Atmos UAV debuts Sony a6100 Oblique for affordable 3D mapping

Atmos UAV, a leading innovator in the VTOL mapping drone industry, is excited to announce the integration of the new Sony a6100 Oblique camera into its flagship surveying drone, the Marlyn Cobalt. This strategic partnership with Sony further solidifies Atmos UAV’s commitment to providing advanced solutions to professionals in the geospatial mapping and surveying sectors.

The Sony a6100 Oblique camera is a groundbreaking addition to the Marlyn Cobalt, which combines Sony’s 24MP a6100 with a Meike 12mm lens, providing an excellent solution for cost-effective, lower-resolution surveying and produces fantastic 3D models for urban surveys.

One of the primary advantages of the Sony a6100 Oblique integration is its competitive pricing. As the entry-level cousin to the workhorse a7RIV 61MP camera, the a6100 comes in at a 20% lower price point, while still managing a respectable 4cm ground sampling distance (GSD) at 400 feet (122m). This allows professionals to access high-quality imagery without breaking the bank.

Oblique urban 3D mapping

The 12mm wide angle lens and fixed angled mounting empowers the a6100 Oblique to capture a high quality of data on vertical surfaces, allowing for a comprehensive view of urban environments during 3D mapping missions. This feature significantly enhances data collection efficiency and improves the accuracy of 3D models, giving surveyors and urban planners extraordinary insights for their projects.

With the integration of the Sony a6100 Oblique camera, the Marlyn Cobalt now boasts an impressive 350-hectare coverage at 400 feet. This means that surveyors can efficiently cover vast areas in a single flight, reducing operational time and costs. The resulting GSD of 4cm at that altitude ensures high-resolution data acquisition, delivering sharp and detailed images for precise analysis.

To showcase the high-end quality of the urban mapping capabilities, including the 3D information that can be gleaned from vertical surfaces, we invite you to explore the dataset in the link. This map was surveyed by one of Atmos’ customers, enabling them to identify and inspect the built and natural environment (houses, treetops, etc.) through different processing ways in the Sancta Maria neighbourhood in the Netherlands for urban planning purposes. 

“We are thrilled to collaborate with Sony and introduce the Sony a6100 camera to our Marlyn Cobalt drone,” said Ruud Knoops, CEO at Atmos UAV. “This integration reflects our ongoing commitment to meeting the evolving needs of professionals in the geospatial industry. The Marlyn Cobalt has always been designed to deliver unparalleled performance, and with the a6100 on board, our customers can achieve even greater success in their surveying and mapping endeavours.”

The images and geotags, plus the impressive completed point cloud can be viewed here. For more information, see here.