DJI Mini SE

The Mini SE is a sub-250g drone and as such is exempt from the majority of the separation requirements within the UK regulations. It is equipped with a 12Mp stills / 2,7K video camera system.

The Mini SE provides a very flexible platform which is safe and legal to operate in most environments, including on campus and around uninvolved people.

It is generally not used as a survey tool, but is great for outreach and media purposes. It is possible to use this for basic mapping with the use of third party apps.

Specifications

For full specifications see the DJI website: DJI Mini SE - Specs - DJI

Dimensions	Folded: 138×81×58 mm (L×W×H) Unfolded: 159×203×56 mm (L×W×H) Unfolded (with propellers): 245×289×56 mm (L×W×H)
Max Speed (near sea level, no wind)	13 m/s (S Mode) 8 m/s (P Mode) 4 m/s (C Mode)
Maximum Takeoff Altitude	3000 m
Max Flight Time	30 minutes (measured while flying at 17 kph in windless conditions)
Max Wind Speed Resistance	8.5 m/s to 10.5m/s (Scale 5)
Operating Temperature Range	0° to 40°C (32° to 104°F

Sensor

The Mini SE possesses a built-in camera for photography and videography applications. It is not possible to carry additional sensors.

Further details of the system can be found on the DJI website: DJI Mini SE - Specs - DJI

Sensor	1/2.3” CMOS Effective Pixels: 12 MP
Lens	FOV: 83° 35 mm Format Equivalent: 24 mm Aperture: f/2.8 Shooting Range: 1 m to ∞
ISO Range	Video: 100-3200 (Auto) 100-3200 (Manual) Photo: 100-1600 (Auto) 100-3200 (Manual)
Shutter Speed	Electronic Shutter: 4-1/8000s
Still Image Size	4:3: 4000×3000 16:9: 4000×2250

Mapping Capability

Mapping / photogrammetric survey missions are NOT supported by the default flight control app.

It is however possible to use a third party app called Litchi to do this, at a small subscription cost. We have not yet tested this capability.

The Mini SE tags all acquired images in real-time with GNSS navigational data at Standard Positioning Service (SPS) accuracy - in practice, typically around 2-3 m. This tagging allows photogrammetric software packages to create geo-referenced data products, but the absolute accuracy of the geo-referencing is obviously limited by that of the original images.

For some applications this level of geo-referencing is sufficient, but where cm-level absolute positional accuracy is required this can be achieved using independently surveyed Ground Control Points (GCPs) and Check Points (CPs), which can provide additional constraint during the photogrammetric processing (GCPs) and an assessment of residual errors (CPs).

For this purpose we can provide GCP / CP marker boards and a Leica GPS 500 survey system in a field-portable carrying system. More modern and compact ground survey systems are also available to eligible projects through the NERC Geophysical Equipment Facility (GEF).