How to use 3D Capture with Skydio X10

Skydio 3D Scan is an adaptive scanning software that automates data capture of any scene with comprehensive coverage and ultra-high resolution. The 3D Capture mode allows you to efficiently scan complex structures. Skydio assesses the scan volume and generates autonomous and adaptive flight patterns to ensure every angle of the structure is captured.

Capture data can be used for inspection or to generate high-fidelity 3D models.

[info] For reconstruction tips, read Scan reconstruction best practices with Skydio X10. [/info]

Before you fly

• GPS will be required for scans higher than 65 ft (20 m).
• If needed, you can move backwards and re-do any steps in the workflow. Doing so will reset the steps you have already completed and discard any media that has been captured.
• If you are flying with a Skydio VT300-Z / VT300-L you have the ability to enable thermal image capture in the thermal settings.
• Define the Floor, Ceiling, and Wall Boundaries to create your Scan Volume

[caution] Ensure you have enough battery to complete the scan setup and begin scanning. You will only be able to save the progress of a scan once scanning begins. If your battery dies before scanning begins, you will need to restart the scan setup after replacing the battery. [/caution]

Default settings

Setting	Default State
Strict Geofence	All bounds OFF by default
Extend Volume	Beyond Floor enabled
Gimbal angle	45°
Scan passes	Z, Y, X enabled
Overlap/Sidelap	80/70
Speed (applies when exploring and scanning)	5.6 mph (2.5 m/s)
Other settings ON by default	Take Best Photo

[tip] If you wish to capture the same structure with different GSD across various sections,  or if you have a very large structure to scan, try breaking your scan into multiple smaller scans. For best results, launch as close as possible to the section of the structure you are scanning. [/tip]

Scan workflow

Step 1 - Scan Mode

Select 3D Capture as the Scan Mode. Tap Select Scan Mode on the screen or use the right shoulder button on the controller to confirm your selection.

Step 2 - Scan Name (optional)

[note] Scan names must use American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) characters. You will be prevented from using unicode characters such as à, é, â, ü, ö, ä and the following symbols: < > : ; , \\ | ? * & $ { } ` “ [/note]

You may optionally rename your scan. The default scan name is composed of the scan mode you select followed by a UTC timestamp. Renaming the scan will replace the scan mode.

• Ex: 3D_Capture__2024-05-20T19-50-55.135854+00-00

Step 3 - Launch

Drag the on-screen slider or press and hold the Launch/Land button on your controller to begin your flight. The drone will launch, automatically rotate 360 degrees, climb to 10 ft (3 m), and hover.

[info] Take note of your launch orientation. If your scan requires multiple batteries, you will need to place the drone in the exact same location and orientation after replacing a battery. [/info]

Step 4 - Set Return Behavior

Set your preferred return location. The drone will autonomously return to this location when the battery level is low or if the drone loses connection.

• Use Launch Point – the drone will return to the launch location.
• Set Custom Rally Point – manually pilot the drone to a new location and set this as your Rally Point. The drone will return to this location.

[tip] Setting a custom Rally Point:

• The Rally Point should be in your line of sight with a clear path to the Launch Point.
• Set your Rally Point close to the scan region so that the drone can safely and easily return to that point autonomously. Even if you change position during the scan, the drone will always have a point to return to safely without obstruction.
• Choose a location that is safe for landing. 

Once you have chosen your location, select Set Rally Point Here.

[/tip]

Step 5 - Floor

The Floor defines the bottom of the 3D volume you wish to scan. It will also define the bottom of your scan in the Visual Geofence and the Model Viewer. 

There are two ways to begin setting the Floor:

• Use Default Height – Starts the Floor at 1.6 ft (0.5 m) above the launch height. To ensure the ground is captured, Extend Volume > Below Floor is toggled on by default.
• Set Custom Floor Height – Starts the Floor at the current height of the drone.

When setting a custom Floor, the Launch Height is represented by a light gray AR plane. Adjust as desired:

• Pilot X10 and the Floor will automatically move with the drone as you fly
• Drag the orange Floor AR to the desired height
• Done – Sets the Floor in your desired location and proceeds to the next step
• Center Floor – Moves the location of the Floor to the current altitude of the drone
• Level Gimbal – Moves the camera gimbal pitch to 0°

Step 6 - Ceiling

The Ceiling defines the top of the 3D volume you wish to scan. It will also define the top of your scan in the Visual Geofence and the Model Viewer.

The Ceiling needs to be set above both the Floor and the structure you are scanning.

Once selected, adjust the Ceiling as desired:

• Pilot X10 and the Ceiling will automatically move with the drone as you fly
• Drag the green Ceiling AR to the desired height
• Done – Sets the Ceiling in your desired location and proceeds to the next step
• Center Ceiling – Moves the location of the Ceiling to the current altitude of the drone
• Level Gimbal – Moves the camera gimbal pitch to 0°

Step 7 - Boundaries

Set pillars to encompass the structure to be scanned. These pillars define the lateral bounds, or walls, of the Visual Geofence. It will also define the lateral area of your model in the Model Viewer.

