PilotByte’s Dylan Gorman Takes the TrueView 641 NDAA Into the Field for a Real-World Surveying Workflow
As more government agencies, engineering firms, and drone service providers face requirements for NDAA-compliant technology, one question continues to come up: Can an NDAA-compliant drone LiDAR system deliver the same performance and workflow professionals expect from the systems they already use?
GeoCue recently partnered with Dylan Gorman of PilotByte, along with Inspired Flight and Sentera, to put that question to the test. Instead of comparing specification sheets or flying another demonstration over an empty field, Dylan spent months testing the systems on actual projects with real clients and real deliverables.
For the LiDAR portion of the project, the centerpiece was the TrueView 641 from GeoCue.
Watch the video below to see if Dylan believes these NDAA-compliant systems actually hold up to the demands of professional work, or are there still compromises that need to be made:
TrueView 641 NDAA: Built for Real Surveying Work
Mounted to the Inspired Flight IF800, the TrueView 641 provided Dylan with a fully NDAA-compliant LiDAR and imaging payload designed for professional surveying and mapping.
The system combines long-range LiDAR with an integrated 26 MP global-shutter mapping camera, supports up to six returns, and delivers typical system accuracy in the 3–5 cm range under appropriate conditions. That ability to capture multiple returns becomes especially important when mapping areas with heavy vegetation, where the goal is not simply to capture the tops of trees, but to reach through the canopy and accurately model the ground below.
That capability was put to work on a real project with Florida Design Consultants. The site included significant vegetation and required data for a topographic survey supporting future design work. Dylan flew the TrueView 641 at approximately 70 meters and 7 meters per second, demonstrating the advantage of being able to collect accurate LiDAR data efficiently from a higher operating altitude.
The IF800 provided a capable NDAA-compliant aircraft platform for the project, with its Smart Dovetail integration allowing the TrueView 641 to mount directly to the aircraft and receive power through the platform. But just as important as the aircraft and sensor is what happens after the drone lands.
From Flight to Finished Deliverable in LP360
TrueView is more than a LiDAR sensor. The complete GeoCue workflow brings the sensor, positioning, processing software, and support together.
Dylan processed the TrueView 641 data directly in LP360, importing the raw mission, base-station observations, coordinate information, and control data into a single workflow. LP360 automatically recognized the TrueView sensor and provided the tools needed to process the trajectory, geocode the LiDAR, review the point cloud, and verify accuracy against surveyed control.
The results were impressive. Dylan reported vertical accuracy of less than one-tenth of a foot against the control point he examined. He then took the workflow another step using LP360 AI Ground+ to automatically classify the point cloud, allowing vegetation to be removed and the underlying surface to be quickly visualized.
From raw TrueView data to a processed and classified point cloud, Dylan estimated the workflow took about 30 minutes.
The Right NDAA LiDAR for the Job
The TrueView 641 NDAA is only one part of GeoCue’s expanding NDAA-compliant LiDAR portfolio.
GeoCue gives organizations the ability to select an NDAA-compliant LiDAR system based on their aircraft, accuracy requirements, project size, point-density needs, and budget.
That flexibility matters because there is no single sensor that is ideal for every project.
What Dylan’s testing demonstrates is that moving to an NDAA-compliant workflow does not mean giving up professional LiDAR performance. With the right combination of aircraft, TrueView hardware, LP360 processing, and GeoCue support, surveyors and mapping professionals can arrive on site, collect the data they need, process it efficiently, and confidently deliver results to their clients.
As Dylan summed it up after completing the projects: when a job is mission-critical, the system simply has to work. In this real-world test, the TrueView 641 helped do exactly that.