The two OEMs are separately set to start “commercial drone services”.
Bangkok Post reported on the developments, with both OEMs reporting they will “start separate drone-based services for corporate clients”. Toshiba’s entry into the market will see it partner with car parts manufacturer Alpine Electronics, and “commercialise a system” to “inspect remote infrastructure such as power cables and steel towers” before March 2018.
The joint drone service will combine Alpine’s satellite navigation “knowledge” with Toshiba’s “digital image processing and artificial intelligence technologies”, while Canon’s involvement in the drone market saw it invest in Prodrone Co, a firm that “manufactures drones for industrial use”. The joint venture will see the two companies sell drones “loaded with Canon’s cameras for farming, infrastructure inspection and surveillance purposes”.