With the market for open ecosystem drones on the rise, customers benefit from NDAA compliant heavy-lift drone designed and assembled in the U.S.
We are pleased to announce a new drone connected to the Auterion Suite, the Watts Innovations PRISM Sky.
This heavy lift drone utilizes Skynode to integrate into our mission planning and flight software Suite for long duration flights, making it a drone with broad connectivity and integrated data workflows across inspection and mapping, spraying, cargo conveyance, LiDAR application, cinematography and more.
By integrating into Auterion Suite, users of PRISM Sky benefit from a centerpiece for their entire fleet where they can monitor fleet health in real-time for reduced risk mitigation, enjoy predictive maintenance recommendations based on flight data, and achieve increased efficiency through real-time data delivery and workflow integration from payload to computer, eliminating the manual handling of SD cards.
Skynode which powers the PRISM Sky drone’s connectivity and workflow integrations also brings the drone into full compliance with the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which directs U.S. government and contractor component acquisitions.
“We’re able to provide customers greater functionality and connectivity through the Skynode integration with an NDAA compliant heavy-lift drone alternative to non-NDAA compliant options,” said Bobby Watts, founder and CEO of Watts Innovations. “In conjunction with Auterion’s Suite, the PRISM Sky provides end users with enterprise workflow integration, advanced autonomy, mission planning, live video streams, operations dashboard, flight analytics and cloud-based predictive maintenance.”
Open Ecosystem Means Expanded Choice and Flexibility for Customers
Our open ecosystem is providing enterprise customers with greater flexibility and choice. With Skynode onboard, PRISM Sky connects to the open ecosystem software, payloads and workflow integrations. This is enabling end users to add the heavy lift capabilities of PRISM Sky within their drone fleet without having to change their existing operator experience or workflows.
“The growth of the open drone ecosystem, validated by innovative companies like Watts, ultimately provides end customers with the greatest amount of freedom and choice,” said Lorenz Meier, CEO of Auterion. “Since Skynode automatically works with the Auterion software stack, customers do not need to learn an entirely new software system to run the PRISM Sky, adding to ease of use.”
Across every use case, open ecosystem integrations support component upgrades and mixed portfolios of small, medium and heavy-lift drones carrying a wide variety of specialized payloads or cargo. The drone industry’s next phase of enterprise scaling, accelerated time-to-market and smooth workflow management is being driven by open-source standardization.
About Watts Innovations
Watts Innovations, based in Baltimore, Maryland, specializes in the design and manufacture of industrial drones. With vast field experience, Watts knows the challenges drone operators face on the job site and focuses on making highly reliable drones that meet the customer’s every need. Having designed, manufactured, and flown a wide range of aircraft including multirotors, helicopters, and hybrids, we use our know-how to continually think in innovative ways, creating aircraft from concept to execution that leverage a pilot’s perspective. We push the limits of what’s possible to provide customers with the best service in the industry. Our flagship PRISM heavy-lift drone is the most versatile on the planet, useful for almost any application across industries. Watts aircraft are designed by American engineers, assembled by American technicians, and supported by American customer service representatives. Our long-term commitment includes manufacturing as many individual components as possible in the U.S.A.
About Auterion
Auterion provides enterprise and government with an ecosystem of software-defined drones, payloads, and third-party applications within a single, easy-to-use platform based on open-source standards. The platform gives operators greater choice, flexibility, and assurance, to improve their drone workflows, from mapping to inspection, cargo, and ISR. With 70+ employees across offices in California, Switzerland, and Germany, Auterion’s global customer base includes GE Aviation, Quantum Systems, Freefly Systems, Avy, and the U.S. Government.