in field drops to just 30 minutes. And by pairing specialized hardware with powerful cloud architecture, these drones can calculate their global position within 3 centimeters. Data can then be downloaded from the cloud in just minutes, making for a quick, hands-off user experience.

But RTK-enabled drones don’t just accelerate survey time. They also augment the survey process, improving visibility and ground truth. By freeing personnel to use that data rather than waste time capturing it, they also reduce labor costs and reduce the possibility of human error.

Arguably their greatest advantage, though, is that they make possible accurate surveys of dangerous areas. Dams, for instance, are often built in treacherous, mountainous places that are prone to avalanches. But with RTK drones, companies don’t need to send people to such areas to lay GCPs.

The Final Days of GCPs

Across the market, RTK drones are beginning to crop up. In addition to Skycatch’s EVO3X, both Parrot’s eBee RTK and Topcon’s Sirius Pro don’t require humans to manually place GCPs.

The Parrot and Sirius fixed-wing solutions are viable for long-distance, large-area scanning. Solar-powered, fixed-wing drones like the Airbus Zephyr will soon fly continuously, collecting data almost indefinitely 60,000 feet above Earth. They aren't, however, particularly suited to construction environments.

Such configurations struggle to take off and land in cramped, rocky, or muddy areas. They’re also rarely engineered to tolerate the dust, wind, and extreme temperatures of many remote sites. Given our work with Komatsu, Rio Tinto, and other industrial companies, we’ve invested heavily in making sure our equipment can withstand such conditions.

考虑到大幅GCP-free无人机苏rvey and transmission times, they’ll likely become standard in one to two years. Just like high-speed internet is now the norm, surveyors soon won’t settle for the drone equivalent of dial-up. But to be useful on-site, the quality and accessibility of RTK-enabled drones must match their capabilities. Precision drones may be a rare sight now, but they’re about to take off.

Christian Sanz is the founder and CEO of Skycatch, a drone data company based in San Francisco that provides end-to-end technology solutions for a wide range of industries. Christian is a U.S. Navy veteran with more than 20 years of experience in software and technical leadership.