Automated drone docks are entering into unprecedented competition before the final release of the DJI dock. All these drone docking and charging stations share the same major features including automatic takeoff for carrying out BVOL flight missions, then automated landing and charging the drone for a new round of flight missions.
Some drone charging dock companies has its self-developed drone with a variety of flight times and payload capacities, such as the Sunflower labs, Skydio, Percepto, Easy Aerial, and Dronehub. Some drone dock providers only offer the hardware part, like HEISHA Tech, Skycharge, Hextronics, IDRONEIMAGES, and HIVE Droneport. Not all of these autonomous drone charging dock manufacturers are using the drone battery charging solution, some are taking the battery swapping technology, including Hextronics, Dronehub, and Hive Droneport.
Here is the list:
1. Percepto (2014, USA & Israel, < 200 employees)
The autonomous Inspection and Monitoring (AIM) solution is the core product of Percepto, three drone models are developed based on that for different applications. The mini version Air Mobile comes only half of the size and the weight of the max version Air Max, both reach the IP55 protection level.
Two bases with patented automated charging and launching technologies are developed for each drone model, these two drone docks are reached IP56 and are authorized by multiple regulations. The autonomy of the Percepto drone dock relies on its AI-powered flight management system features with the leveraged machine learning technology.
Summary of the Percepto drone dock
Pros:
Optional drone dock size
Regulation ready
AI-powered
Cons:
Communication via LTE only
Not compatible with other drones
2. HEISHA Tech (2019, China, < 50 employees)
HEISHA Tech only produces the hardware part of drone and robot charging docks, their drone charging stations have four different sizes from 50 cm to 135cm, and any drone powered by 2s-12s batteries can be compatible. The recharge time for DJI Mavic2 is about 40 minutes. Its new D50 drone dock has a Q100 remote monitoring and maintenance system to handle most maintenance problems without traveling to the site.
Charging for large drones like VTOL and fixed-wing charging stations are available, too. So are the robots, a three-floor robot charging station is developed by HEISHA Tech for charging ground robots and drones together.
All HEISHA drone docks integrate with inverter compressor air conditioners and weather stations to make sure it is working under proper temperature and environment.
HEISHA also opens all of its components to the developers, and custom drone charging docks are available, too.
Pros:
Optional drone dock size
Compatible with different drones
Remote maintenance
Air conditioner included
Weather station included
Cons:
Software excluded
Drone excluded
3. Skydio (2014, USA & Switzerland, < 500 employees)
Skydio is founded even earlier than the Sunflower labs and has recruited the largest quantities of employees in the drone dock fields. The Skydio 2 plus drone is much lighter than the Bee, only 800g with the battery, but provides up to 27 minutes of flight time with a 5410 mAh LiPo battery. Besides the 360-degree obstacle avoidance, subject tracking and up to 10 object tracking and identification are provided by its autonomy system, along with other cool cinematic skills.
The drone dock of Skydio can recharge its drone wirelessly in about 60 minutes with an internal battery, it can direct the drone to return without GPS by using a visual navigation system. It is also vehicle-mountable due to its compact structure.
Pros:
Wireless recharge
Return without GPS, visual navigation system
Vehicle-mountable
Cons:
Long charge time
Not compatible with other drones
4. Sunflower labs (2016, USA & Switzerland, < 50 employees)
Starting in 2016, Sunflower Labs is considered one of the pioneers of autonomous drone docking solutions. Unlike other companies, there is only one product on their website, a Home Awareness System that is made by the Bee drone and the Hive charging station.
The drone is only 1.56kg with a 4000mAh battery, which can support a 15 minutes operational flight and detect obstacles within 6 meters. The Hive drone charging dock works from -20 to +50°C, Sunflower labs have taken some videos of the Hive working on the heavy-snow day to prove that. After connecting it with the WiFi/Ethernet or the LTE, it can be controlled to monitor your property via a smartphone APP. It only takes 15 minutes to recharge the Hive drone dock. Meanwhile, the built-in backup battery provides one hour of running time, which is sufficient enough for the drone to take at least two more flight missions after being fully charged.
Summary of the Hive drone dock
Pros:
1-hour backup battery
Connected by the WiFi/Ethernet, LTE
-20 ~ +50°C operational temperature
Controlled via smartphone APP
15 minutes recharge
Cons:
Limited flight time
Not compatible with other drones
5. Skycharge (2019, Germany, < 50 employees)
Skycharge starts its business with the drone charging pad (same with HEISHA Tech), which is IP65-rated and can be fast charged by 1500w power. Skycharge drone charging pads are compatible with 3s to 12s batteries and allow cross-platform drone charging to process.
