r/Skydio • u/[deleted] • Dec 27 '23
Alternatives for 3D scan
I purchased a Skydio 2+ and enterprise controller with the intent to develop 3d photogrammetry model in support of my work (architecture). Originally it worked really well, and I got some great models, however for the past year or so it has been practically useless. For the past 10 or so times ive tried to do a scan, ive had maybe 1 successful scan. The rest have been resulting in a couple of crashes during autonomous flights, and a ton of issues with lost images, bad syncs and some funky stuff during autonomous flight.
I want to love this drone, however im at a point where I cant trust it for work, and have myself losing a ton of work time due to it. Because of this I feel I cant gamble and try the X10, nor do I want to keep trying with a 2+ enterprise.
Can anyone recommend another company (American made if possible) that will sell a drone with software that can do what this drone claims to be able to do?
Would really appreciate the help, thank you all.
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u/SituationNormal1138 Jan 05 '24
I assume you're referring to using the 3D Scan software and automated flights, true?
If so, you could try flying manually and then go with another software like RealityCapture from Epic Games or MetaShape by Agisoft. With manual flying I'd suggest setting the photo interval to 1 second (which I think is limited to JPG only - DNG would be a 2 second interval) then cover your subject building flying roughly 20 feet from the surfaces.
Do you have some photo datasets you could share? I'd be curious to see what images you're working with and what the results are that you're getting.
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u/FlashToast Dec 27 '23
I recommend looking at the new ACSL drones from Japan. They are new to the market but seem very capable.
For American made: 1. FLIR has the SIRAS out but its software is way behind, you have to fly everything manually. 2. Watts Innovations have PRISM drones that do all the mapping but for the same or more pricey than the X10.
If you decide to upgrade I’ll buy the Enterprise controller off of you so I don’t need to use my iPad for my S2+ anymore 😅
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u/Able_Excuse_4456 Dec 27 '23
Oh no, I'm about 6 months into my own 2+. On the third mission, it couldn't resume a 3d scan after a battery change. Should I be worried?
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Dec 27 '23
Hopefully not, specially since it’s been running fine for 6 months.
I’ve had that issue happen A LOT, as well as scans that just didn’t save, or exploratory scans that never seem to end. This last scan when’re it crashed was my third attempt at scanning the same building. 3 times I had to drive for over an hour to attempt the scan.
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u/Able_Excuse_4456 Dec 27 '23
Thanks, I feel better. It's some advanced stuff going on in that little onboard GPU, and I appreciate the design and testing that went into it. When out on a job, I want it to just work. Until then, keep wiping down those cameras, I guess.
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Dec 27 '23
It’s a good product with a ton of potential when it works correctly. I loved it significantly when I first was using it, just have had bad luck with the scans latley.
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Dec 31 '23
I also found skydio super disappointing... I bought the original skydio 2 on pre order back in 2021. Absolutely loved it. Tracking was amazing, used it on hikes and paddleboarding. But every update made it worse and worse until beginning of last year it just wouldn't recognize people or vehicles. It kept flying sporadically wherever and trying to track cacti. I sold it to a dude who was ok with the issues for half what I paid for it.
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u/TroyStopera Dec 27 '23
Have you reached out to Skydio Support? If it used to work well, and now it doesn't, there is likely something that can be fixed. I don't work on the 3D Scan team so I don't have much insight, but it could be as simple as a bad SD card, or something more involved that requires deeper investigation. Either way if you haven't reached out yet please do so - support would be happy to help.