A minimum of three pillars must be set to create a 3D volume.

There are two options when setting pillars:

Fly to the desired location and use the right shoulder button to select Set Pillar. Continue placing pillars to encompass the entire structure. By default, pillars are attached to the drone. The edges of the polygon defined by the pillars must not cross each other. Set pillar – Adds a new bounding pillar Remove – Removes the previous bounding pillar Done – Completes this step and finalizes pillar placement

[tip] Try adjusting the angle of the gimbal for a better view of where you are placing pillars. [/tip]

Drag pillars by holding the base of the yellow AR Pillar on-screen. This selects the active pillar and enables dragging. You may continue to set pillars by dragging or reconnecting the pillar to the drone by selecting “Attach.” Set pillar – Adds a new bounding pillar Remove – Removes the previous bounding pillar Attach – Reconnects the pillar to the drone Done – Completes this step and finalizes pillar placement

[info] Only the current active pillar may be dragged. [/info]

Step 8 - Extend Volume (optional)

[caution] The “Extend Volume By” distance should not be larger than your Distance to Surface (DtS). If this happens and a strict geofence is enabled, no photos will be captured of objects in the extended capture area. [/caution]

This optional step allows you to extend the scan volume beyond the Floor, Ceiling, or Walls to capture surfaces outside the boundaries.

Select Edit Volume to extend your capture area. Below Floor is enabled by default to ensure the ground is captured.

If a Strict Geofence is enabled, the drone will capture photos of surfaces located outside of the scan volume without physically flying there. For example, if you enable Strict Walls, the drone will not fly outside of that boundary.

Use the adjustable distance slider to set the distance at which Skydio will capture photos outside of the scan volume.

Example: If you set the distance slider to 8 feet (2 meters), enabling one of the extended volumes allows you to capture photos 8 feet (2 meters) outside of the scan volume.

Step 9 - Strict Geofence

[note] Skydio will skip image capture locations that are located outside any of the toggled geofence boundaries. This may result in gaps in coverage. [/note]

Independently toggle the Ceiling, Floor, and Walls ON or OFF to set the geofence. By default, Skydio will remain within the scan distance of the boundaries.

Enabling a strict geofence (selecting ON) blocks flight outside of the scan volume along that bound. The drone will continue to enter and exit the scan volume through the same location.

• Skydio honors the Visual Geofence during the Explore phase and the scanning process, as well as when transitioning between the two. 
• You will also see a setting called Safe Distance, which allows you to set the distance from which Skydio will stay away from the structure while scanning.

Step 10 - Set AR Observer

[note] The AR Observer is only available for the color camera. [/note]

The Augmented Reality (AR) Observer allows you to set the point of view from which you can observe an augmented-reality view of the scan progress.

• When you set your AR Observer point, the drone will take a static image from that position
• The AR drone will follow the white lines, which denote the planned flight path and image capture locations
• The purple AR lines show the Wall boundaries (pillars)

There are two options when setting the AR Observer:

• Review Suggestion – Skydio will fly to the ceiling of the pillar closest to the launch position. The drone will then face the structure (the centroid of the AR polygon-prism).
• Set Custom AR Observer – Allows you to manually pilot the drone to your preferred vantage point. If you choose to manually set the location of the AR Observer, ensure you are choosing a spot that provides you with the best situational awareness for monitoring the progress of the scan.

[tip] Setting a custom AR Observer: 

• Tightly frame the structure and fill the frame vertically or horizontally.
• Select this option if you are scanning around obstacles or in complex environments.

[/tip]

To view the AR Observer while scanning, select the Picture-in-Picture (PIP) button in the bottom left of the Flight Screen. You also have the option to set this as one of your views in the Single, Split, or Grid Display Layouts. 

Step 11 - Exploration

[caution] Ensure you have enough battery to complete the Exploration step and begin scanning. You will only be able to save the progress of a scan once scanning begins. If your battery dies before scanning begins, you will need to restart the scan setup after replacing the battery. [/caution]

The drone will briskly and autonomously fly around the scan volume to build an internal model of the structure being scanned.

Select Edit Settings to adjust the speed at which your drone completes the Explore Phase.

• Minimum speed: 1.1 mph (0.5 m/s)
• Maximum speed: 11.2 mph (5 m/s)
• Default speed: 5.6 mph (2.5 m/s)

You may also enable a Strict Geofence for this exploration phase.

Skydio uses this internal model to intelligently predict overall scan time and number of capture points needed to complete the scan. The explore phase should be a small fraction of the total scan time, and a rough time estimate is given.

