Drone Guidelines for Maintenance Use

Status: Active
Project Start Date: No Date

Summary:

Drone Guidelines for Maintenance Use Project aims to address the increasing utilization of drones in maintenance and surveying tasks for local Minnesota Transportation Agencies. Drones offer efficient inspection capabilities for infrastructure and imagery capture. However, regulatory barriers imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) limit their usage. This project seeks to synthesize these regulatory barriers and identify viable scenarios for drone usage, such as bridge inspection, surveying, stockpile measurements, ditch categorization, and GIS mapping. The research will involve reviewing regulatory requirements, surveying local agencies, synthesizing best practices, and developing comprehensive guidelines for drone operation and data management.