The drone control system, linked to the drone airframe, expands solutions across three business areas.

LG Uplus announced that it has been selected as the representative operator for the 'Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Utilization New Industry Safety Verification Pilot Project' supervised by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and organized by the Korea Aviation Safety Technology Institute.

The unmanned aerial vehicle demonstration project is a demonstration project promoted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to enable testing of various types of flights, including those beyond visual line of sight, at night, and at high altitudes, in airspace designated to 'promote and activate the safety of unmanned aerial vehicles.'

In March, LG U+ applied for the ‘Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Pilot Project’ in the following areas: ▲Facility Safety Diagnosis, ▲National Land Survey and Resident Patrol, and ▲Pesticide Spraying Based on Crop Monitoring.

Accordingly, drones can be freely tested in seven locations nationwide from May to December, including Yeongwol in Gangwon Province, Dalseong in Daegu, Goheung in Jeollanam-do, Jeonju in Jeollabuk-do, Goseong in Gyeongsangnam-do, Yeongdo in Busan, and Boeun in Chungcheongbuk-do, which are designated airspaces by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

LG U+ plans to expand solutions for three business areas by linking its cloud drone control system with partner drones. Working with JY Systems, the company will monitor transmission towers and lines for facility safety assessments. Four partner companies, including Hanwha Precision Machinery, Samco, JY Systems, and Freenew, are testing real-time video transmission and cloud video storage technology for facility inspections to find missing persons, criminals, and other individuals in the fields of national surveys and civilian patrols.

Additionally, LG Uplus will conduct tests in the field of pesticide spraying based on crop monitoring, which it has applied for as a new business area, in collaboration with Korea Agricultural Technology Holdings and Hanwha Precision Machinery.

LG U+ also plans to conduct tests to secure its own technologies, including additional control system functions, aircraft safety solution technology verification, 3D map creation, and LTE radio wave characteristics research.

“Being selected as a pilot operator allows us to verify commercial drone services,” said Choi Chang-guk, executive director of LG Uplus’ future services division. “We anticipate commercialization of drones and solutions for domestic missions, and the subsequent revitalization of the drone market.”