AirForestry’s harvest drone consists of a high-capacity drone and a harvesting tool. The high-capacity drone is 6.2 meters in diameter. With it, AirForestry are building the forestry of the future.
With the drone, trees can be thinned from the air and then transported to the nearest road. AirForestry design according to a development process that includes traceability. It has a specially designed structure in carbon fibre and angled rotors, to achieve the precision flying necessary to carry the tool and tree.
Prototypes
The first prototype was 1 meter in diameter and was built it in just a couple of days. Not only did the rotor design work well, the drone impressed both customers and investors.
The second prototype is 2.5 meters in diameter, designed with machine-milled parts and carbon fibre pipes and is based on standard quality components
and control systems for drones.
The first test flight with cargo showed both good capacity and manoeuvrability.
The harvesting tool
The 60 kilo light harvesting tool is carried by the drone to the selected tree. Once in place, the tool grabs the top of the tree, hugs it, prunes off the branches on the way down and then
saws off the trunk. Thereafter, the tool secures the tree so that the drone can carry it all the way to the nearest road.
This is a completely new way of thinning forests. Thinning with less impact on the forest would contribute to more gentle forestry and promote biodiversity.
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