VISVESVARAYA TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY

JNANA SANGAMA, BELGAVI-590018

A Seminar Report
On
DRONES SURVEY IN CIVIL ENGINEERING

A Seminar report submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the VIII Semester
degree of Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering
of Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belagavi

Submitted by
HARIPRIYA PS
1BY15CV026

Under the Guidance of

[Link] S DHAREK
Assistant Professor
Dept of Civil Engineering
BMS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY & MANAGEMENT

Department of Civil Engineering

B M S INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY & MANAGEMENT (Affiliated to Visvesvaraya
Technological University, Belagavi, Karnataka) DODDABALLAPUR MAIN ROAD,
AVALAHALLI, YELAHANKA, BENGALURU-560064
2018-19
 B M S INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY & MANAGEMENT (Affiliated to Visvesvaraya
Technological University, Belagavi, Karnataka) DODDABALLAPUR MAIN ROAD,
AVALAHALLI, YELAHANKA, BENGALURU-560064

Department of Civil Engineering

CERTIFICATE

Certified that the Seminar on topic “DRONES SURVEY IN CIVIL ENGINEERING” has been
successfully presented at BMS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT by
HARIPRIYA PS, bearing 1BY15CV026, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the VIII
Semester degree of Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering of Visvesvaraya Technological
University, Belgavi during academic year 2018-19. It is certified that all corrections/suggestions
indicated for Internal Assessment have been incorporated in the report deposited in the
departmental library. The Seminar report has been approved as it satisfies the academic
requirements in respect of Seminar(15CVS86) work for the said degree.

Assistant Professor Seminar Coordinator

Prof. And HOD Principal

 DECLARATION

I, HARIRPRIYA PS [USN:1BY15CV026],student of VIII Semester BE, in –Civil Engineering

hereby declare that the Seminar entitled “DRONES SURVEY IN CIVIL ENGINEERING” has
been carried out by me and submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the VIII
Semester degree of Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering of Visvesvaraya Technological
University, Belgaum during academic year 2018-19

Date : 25-04-2019 Name: HARIPRIYA PS

Place : Bengaluru
USN 1BY15CV026
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I express my deep sense of gratitude my guide Mr. Manish S Dharek, Assistant Professor,
Department of Civil Engineering, BMSIT&M for being kind and helpful, for his guidance and
valuable suggestions. His words of advice and encouragement have been a source of enthusiasm.
I sincerely thank Dr. Rajesh Gopinath, Associate Professor & HOD, Department of Civil
Engineering, BMSIT&M, for his valuable support and constant encouragement given to me
during this work.
I am greatly thankful to Mr. Manish S Dharek, Seminar Supervisor for being kind, supporting
and encouraging me at each stage of my seminar work and guided me to do my best.
I am also thankful to the staff members of Mechanical Department of BMSIT&M for their help
and cooperation.
It is my privilege and pleasure to express our profound sense of respect, gratitude and
indebtedness to Dr. Mohan Babu G N, Principal, BMSIT&M, and The Management of
BMSIT&M for supporting and providing facilities for the successful completion of my technical
seminar.
Finally yet importantly, I wish to acknowledge my Parents and Friends for giving moral
strength and encouragement.
 ABSTRACT

Drones in construction have made surveying much easier by playing a huge role in making data
collection simple. Drones can reach high-risk areas and tightly-squeezed in locations that are
quite a bit harder to reach with a human crew. Construction projects benefit from an aerial
vantage point and thanks to drone technology it's quicker and easier than ever to get an eye in the
sky that is able to collect video, photos and data that you can put to work on a project. We
explore the benefits of unmanned aerial vehicles or UAVs for the construction industry. Even
small-scale construction projects can benefit from a bird’s eye view. Getting a detailed picture of
the lay of the land before construction even begins can be invaluable. And it’s not just aerial
pictures or videos, today we can take to the skies to gather accurate measurements that have the
ability to greatly speed and improve schemes throughout the project timeline.
 CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle)
1.2 Drones in civil engineering