Step 12 - Scan Settings

[info] For more information on scan settings, read 3D Scan capture settings overview with Skydio X10.[/info]

View a summary of your scan settings, plus estimates for the total scan time, required number of batteries, and total number of photos.

• You must have at least five photos to begin a scan.
• Editing scan settings will impact the total flight time, number of photos and the required number of batteries.

Settings persist across scans of the same scan mode. Select the Reset button at the bottom of the list to restore settings to defaults.

Once your settings are finalized, you may select Begin Scan and Skydio will begin autonomously scanning the structure. 

Photo Settings

After this step, you will not be able to adjust the following camera settings while scanning:

• Resolution (Full or 1/4)
• Camera Mode (Standard, HDR, Low Light)
• Enabling or disabling thermal JPG or RJPG files
• Enabling or disabling DNG files
• Changing Field of View: Wide vs Narrow (VT300-L and V100-L only)

You can adjust other camera settings, including color and thermal camera settings, at this stage.

• Select the Color or Thermal camera icons on the right side of your screen to access your photo settings

[accordion heading="Thermal scan settings"]

The thermal camera has a different Field of View (FOV) compared to the color (RGB) camera. Due to this, the Overlap, Sidelap, and GSD (Distance to Surface slider) values for the thermal camera and the color camera are different within the same scan. The values in the workflow pane on the right represent the color camera settings.

• You will see a summary of the thermal (IR) setting values displayed on the bottom of the live camera feed.
• If you are conducting a thermal scan and want a higher Overlap/Sidelap or GSD, increase these settings in the workflow pane until you reach your desired values.

When reconstructing a thermal-only scan, we recommend at least 80/80 Overlap/Sidelap for the thermal sensor.

Intended thermal (IR) Overlap/Sidelap	Corresponding Color Overlap/Sidelap (Wide camera)	Corresponding Color Overlap/Sidelap (Narrow camera)
85/85	95/95	90/90
80/80	93/93	88/88
70/70	90/90	85/85

[info] If you plan to process your thermal images in an external tool, you must enable RJPG files. Navigate to Thermal Camera > Settings and toggle on RJPG. This will ensure your drone captures radiometric JPG files. [/info]

You cannot capture thermal images by themselves. The following two file combinations are available:

• RGB files and Thermal JPG files
• RGB files and Thermal JPG + RJPG files
• If RJPG is enabled, you will also capture thermal JPG

[/accordion]

Step 13 - Scan

[note] Even if Stop for Photo is disabled, you may see the drone pause, along with a “Saving Photos” notification. This is to ensure the SD card finishes writing the data. Autonomous scanning will resume automatically. [/note]

You will see AR markers showing the scan capture points on the live camera feed. 

Optionally toggle on the AR Coverage Mesh during your scan to monitor the photo coverage progress of the scan.
Pause at any point during your scan. Use the left shoulder button or tap this icon in the workflow pane to pause scanning. Skydio will display how many photos have been captured. While paused, you have the option to manually capture photos using the right shoulder button.
Press the play icon or use the left shoulder button to resume autonomous scanning. Use the right shoulder button during a scan to Skip to the next capture point.

Step 14 - Manual Photos (optional)

[caution] Skydio obstacle avoidance does not detect moving objects and is disabled during landing. Review the Skydio Safety and Operating Guide for more information. [/caution]

[note] Manual photos may be captured at any time by pressing pause. You may also optionally enable interval mode to have the drone take photos at different time intervals (ex: capture a photo every 5 seconds). [/note]

Once your scan completes, you have the option to manually capture additional photos of the scene or specific areas of interest.

• The purple AR outline on-screen shows the Wall Bounds. Use the right shoulder button to take a photo.
• Manual photos appear in the scan folder and in the Model Viewer alongside photos captured autonomously.

If you are manually piloting the drone, you have the option to adjust your obstacle avoidance setting in the Quick Actions menu.

• Obstacle Avoidance is set to Standard—and cannot be changed—when Skydio flies autonomously.

Step 15 - Scan Complete 

Once your scan completes, you have the option to either start a New Scan or Return to Launch/Rally Point.

Starting a new scan will prompt you with an option to save or discard the scan you just completed. If you Return to Launch and the path is clear, X10 will obey the geofence and fly in a straight path If X10 cannot find that path due to obstacles, you will be able to take control and manually pilot your drone

After landing, you will see a summary of the most recent scan and the option to Save or Discard the scan you completed. 

Step 16 - Post-processing (optional)

[note] If you do not generate an Onboard Model at this point, you will still have the option to generate one at a later time. For multi-battery scans, select Yes to generate an Onboard Model after all flights are completed. [/note]

After saving your scan, you will have the option to create a textured model. This model is created onboard the drone and takes several minutes to complete.

For more information, read How to create Onboard Maps and Models with Skydio X10.

 

Explore More

How to access 3D Scan data with Skydio X10

Scan reconstruction best practices with Skydio X10

Flying 3D Scan

 

 

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