Ploughing exhibitor says drones will herd cattle from the air

DO you still walk the fields herding the cattle? Or drive around in a quad? How about doing it from the air?

The future of herding will be a bird's eye view according to one exhibitor at the National Ploughing, start-up company ZenaDrone.

It is developing drones which will take the legwork out of the daily cattle count while providing animal health information at the same time.

Speaking at the Ploughing in Screggan on Wednesday, Simon Henry, vice president of the Canadian-owned firm, said the ZenaDrone service will have key advantages.

“Agriculture is our main focus at the moment,” he said. The company is still in its infancy but has test customers in Irish farming, from animal herds to tillage crops.

The drone's high-tech equipment will be able to survey animals thoroughly, and not just with its cameras. “We can use thermal and infra-red sensors to detect their temperature so [you can see] if there are any animals in distress or sickness.”

The drone will then provide the farmer with a set of reports which will identify anomalies they can focus on.

“They're comprehensive reports but we will summarise everything to make it easier.”

In the tillage sector, the drones can be used for both sowing and spraying. A drone can carry up to 40 litres of spray and will return to base for a refill.

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Henry says his drones have longer flying times than others, thanks to innovations developed by the company itself.

“We've developed our own batteries in-house, solid state batteries.”

The range of possible applications for the drones is much broader than the agri sector. They will be crucial in construction – identifying issues both over and underground – and in the rapidly expanding renewable energy sector, especially where wind turbines are soaring to greater heights.

Managers of golf courses and racecourses will use them to assess conditions.

“It's all about pre-emptive maintenance, identifying the flaws before they become a major problem,” said Henry.

ZenaDrone is developing drones which can be customised, depending on the needs of the user. “A lot of the drones on the market, they're one trick ponies so if you want it to do something else you have to go and buy another drone.”

An indoor drone was on display at the Ploughing too and one example of its use is for stocktaking in warehouses.

“They can run a stock take a number of times a week with multiple drones doing it, a swarm of drones. All these drones are built with obstacle avoidance systems.”

Unfortunately, ZenaDrone couldn't launch one of its drones at the Ploughing. “There's a no fly zone here,” remarked Henry.