2. WORKING OF DRONES
2.1 Components of a drone
2.2 Types of drones
2.3 Working of a drone
2.4 Manufacturing of drones

3. DRONES
3.1 Advantages
3.2 Disadvantages

4. APPLICATION OF DRONES IN CIVIL ENGINEERING

4.1 Drone survey
4.2 Applications of Survey drone

5. THE FUTURE OF DRONES

6. CONCLUSION
7. REFERENCES
 LIST OF FIGURES

FIGURE 1 - COMPONENTS OF A DRONE

FIGURE 2 - FLIGHT CONTROLLER
FIGURE 3 - MULTI ROTOR DRONE
FIGURE 4 - FIXED WING DRONE
FIGURE 5 - SINGLE ROTOR DRONES
FIGURE 6 - HYBRID VTOL
FIGURE 7 - SITE INSPECTION USING DRONES
FIGURE 8 - CAMERA DRONE FOR BUILDING INSPECTION
FIGURE 9 - APPLICATION OF DRONES IN CONSTRUCTION
FIGURE 10 - DRONE SURVEYING
FIGURE 11 - ESTIMATED COMMERCIAL DRONE SPREADING
 [Link]

1.1 UAV (UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE)

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), commonly referred to as drones, are remotely piloted
aircraft or systems. They range from simple hand-operated short-range systems to long
endurance, high altitude systems that require an airstrip. UAVs have civil and commercial uses
but this note looks only at their military role. They may also be referred to as Unmanned Aerial
Systems (UAS) and Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA). UAV innovations started in the early
1900s and originally focused on providing practice targets for training military personnel.

Their primary role is Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) or Intelligence,

Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR). A handful of systems may also
be armed. The use of drones has grown quickly in recent years because unlike manned aircraft
they can stay aloft for many. They are much cheaper than military aircraft and they are flown
remotely so there is no danger to the flight crew.

1.2 Drones in civil engineering

Drones are performing the job as skillfully as no one can do. It sends images of what it observes
to the planning [Link] data sent by drones contain impressive details of the objects, including
the smallest option. The 360 degree panorama views help civil engineers divide the work as per
the priority basis. They are reaching the odd locations that are untouched by the human resource.
The application of this technology, though, goes beyond these two names. They are strongly
imprinting their values across the industry, from real estate to golfing. The achievements earned
by this technology are countless, and they deal with toughest challenges with ease and bring out
the productive result for the companies.
 [Link] OF DRONES

2.1 COMPONENTS OF A DRONE

FIG 1

1. Standard Propellers
The propellers are usually located at the front of the drone/quadcopter. There are very
many variations in terms of size and material used in the manufacture of propellers.
Propellers are responsible for the direction and motion of the drone. It is therefore
important to ensure that each of the propellers is in good condition before taking your
drone out for flight.
2. Pusher Propellers
Pusher propellers are the ones responsible for the forward and backward thrust of the
drone during flight. Pusher propellers will determine the direction the drone takes either
forward or backward. They are normally located at the back of the drone. There are
different sizes depending on the size of the drone.

3. Brushless Motors
All drones being manufactured lately use the brushless motors that are considered to be
more efficient in terms of performance and operation as opposed to the brushed motors.
The latest in the market is the DJI Inspire 1 offers more efficient performance and saves
on battery life and relatively quiet.

4. Landing Gear
Drones which require high ground clearance during landing will require a modified
landing gear to allow it to land safely on the ground. However, not all drones require a
landing gear. Some smaller drones will work perfectly fine without a landing gear and
will land safely on their bellies once they touch the ground.

5. Electronic Speed Controllers

An electronic sped controller (ESC) is an electric circuit whose main responsibility is to
monitor and vary the speed of the drone during flight. It is also responsible for the
direction of flight and variations in brakes of the drone. The ESC is also responsible for
the conversion of DC battery power to AC power to propel the brushless motors. The
ESC is mainly located inside the mainframe of the drone.

6. Flight Controller
The flight controller is basically the motherboard of the drone. It is responsible for all the
commands that are issued to the drone by the pilot. It interprets input from the receiver,
the GPS Module, the battery monitor and the onboard sensors. The flight controller is
also responsible for the regulation of the motor speeds through the ESC and for the
steering of the drone.
 FIG 2

7. The Receiver
The receiver is the unit responsible for the reception of the radio signals sent to the drone
through the controller. The minimum number of channels that are needed to control a
drone are usually 4.

