Arrowhead can be equipped with a Thermal camera to meet the needs of those who find it necessary or helpful for their operations. The camera we utilize is the FLIR Boson in either a 320p or 640p configuration. A thermal camera can also be added to an Arrowhead afterwards if you desire to upgrade after purchase.
With the thermal sensor added to Arrowhead you will note that the sensor arrangement/configuration is different. However, all the standard sensors are still onboard, and function the same as with a non-thermal Arrowhead. Below you’ll find an overview of the new sensor arrangement.
To get to the thermal camera feed, simply cycle through the camera feeds the same way you would between the standard FPV and 45-deg downward camera on your GCS. At the current moment there is no way to do Picture-in-Picture (PIP).
*Thermal view (320p) video feed next to standard FPV video preview for comparison.*
The thermal sensor has a slightly narrower field of view (FOV) than is found in the standard FPV camera. This is important to consider when navigating through tight environments. As seen in the sensor arrangement photo, the sensors are off in position from each other slightly, which is important to remember when switching back and forth between sensor feeds. Even with the more off center position, the FPV camera’s view is centered enough so that if you see a gap you want to fly through, the drone should be able to clear it.
The thermal sensor is set up in a white-hot visual color scheme. This means hot objects will appear white, while cooler objects will appear black. The sensor automatically updates its temperature reference as what is in its view changes. This means it won’t be stuck at a specific temperature color spectrum based on what it sees when booting up.
*Thermal video feed (320p)*