Event 38, a manufacturer of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) for industrial use around the world, announced a key research agreement with Cedar Valley Innovation, a leading Iowa agriculture research organization. Under this agreement, CVI will integrate Event 38’s flagship E384 drone and proprietary software into its ongoing agricultural research programs conducted throughout the US Midwest.

The E384 drone has a 2 hour flight time and can carry a one kilogram payload. Combined with an E38 custom optical sensor, the E384 can fly 1,000 acres in a single flight and provide orthorectified imagery, elevation models, NDVI, and plant health models at the 3 centimeter level for agriculture applications.

From its offices in Waterloo, Iowa, CVI accesses a network of highly experienced and results-oriented professionals who transform agricultural business and technical problems into innovative solutions for its clients. “The E384 drone gives us an affordable and stable aerial observation and mapping platform to complement our efforts in strip-intercropping and high resolution full season crop growth and yield data at the single row and single plant level," says Robert Recker, CEO of CVI.

Adds Jeff Taylor, CEO of Event 38, “Correlating on-the-ground with in-the-air observations is key to proving meaningful use of drones in agriculture. Our partnership with CVI will provide farmers with access to more up to-date and accurate information than ever before. Our goal is to combine drone data and ground measurements into actionable algorithms to prove ROI to end users."