Development of frequency domain electromagnetic exploration system using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV/drone)

Abstract

In recent years, industrial activities using unmanned vehicles, especially small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, drones), have become extremely common globally in various fields (environment, infrastructure, agriculture, logistics, security, etc.). There has also been rapidly growing interest in the development of the geophysical exploration method for subsurface visualization by UAV. However, the necessary technology for geophysical exploration has yet to be established compared with optical measurement from the air to acquire surface information, which has already been advanced in terms of technology. This is mainly due to size and weight of geophysical equipments, measured signal strength, data quality and difficulty of stable flight.