8. The Transmitter
The transmitter is the unit responsible for the transmission of the radio signals from the
controller to the drone to issue commands of flight and directions. The transmitter needs
to have 4 channels for a drone but 5 is usually recommended. The receiver and the
transmitter must use a single radio signal in order to communicate to the drone during
flight.

9. GPS Module
The GPS module is responsible for the provision of the drone longitude, latitude and
elevation points. In most modern drones, the GPS module helps in returning the drone
safe to the controller in case it loses connection to the controller. This helps in keeping
the drone safe.

10. Battery
The battery is the part of the drone that makes all actions and reactions possible. Without
the battery, the drone would have no power and would therefore not be able to fly. There
 is a battery monitor on the drone that helps in providing battery information to the pilot to
monitor the performance of the battery.

11. Camera
Some drones come with an inbuilt camera while others have a detachable camera. The
camera helps in taking photos and images from above which forms an important use of
drones.

2.2 TYPES OF DRONES :

Based on the type of aerial platform used, there are 4 major types of drones.

[Link] Rotor Drones:

Multi Rotor drones are the most common types of drones which are used by
professionals and hobbyists alike. They are used for most common applications
like aerial photography, aerial video surveillance etc. Although easy to
manufacture and relatively cheap, these drones have many downsides like it’s
limited flying time, limited endurance and speed. They are not suitable for large-
scale projects like long distance aerial mapping or surveillance.

FIG 3
 2. Fixed Wing Drones

Fixed Wing drones are entirely different in design and build to multi-rotor type drones.
They use a ‘wing’ like the normal airplanes out there. Owing to their higher flying time
and fuel efficiency, fixed wing drones are ideal for long distance operations But they
cannot be used for aerial photography where the drone needs to be kept still on the air for
a period of time. The other downsides of fixed-wing drones are higher costs & skill
training required in flying. It’s not easy to put a fixed wing drone in the air. You either
need a ‘runway’ or a catapult launcher to set a fixed wing drone on its course in the air.

FIG 4

3. Single Rotor Drones

Single rotor drones look very similar in design & structure to actual helicopters. It has
just one big sized rotor plus a small sized one on the tail of the drone to control its
heading. Single rotor drones are much efficient than multi rotor versions. They have
higher flying times and can even be powered by gas engines. However, these machines
comes with much higher complexity and operational risks. Their costs are also on the
higher side. The large sized rotor blades often pose a risk if the drone is mishandled or
involves in an accident.
 FIG 5

4. Hybrid VTOL
Hybrid VTOL’s are a play of automation and manual gliding. A vertical lift is used to lift the drone
up into the air from the ground. Gyros and accelerometers work in automated mode (autopilot
concept) to keep the drone stabilized in the air. Remote based (or even programmed) manual control
is used to guide the drone on the desired course.

The most popular drone is used in Amazon commercials (for its Prime delivery service).

FIG 6
 2.3 WORKING OF A DRONE

 It is a specially designed multi propeller system inside a drone that makes this device
highly independent and also assists in reduction of failures.
 Drones that possess large number of motors inside are able to gain more control over
their elevation.
 These propellers get their power from a dedicated source and most of these devices
contain removable batteries so that it can stay in air for long run.
 The flight time can be extended with use of powerful batteries in design.
 Controller plays an important role in drone flying mechanism. Major task of a controller
is to establish proper communication channel between remote unit and the radio waves.
 Most of the drones use to work on 2.4 GHz frequency range and many of these controls
take help from Wi-Fi networks for making active decisions regarding movements.
 The landing process is also controlled by propeller system inside and the sensors make
decisions about its speed, altitude and motor rotation etc.

2.4 MANUFACTURING OF DRONES

From conceptualization to actual application, drone manufacturers have taken the theories of sci-
fi movies and books and turned them into real-life applications, giving birth to the phenomenon
of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. Drone makers worldwide have been significantly influenced by
the accelerated technological developments and advancements in the field of smart electronics.
List of Companies
1. DJI (Dajiang) Innovations
2. AeroVironment
3. Ambarella (NASDAQ:AMBA)
4. Boeing
5. GoPro
6. Lockheed Martin LMT
7. 3D Robotics
8. Parrot SA
9. Northrop Grumman Corporation
10. Yuneec.