Skyport DP5 drone box hangar is an autonomous drone charging dock with IP65 protection, it can work in the environment from -35 to +65 degrees Celcius, which makes it considered the most robust drone dock. Both Skyport and HEISHA tech’s drone dock work with Flytbase’s Flytnow software.
Skyport also opens SDK and provides development kits for drone charging dock developers.
Summary of the Skycharge drone dock
Pros:
Compatible with different drones
Fast charge
-35 ~ +65°C operational temperature (IP65)
Cons:
Drone excluded
6. Easy Aerial (2015, USA, < 200 employees)
Easy Aerial has a comprehensive UAV network covering from drones, ground stations, and drone docking hangars, to software. The tethered drone is also included. Its Osprey Hexacopter offers up to 55 minutes of flight time and can carry a 3.0kg payload.
There are three sizes of drone docks from the Easy Aerial, from about 50cm to 90cm (box size), all of them are vehicle-mountable and optional tethered. The drone can precisely land on the charging pad even if the vehicle is moving, the tethered drone-in-a-box version enables the drone to stay in the air for 72 hours.
The EGV (Easy Guard Vehicle) drone dock solution of Easy Aerial can work in remote areas even without a GPS signal as its landing technology relies not on GPS.
Summary of the Easy Aerial drone dock
Pros:
Tethered and mobile drone dock solution
Non- GPS precision landing
Multiple size option
Drone included
Cons:
Not compatible with other drones
7. Hextronics (2020, USA, < 20 employees)
Hextronics focuses on the drone battery swapping solution for the DJI Mavic2 series and M300. The Hextronics Global contains six batteries of Mavic2, it takes less than 2 minutes to swap a battery, and about 110 minutes is required to fully charge these six batteries. It can work from -20 to 50 degrees Celsius and is built in a compressor-based HVAC system. Its Atlas drone dock for M300 can take eight batteries and takes the same time as the Global to fully charge all the batteries.
Hextronics has also developed solutions for cargo drones and vehicle-mounted drone docks.
Pros:
Fast battery swapping solution
Fast charge
-20 ~ +50°C operational temperature
Built-in AC
Cons:
Drone excluded
Only compatible with DJI Mavic2, Matrice300
8. Dronehub (2015, Poland, < 50 employees)
Dronehub offers a complete drone-in-a-box solution that includes an AI drone, a dock, and software. The drone supports a 30 minutes flight time, and the delivery drone version can carry a 5kg package across a 15km range. It takes two minutes to swap the drone battery with a fully charged one.
The docking hub is probably the heaviest one, 1000kg. It is also a battery swapping system and has reached an IP65 protection level, which allows it to recharge six batteries simultaneously while working under -40 to +60 degrees Celcius. Its API software can be integrated with other solution providers and is encrypted while communicating between the drone and the dock.
Summary of the Dronehub drone dock
Pros:
Fast battery swapping solution
Delivery drone optional
-40 ~ +60°C operational temperature (IP65)
Drone included
Cons:
Large size
Not compatible with other drones
9. IDRONEIMAGES (2018, UK, < 50 employees)
IDRONEIMAGES is a drone dock concentrated company that provides the DJI Mavic2 series of drone-compatible IDIPLOYER drone-in-a-box solutions. Only 23kg weight makes this drone charging station one of the lightest drone docks. Its precision landing and software are supported by the Flytbase with about 8cm landing accuracy. Automatically charging a DJI Mavic2 from 0% to 100% by an IDIPLOYER drone dock takes about 90 minutes.
The structure of the IDIPLOYER drone-in-a-box is weatherproof with IP65 protection to allow it to be deployed in extreme environments.
Summary of the IDIPLOYER drone dock
Pros:
Lightweight
Precision landing
IP65
Cons:
Drone excluded
Only compatible with DJI Mavic2 series
10. HIVE Droneport (2019, Russia, < 20 employees)
Hive Droneport is tailored for swapping the drone battery of DJI M300, it can take eight batteries and charge four (in 70 minutes) at the same time. Three modes of operating temperature can be shifted for different environments covering from -50ºС to +50ºС. You can also find a UPS, four control cameras internal and external to the drone dock, a WiFi module, climate control equipment, etc.
HIVE Droneport Diab system includes software that integrates mission planning, real-time data monitoring and collecting, and overrides drone control when there is an emergency.
Pros:
Fast battery swapping solution
Temperature controlling system inside
Software included
Cons:
Drone excluded
Only compatible with DJI Matrice300
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