DoCoMo accelerates drone business with new brand "docomo sky" --Skydio also supports LTE communication --CNET Japan

On November 18, NTT DoCoMo announced "docomo sky," a new brand that shows the entire drone business.

Along with this, the name of the cloud service that can centrally manage drone flight preparation, shooting, analysis of acquired data, and report creation has been changed to "docomo sky Cloud".

In addition, we have started to provide a new program with the aim of promoting the use of LTE over the air and expanding the industrial use of drones toward the "Level 4 ban lift" that is expected to be realized by the end of 2022.

What is "docomo sky Cellular Drone Partner Program"?

The main announcement this time will be the "docomo sky cellular drone partner program". If an aircraft manufacturer that develops a drone (cellular drone) compatible with docomo's LTE joins, it is a program that can obtain support for cellular drone aircraft development, system cooperation with docomo sky Cloud, mutual sales cooperation, etc. Cellular drone is a term that refers to drones that utilize mobile communications.

In the past, the mainstream applications were level 1 and level 2, where the operator flew the drone within the visual range to spray, inspect, guard and patrol the drone. In order to fly a short distance, it was supported by Wi-Fi communication, but with deregulation, the movement of the operator to automatically fly the drone out of sight, which is called level 3 or level 4, is accelerating. When the distance that Wi-Fi radio waves reach is exceeded, mobile communication such as LTE becomes indispensable.

By the way, the difference between level 3 and level 4 is whether the flight area is unmanned or manned, and currently only level 3 is allowed. With the future revision of the Aviation Law, level 4 where drones fly overhead is expected to be lifted by the end of 2022, and along with the rise of the new drone market with the lifting of the level 4 ban, the demand for LTE communication is also increasing. It's coming.

In response to these movements, DoCoMo announced a new brand, docomo sky, which shows the entire drone business of the company, and clarified the areas to be focused on. In the existing drone business area, pilots with advanced maneuvering skills are in charge of simple flight services, and new entrants are entering the market one after another, and the competitive environment is intensifying.

On the other hand, there is an increasing need for in-house pilot training and automatic / autonomous flight from businesses that own infrastructure. In addition, it is expected that new businesses involving long-distance flights such as logistics and disaster countermeasures will be launched at an accelerating rate over several years after the ban on Level 4 is lifted.

In July 2021, DoCoMo began offering a drone-only rate plan, the "LTE Sky Use Plan," and has responded to deregulation of the Radio Law. Since the Radio Law requires transmission power control and frequency limitation, DoCoMo's original technology has realized a network technology that enables these two by simply inserting the contracted SIM into a compatible terminal.

DoCoMo is calling for participation in the docomo sky Cellular Drone Partner Program with the intention of contributing to the freedom of development of aircraft manufacturers with this unique technology.

Currently, there are 6 aircraft manufacturers that have joined the program, and domestic manufacturers stand out. Long-established ACSL, Eames Robotics, Aerosense, which also handles fixed-wing drones, NTT e-Drone Technology, which was established by underwriting business from Enroute, SONY, which is a hot topic for Airpeak, and NTT Docomo Ventures, which has invested and collaborated from the United States. Drone maker Skydio.

Manufacturers who have already developed LTE-compatible aircraft and manufacturers who will support it in the future are also included, but it is significant that Skydio participated in this program.

What is "Cellular Drone Package"?

In partnership with aircraft manufacturers that have joined the docomo sky Cellular Drone Partner Program, we have also launched a new service called the "Cellular Drone Package." Prior to this time, two plans were announced: "pharmaceutical delivery" and "wide area disaster countermeasures".

While cellular drones can fly long distances, they are also very expensive and difficult to handle. For this reason, there is a high hurdle that the purchase cannot be reached without actually skipping it after checking the communication status in the area and securing pilots.

By providing a "cellular drone package" specialized for a specific industry or application for companies and local governments considering the introduction of cellular drones, we will provide one-stop support from the consideration of cellular drones to their utilization. A trial type that can be used for rental is also available.

Skydio appears in the cellular drone lineup

The aircraft of the drone maker Skydio from the United States is characterized by being able to fly autonomously while avoiding obstacles with six fisheye lenses, and it is a topical aircraft that can fly with confidence even in environments where GPS is difficult to receive, such as under bridge girders and indoors. ..

In addition, since it has a 3D scanning function, it can automatically recognize structures and shoot for 3D model creation automatically and autonomously. DoCoMo Ventures invested in July 2020, and DoCoMo began handling aircraft for corporations in November.

DoCoMo will further strengthen cooperation in the future following Skydio's participation in the "docomo sky Cellular Drone Partner Program". It is said that the LTE communication support of Skydio's aircraft is yet to come, but the new Skydio package was announced ahead of time. It is a plan that allows you to easily try out functions such as close-up photography and 3D scanning, and a plan that supports automatic patrol flight in an indoor environment.

Future development of "docomo sky"

Topics were also announced regarding the future development of docomo sky. The Skydio X2, a dedicated industrial aircraft for Skydio, will be available soon. This is an aircraft equipped with an infrared camera that can also shoot at night, and it has already started to be offered in the United States, and it is said that it is drawing a lot of attention.

In addition, by taking an image of a farm or pasture with a drone, grasping weeds and diseases by image recognition, and sending location information to a tractor or a drone for spraying pesticides, you can spray pesticides where and as much as you need. The "Agricultural Drone Package" and the "Entertainment Drone Package" using the floating spherical drone display developed by DoCoMo and used at the Tokyo Olympics event are also coming soon.

It is expected that various solutions will continue to support the expansion of the drone market toward the lifting of the Level 4 ban.