The off-the-shelf drones are simple to operate and easy to maintain aerial systems. However, due to proprietary flight software, these drones usually do not provide any open-source interface which can enable them for autonomous flight in research or teaching. This work introduces a package for ROS1 and ROS2 for straightforward interfacing with off-the-shelf drones from the Parrot ANAFI family. The developed ROS package is hardware agnostic, allowing connecting seamlessly to all four supported drone models. This framework can connect with the same ease to a single drone or a team of drones from the same ground station. The developed package was intensively tested at the limits of the drones' capabilities and thoughtfully documented to facilitate its use by other research groups worldwide.

Parrot is following last year's Anafi USA drone with a new model made for enterprise, the Anafi Ai. The aircraft sports a newly designed airframe, remote, and camera. It's an important feature for first responders who may need to fly a drone further than typical control systems would allow for search-and-rescue, 3D mapping, and other operations where you need long range control. Parrot CEO Henri Seydoux describes the Ai as a drone for professionals who need to get a job done. The Ai works with the Skycontroller 4, a basic remote that requires a phone or tablet to show a camera view.

European drone company Parrot is releasing a new drone, the Anafi AI, in the second half of 2021. Notably, it's the first to use 4G as a main data link between the drone and remote--effectively doing away with transmission limitations. It can also use a Wi-Fi connection. Parrot claims remote pilots can operate the drone Beyond Visual Line of Sight (if permission is obtained) and it won't lose connection behind obstacles such as trees or buildings. A camera with a 48MP 1/2" Quad Bayer sensor, 24mm lens, a fixed F2.0 aperture and 73º FOV is affixed to a 6-axis (3-axis mechanical, 3-axis electronic) stabilized gimbal. Parrot says that the camera offers the same precision as a drone with a 1"-type 20MP CMOS sensor while flying 1.5 times higher.