Enterprise Drone Thermography Course

Module 1: Basics of Thermal Mapping (Classroom Session)

9:00-11:00

• Introduction to Thermal Mapping
• Thermal cameras capture imagery by detecting infrared energy invisible to the human eye rather than reflecting ambient visible light. For aerial mapping, this raw energy is converted into calibrated, geographic data points.
• Principles of Thermal Mapping
• Every object emits infrared energy based on its temperature and material properties. By capturing and stitching these thermal signatures into a calibrated, geographic map, we can detect temperature variations that reveal structural defects, moisture leaks, energy loss, and equipment failures.
• Industry Applications
• Thermal mapping supports decision-making in solar asset management, infrastructure maintenance, building diagnostics, and emergency response. Inspection workflows apply these techniques to identify electrical faults, detect structural heat loss, and isolate moisture leaks before costly failures occur.
• Drones Equipped with Thermal Sensors
• Platforms like the DJI Mavic 3 Thermal provide efficient, flexible, and high-resolution radiometric data collection for infrastructure inspections and environmental monitoring.
• ADERSIM & CIFAL York Projects Using Thermal Mapping
• York University Energy Audits: Mapping buildings to pinpoint and improve efficiency to improve the institutional carbon footprint.
• Heritage Emergency and Resilience Lab: Radiometric mapping is a non-invasive tool for rapid damage assessments, thermal stress and moisture mapping, fire risk auditing, and post-disaster reconstruction.

Module 2: Field Operations – Drone Flight for Thermal Mapping

11:30-13:30

1. Pre-Flight Planning
   • Selecting the flight area, setting altitude, ensuring correct overlap, and considering solar conditions are critical for accurate data collection.
2. Safety & Regulatory Considerations
   • Safe operations require SFOC/SORA compliance, risk assessment, and flight planning – especially near sensitive infrastructure or higher altitudes.
3. Mission Execution – Flying with Thermal Drones
   • Students will perform a supervised flight using a DJI Mavic 3 Thermal drone.
4. Data Capture Workflow
   • Radiometric thermal imagery collected and stored for later analysis and report generation.
5. Example from Past Projects
   • Drone-based thermal monitoring and analysis of York University's Keele campus buildings for improving energy efficiency and reducing emissions.

Module 3: Analysis of Thermal Drone Data

14:30-17:30

• Data Processing Software
• Tools such as the DJI Thermal Analysis Tool 3 are specialized post-processing software designed to view, measure, and analyze radiometric thermal imagery captured by DJI enterprise drones and payloads. These software allows users to extract and interpret temperature data back on a computer.
• Precise Temperature Measurement
• Add spot meters, lines, and area boxes (rectangles or polygons) to read exact maximum, minimum, and average temperatures across specific components.
• Parameter Adjustments
• Modify environmental variables after the flight—such as emissivity, reflection temperature, relative humidity, and target distance—to calibrate and refine temperature accuracy.
• Palette & Isotherm Tuning
• Switch between thermal color palettes (e.g., Iron Red, Rainbow, White Hot) and set isotherm bands to visually highlight areas that exceed or fall below designated temperature thresholds.
• Anomaly Detection
• Pinpoint thermal anomalies that indicate underlying issues, such as defective solar cells, overheated electrical transformers, structural heat leaks, or water ingress under flat roofs.
• Report Generation
• Export structured inspection reports, annotated images, and temperature data tables to deliver actionable documentation to clients and maintenance teams.