DJI develops app that shows live drone locations in the area

Drone builder DJI is working on an app that maps live where there are drones in the area. The application, which should be released in the course of 2020, should make it possible for everyone to remotely identify drones of different brands.

DJI already gave a demonstration of the new Remote ID smartphone app during the Drone Enable conference in Montreal, Canada. The intention of the app is that everyone within the radio range of the drone can request information about the device. In concrete terms, this concerns the height, speed and direction of the drone, the location of the pilot and the identification number of the aircraft. The WiFi Aware protocol is used for communication, whose signal can be received up to a distance of approximately one kilometer.

With Remote ID, manufacturer DJI is responding to the demand from aviation authorities to identify drones in an easy and cheap way. For example, the US Federal Aviation Administration or FAA wants to submit a proposal for mandatory remote identification before the end of this year. A similar measure will come into effect at its European counterpart EASA from July 2020.

“Remote ID is key to enabling more complex drone traffic in the future, as well as addressing security concerns,” said Brendan Schulman, vice president of policy & legal affairs at DJI.

The Remote ID app is not only compatible with DJI’s own drones, but also has to work with devices from other manufacturers. According to DJI, this only requires updating the drone’s software. The Chinese drone builder wants to make its software available for free. There are costs associated with many existing methods, for example in the form of additional hardware or a subscription.

DJI’s app is currently awaiting approval from the aviation authorities. DJI expects the application to be available to the general public in the course of next year.