RC Airplanes

	Relatively inexpensive (equipment cost ~ $1000)
	Collect data at critical times (fly whenever you want)
	Able to fly beneath cloud cover
	Easily transported & stored
	No formal training required
	FUN!!

Identify areas where crops are stressed

	Make decisions about fertilizer, drainage, or seeding rates
	Direct crop scouting efforts to improve efficiency and accuracy

Identify soil type and moisture content variations

	Apply tillage only where needed
	Help decide where to take soil samples and delineate management zones

Find weed and pest infestations

Apply controls only where needed

Create yield maps

It may be possible to replace yield maps created by yield monitors with properly timed aerial images


The plane is a kit sailplane with Styrofoam wings for durability. The plane is powered by a brush-less D/C electric motor.	A wireless video transmitter and miniature camera mounted on the plane help the pilot frame the photo.

A digital camera is mounted in the belly of the plane fuselage. Like most recreational digital cameras, ours can "see" infrared radiation by adding an external filter to block out all visible light.	The ground station consists of a video receiver, TV/VCR combination, and a R/C radio.

Remote Control Airplanes