KORTHOS / ECOSYSTEM / PRODUCT

Hovermap

About

About Hovermap

Emesent Hovermap is a mobile LiDAR mapping payload built around the company’s SLAM software. It can be carried by a drone, vehicle, backpack, pole or operator, allowing one sensor to collect dense three-dimensional data in mines, tunnels, industrial plants and other spaces where satellite positioning is limited or unavailable. The current series streams a live point cloud when communications are available and offers sensing range up to 300 metres.

Hovermap’s operating modes separate data capture from the mobility platform carrying it. Mapping mode supports handheld and mounted scanning, Pilot Assist adds collision avoidance and stability functions for line-of-sight drone inspection, and Autonomous Waypoint mode supports guided exploration beyond direct view. Survey accuracy, coverage and autonomy depend on the selected plan, carrier, mounting, control link, environment and processing workflow; Hovermap supplies mapping and navigation data, not a complete inspection decision by itself.

04 JUL 2026

Robotics capital moves — 29 June 2026–5 July 2026

Supply

Supply / Components

  • Hovermap

    sensors

Research

  • Heterogeneous Ground and Air Platforms, Homogeneous Sensing: Team CSIRO Data61's Approach to the DARPA Subterranean Challenge

    2021-04-19 - Research Publication - Heterogeneous teams of robots, leveraging a balance between autonomy and human interaction, bring powerful capabilities to the problem of exploring dangerous, unstructured subterranean environments.

    Source
  • Applications for the Hovermap autonomous drone system in underground mining operations

    2020-01-01 - Research Publication - The paper covers applications for the Hovermap autonomous drone system in underground mining operations.

    Source

Timeline

  • Emesent secures A$25M financing package for autonomous mapping scale-up

    2026-07-02 - Funding - The NRFC said funds will support product development, Wacol batch manufacturing and the Cortex AI software platform. The A$15M SAFE Note included Main Sequence Ventures, QIC, NGS, Hostplus and Orion Resource Partners. Emesent’s Hovermap stack is used for GPS-denied mapping across mining, infrastructure, defence and critical environments.

    Source
  • Emesent Hovermap certified for Teledyne FLIR Defense unmanned platforms

    2026-04-28 - Partnership - Hovermap adds GPS-denied 3D mapping through LiDAR SLAM to SkyRanger R70, R80D SkyRaider and SUGV 325 platforms. Combined with the SUGV and MUVE R430 radiation-detection payload, it supports real-time spatial awareness and geo-referenced CBRN threat mapping. The certification covers mechanical fit, electrical interface, software compatibility and flight performance, with further autonomous-navigation and multi-sensor-fusion work planned.

    Source
  • Emesent launches Hovermap Backpack for walk-through LiDAR mapping

    2024-06-25 - Product Launch - Emesent launched Hovermap Backpack as a wearable mapping configuration for Hovermap. The configuration extends Hovermap from drone and handheld operation into walk-through reality capture. The launch improves deployment flexibility for underground, industrial, and GPS-denied mapping environments.

    Source
  • Emesent integrates Hovermap with Freefly Astro drone

    2024-02-08 - Partnership - Emesent announced support for Hovermap integration with the American-made Freefly Astro drone. The integration provided a U.S.-made aerial host for Hovermap autonomy and LiDAR mapping. The combination supports autonomous reality capture and inspection where procurement rules restrict some foreign drone platforms.

    Source
  • Emesent launches Hovermap ST autonomous LiDAR mapping payload

    2022-02-28 - Product Launch - Emesent launched Hovermap ST as the latest version of its Hovermap autonomy and mapping payload. The launch included Automated Ground Control for survey-grade autonomous LiDAR mapping. The product gives Emesent a concrete offering for inspection, monitoring or infrastructure automation workflows.

    Source

Context

Market context

Hovermap is Emesent’s LiDAR mapping and autonomy payload family for high-density 3D capture in GPS-denied and hard-to-access environments.

  • Target environment: Mines, tunnels, industrial assets, infrastructure, construction sites and other indoor or GPS-denied spaces.
  • Workflow context: Captures SLAM-based point clouds from drones, handheld operation, backpacks, vehicles and ground robots, with live point-cloud preview.
  • Customer context: Survey teams, mining operators, AEC firms, industrial inspection teams and robotics integrators needing mobile reality capture.
  • Deployment model: Commercial sensor/autonomy payload family with multiple mounting modes and Emesent software ecosystem.
  • Commercial maturity: Commercial product family with published product pages and ST/ST-X brochure.
  • Adoption constraints: Output quality depends on scan planning, environment, mounting mode and downstream processing; ST/ST-X variants should be compared against the relevant model datasheet.
  • Market position: Reference LiDAR-SLAM payload for drone-based and ground-based mapping in inaccessible environments.
  • Adjacent products: Flyability Elios 3, ExynAero, Ouster lidar systems

Comparable Systems

Related Systems