[Link]

3.1Advantages of Drones

1. Saves Lives: The most obvious advantage of drones is that they greatly reduce putting
military personnel in harm’s way or in combat.
2. Low Cost: The second most obvious advantage of drones is their low cost, because they
are significantly cheaper to purchase, fuel, and maintain than regular airplanes.
3. Low Risk: Since drones are smaller and can fly lower than traditional airplanes, there is
less risk to military hardware.
4. Operational Hours: Without a human pilot, drones can stay in operation for
significantly longer hours of operation without fatigue. Additionally, drone pilots or
operators can easily hand off controls of a drone without any operational downtime.
5. Accuracy: Drones can have more pinpoint accuracy from greater distances, thus
reducing collateral damage to civilians and infrastructure.
6. Lethal: Drones are as lethal to enemy combats as regular airplanes.
7. Spying: Years before drones were used in combat; drones have proven to increase
surveillance, reconnaissance, and general military intelligence.
8. Deployment: Finally, drones are significantly easier and faster to deploy than most
alternatives.

3.2 Disadvantages of Drones

1. Limited Abilities: Drones have obvious limitations. For example, they cannot
communicate with civilians for more detailed intelligence. Drones cannot capture
surrendering military personnel, abandoned hardware, or military bases. Drones cannot
go from door to door, at least, not yet.
2. Civilian Losses: Drone warfare often causes collateral damages in civilian lives and
property, as well as traditional warfare too.
3. Counterproductive and Destabilizing: Civilian opinions about drones are typically
negative, since they are viewed as an invasion force. The mere presence of drones has
been known to convert civilians into military combats. Furthermore, when drones cause
collateral damage, such as killing civilians and damaging civilian property, the opinions
of civilians decrease even more so. Additionally, some cultures believe the use of drones
as not brave and cold hearted. As a result, drones are sometimes counterproductive by
more destabilizing some regions.
4. Too Easy: By making drone warfare very similar to video games, drone warfare makes
combat too easy by diminishing ethical decisions.
5. Work and Personal Life Balance: Some drone pilots or operators have difficulty
switching between combat mode at work and civilian mode while not working. This is
especially difficulty when drone pilots have minimal transition periods between work and
personal, if any at all.
 6. Take Over: Finally, the worst case scenario is when drones or a fleet of drones have
been commandeered or taken control by the enemy. While security measures help make
this possibility more difficult, it will never be impossible.

4 APPLICATION OF DRONES IN CIVIL

ENGINEERING
1. Land Surveying

Drones play major roles for surveying. They quite satisfyingly assist Geographical
Information System (GIS) professionals. GIS is known for their services like locating
boundaries of the property, subdividing land and surveying construction sites. They send
still images of a construction map to a cloud-based storage from where authorities can
access and assess the data to plan meticulously. Since the cameras and the distance can be
regulated remotely, they rise above than natural and artificial obstacles.

2. Marketing & Promotion

For a construction project to be successful it needs to have clients. Savvy construction

companies use drones to film aerial shots of the area prior to development. Along with
scale models and 3D renderings of the finished product, sky-high shots of the area from
multiple angles help potential clients visualize the transformation of the barren land.

3. Safety & Insurance

Drones can be used for safety improvement in construction sites or to know the status
excavations .We can claim discount on insurances if UAV’sare used to patrol the site in
an effort to find and fix potential problems
 FIG 7

4. Showing Job Progress to Clients

Drones are also a helpful way to provide updates to clients who are unable to visit the
area. Incessantly showing up on-site with shiny boots and ill-fitting hard hats. To appease
clients and to prevent them from interfering with ongoing work, drones can be used.

5. Monitoring Multiple Job Sites

A drone operator can provide you with clear views of specific aspects of the site as well
as general aerial shots. Large-scale contractors use UAVs for this purpose on a daily
basis to make sure things are running smoothly, safely, and on schedule.
 FIG 8

6. Construction Inspection

Inspections are a major part of construction. Not only are there federal, state and local
codes that must be strictly adhered to, but clients and public interest groups often play a
major role in construction project inspections. . Bridges between large chasms are prime
locations to take advantage of drones.

