HUNTSVILLE — Marking what it calls the “next chapter in surveying innovation,” InTerra announced it has been awarded a patent for its “Mapping Apparatus and Method.”
Huntsville-based InTerra was granted the patent in September, more than four years after applying in March 2021. A pioneer in UAV-based survey solutions, InTerra said receiving the patent was a “major milestone in InTerra’s mission to precision, efficiency, and reliability to the field of aerial mapping and surveying.”
According to a news release, SmarTarget is at the core of the patent. The system is InTerra’s GPS-enabled ground control system designed to simplify drone surveying and ensure results that are repeatable, accurate, and defensible.
The system automates key aspects of ground control, eliminating the need for RTK subscriptions and reducing the time, cost, and complexity of survey operations at scale.
“Securing this patent reinforces InTerra’s mission to bring practical, field-driven innovation to UAV surveying,” said CEO Larry Donelson. “SmarTarget was built to solve real challenges survey teams face every day, reducing field time, cutting costs, and giving crews the confidence to deliver consistent, defensible data no matter the scale or complexity of the project.”
The innovation directly addresses one of the industry’s most persistent challenges: balancing precision with simplicity in field operations, the news release said. By integrating hardware, software, and data workflows, SmarTarget enables drone mappers, surveyors and engineers to achieve survey-grade accuracy without relying on manual processes or network connectivity.
With its technology now officially patented, InTerra said it is poised to expand its leadership in high-accuracy drone mapping, delivering solutions that are built for performance, backed by science, and trusted in the field.
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