Thermal imaging drones are advanced and sophisticated, especially in complex environments that allow you to see changes in heat. Thermal imaging drones can be used for legal hunting, thermal imaging drones for legal hunting bring hunters a more efficient way of hunting, as animals are warmer than their surroundings, these devices absorb their infrared energy and convert it Visible light for hunters to see.
Using a thermal drone unit for your hunting and imaging, you'll be able to check the dark or defeat natural camouflage to spot pigs, coyotes, deer, elk and other game that are often unseen.
Here, we'll discuss important factors for legal hunting with thermal drones and what they mean for your buying decision.
What are you looking for in a thermal imaging drone for legal hunting?
Night Imaging Technology
Thermal imaging drones, or infrared drones, they can all be used at night to monitor things. However, thermal imaging drones are far better than infrared drones. Thermal imaging drone hunting relies on heat signals rather than light sources, so it is better to choose thermal imaging drones. At the same time, there are also drones with integrated infrared thermal imaging technology. We recommend the Autel EVO II Dual 640t.
Sensor, Resolution and Size
Thermal sensors, also known as microbolometers, are components that respond to infrared wavelengths or heat emitted by prey.
The size of the thermal sensor and the focal length of the lens are very important, which determine our visibility at night. The lens focal length of EVO II Dual 640t is only 13mm, and it can support 640*512 or 320*256 resolution.
The more pixels a thermal sensor has, the better the thermal image quality it produces. Usually the monocular thermal camera telescope adopts 160×120 resolution, while the resolution of infrared thermal imaging drone thermal sensor can reach 640*512.
Pixel Pitch
Pixel pitch is measured in microns or microns. Lower numbers indicate higher quality sensors. The shorter the distance between pixels, the more detail the thermal sensor can create, giving you a sharper image.
While typical monocular thermal camera telescopes can achieve measurements of 17 µm, the EVO II Dual 640t has a pixel pitch of 12 µm.
Noise Equivalent Temperature Difference (NETD)
NETD is the sensor's ability to recognize the tiniest temperature differences. As with the pixel pitch measurement, this is another better measurement if its value is lower.
Any value below 60 millikelvin (mK) is considered an above-average sensor. Higher-quality instruments tend to be equipped with sensors that can recognize minute temperature differences, which help provide the clearest, most accurate picture for hunters.
Range of Working Temperature
On low-end thermal drone devices, the operating temperature range of the drone is limited. There's a good chance you won't be able to support hunting or monitoring in cooler temperatures.
The EVO II Dual 640t operates from -20° to +150° in high-gain mode and from 0° to +550° in low-gain mode. Obviously, hot drone hunting has more advantages.
At the same time, the EVO II Dual 640t can also guarantee that the temperature measurement accuracy difference is about ±3% within the ambient temperature range of -20℃~60℃. It is a durable drone that uses color tones such as white heat or black heat. When using the board, it provides greater contrast, which can help you distinguish subtle differences in the scene.
Zoom Magnification Capability
Long-distance detection of animals often needs to consider the magnification of thermal sensors, which is conducive to effective deployment of precise strikes during hunting.
Typically, thermal monoculars have some basic magnification. Short-range devices start at 1.4x or 1.5x, which are minimal. The EVO II Dual 640t can achieve 1-16x digital zoom, and 1-4x lossless zoom, so you can easily master all range of activities and never miss potential loot.
Vision
For hunting, the ability to look into the distance is also related to FOV. This is the width of the area we can see on a thermal imaging display. In general, your FOV will be smaller when viewing at a higher magnification lens. The lens field of view of EVO II Dual 640t can reach H33°V26°.
Scope of Test
When you combine a lens, microbolometer, display, and magnification, you want to create a combination of components that will help you detect coyotes, pigs, deer, elk, or anything else.
A monocular with a large microbolometer and a higher zoom number gives you a wider detection range. EVO II Dual 640t can achieve accurate temperature measurement distance of 2-20 meters.
Refresh Rate
The refresh rate of thermal cameras is related to microbolometers and displays. This value, or number of Hertz, represents the number of times your microbolometer or display is refreshed per second.
EVO II Dual 640t provides a resolution of 640*512 and refreshes at a refresh rate of 30Hz per second. When scanning a large area, using a thermal camera drone is undoubtedly a good choice.
Palette
Thermal imaging drones have a variety of ways to display the thermal information they pick up, and they're called palettes. Using different colors allows hunters to better interpret the surrounding landscape. Ordinary thermal monoculars can reach 4-8 colors, EVO II Dual 640t up to 10 colors. The four most widely used are discussed here.
Black Hot: Warmer objects appear black. This sense of taste is widely used by hunters and law enforcement because it doesn't differ much from the way humans typically see the world.
White Hot: Warm objects appear white. This sense of taste is one of the most commonly used for surveillance in urban environments.
Red Hot: Warm objects appear red. When you hear the word "thermography," you probably think of this palate.
Rainbow: Warm objects appear brighter and cool objects appear darker. This sense of taste is perfect for observing objects and environments with small temperature differences.
Durability and Water Resistance
For hunting, doing a lot of outdoor activities requires a certain level of durability and water resistance. Most drones are not waterproof, please do not fly your drone when it rains. The outer arm of EVO II Dual 640t is made of carbon fiber, which is light and lightweight, and can also carry 900g heavy objects, making it a very strong and practical drone.
Battery Life and Type
If you plan to hunt with a thermal drone for extended periods of time, you will need a drone device with a long battery life. EVO II Dual 640t is a kind of long-range drone that can work outdoors for 38 minutes for a long time. EVO II Dual 640t uses EVO II series drone batteries, and purchasing additional EVO II battery accessories can extend your field work time.
Transmission Rate
The EVO II Dual 640t is capable of live video streaming, and LiveDeck enables pilots to share live aerial video over public or private networks, sharing data with command posts, stakeholders or online audiences. The maximum video transmission rate is 120Mbps, and the video encoding format is H.264 and H.265.
Dimensions and Weight
Carrying heavy equipment for hunting is always impractical. Foldable compact drones open up new possibilities. The EVO II Dual 640t can fold the wings for easy rain transport. Buying the EVO II Dual 640t Rugged Bundle also gets you a sturdy outer case to store all your drone accessories together.
Warranty
Thermal imaging drones are a high-value thing. Investing in thermal imaging drones will be risky. It is correct to choose a thermal imaging drone with a warranty policy guaranteed by genuine products. Autel Robotics is an experienced and established drone brand, and the purchase of the EVO II Dual 640t comes with a one-year warranty. At the same time, Autel Robotics provides Autel Robotics Care service, which can be purchased twice a year.
The use of thermal imaging drones for hunting has become the norm, and demand continues to rise. Thermal imaging drones for legal hunting can only be better for hunters, don't miss out on your chance to get a 20% discount on the EVO II Dual 640t series of drones now!