7. Other applications like

I. Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Point cloud scanning

II. Monitoring and tracking onsite activities thereby ensuring accurate
workflow
III. Site inspection during pre-construction stage.
IV. Ensuring routine asset inspections and safety measures at all times.
 FIG 9

4.1 DRONE SURVEY

 Drone Survey is unique in terms of the only survey method that doesn’t require direct
involvement from a manned perspective trumping all of the other visual inspection
 services such as rope access inspection, MEWP hire or scaffold in terms of health and
safety.
 Drone survey is the only method of visual survey where if a catastrophic failure were to
occur resulting in complete equipment failure, the likelihood of fatality is none existent
and injury to personnel slim to none if the correct risks have been mitigated in
accordance with company operations manual and flight limitations.
 Drone survey does not have limitations in terms of requirement for specific surroundings
or need for idealistic logistics in terms of architectural style or shape providing highly
detailed data.
 Drone survey can provide highly detailed and live feedback to the ground station and
connected devices or record directly to onboard SD card allowing for remote further
analysis.
 Drone survey can cover more ground in a time effective manner in comparison to rope
access inspection methods which is, in turn, more time and cost-effective than any of the
other methods listed.
 Drone survey and the outputs that can be achieved scores highly over any of the other
options used for instance a thermography scan can be produced of an entire building
detecting for energy losses and heat signatures from an aerial perspective. Providing the
data to analyse the building envelope efficiency.
 Drone survey can provide point cloud data allowing the overlay of a HD mesh on top of
the point cloud, providing a highly detailed 3D image providing the client the
necessary means to navigate and orbit the model remotely and inspect in fine detail to
analyse any specific fault or remedial requirement.
 Drone survey can be optimised to produce highly detailed orthomosaic images and maps
through an automated sequence called Photogrammetry again this orthomosaic or
orthoimage can be rectified to sit perfectly on top of its relative OS grid providing a
highly accurate map or orthorectified image.
 FIG 10

4.2 APPLICATION OF SURVEYING DRONE

I. Land surveying
II. Urban planning and land managements
III. Construction and earth works
IV. Mining , quarries and aggregates
V. Archaeology

5. THE FUTURE OF DRONES

 Drone technology is constantly evolving in the areas of miniaturization,
autonomy, and swarms. Miniaturization is the most incremental
developments of these three areas.
 Each new generation of drones is a bit smaller, lighter, and cheaper than
the previous generation.
 The smallest drone currently available is the size of a credit card.
However, in a few years we can expect to see drones the size of insects.
 The falling prices and size of drones will help in making them more
readily available to everyone. Currently it is rare to see a drone flying, but
within a few years there will be plenty of drones available in the public
market. This prediction is based on the rate at which drones are being
manufactured and sold Also, there is an increasing number of companies
that make drone services available.
 Furthering drone autonomy is making many applications more plausible.
The first generation of drones were no more than remote controlled
aircraft, but now there are smart autonomous modes that reduce the
amount of interaction and control needed by the human pilot.
 In the future, we will see more drones that feature GPS navigation,
collision avoidance capabilities, and being able to adapt to changing
weather conditions.
 Drones that can act in a cooperative manner can exhibit swarm behavior.
The development of swarms can enhance the range, flight duration, and
payload capacity for different applications. For example, if one drone is
experiencing a low battery level, it can assign its task to another drone.
This could extend the flight range beyond the range of the first drone.
 Heavier payloads could be carried by multiple drones, which would allow
exceeding the payload capacity of one drone.
 FIG 11

6. CONCLUSION
 Drones have a wide range application in future. Drones are rapidly changing the industry
scenario, especially in the fields of civil engineering and surveying.
 Construction projects benefit from an aerial vantage point and thanks to drone technology
it's quicker and easier than ever to get an eye in the sky that is able to collect video,
photos and data that you can put to work on a project. We explore the benefits of
unmanned aerial vehicles or UAVs for the construction industry.
 7. REFERENCES

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[Link]
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for Ecosystem Studies.” Bioscience 52 (1): 19-30.
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5. Drones and Possibilities of Their Using

Piotr Kardasz, Jacek Doskocz, Mateusz Hejduk, Paweł Wiejkut and Hubert Zarzycki,
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6. Height Tech. Surveying drone - Height Tech. Retrieved November 15, 2015, from
[Link]
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August 9, 2015, from [Link]
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drone-rules/23473791/