Hexagon, a Swedish provider of R&D and design, measurement and visualization products, with 14,000 employees in over 40 countries, and which serves a broad range of industries, predominantly automotive, aerospace, defense and manufacturing, has acquired Aibotix, a maker of the Aibot X6 unmanned aerial vehicle. 

Aibotix, a German start-up, has been marketing a sleek multi-rotor platform for industrial inspection, aerial mapping and surveying. No financial details were announced regarding the transaction.

Hexagon President and CEO Ola Rollén said, “Aibotix is an important addition to Hexagon's photogrammetric and mapping technologies portfolio. The growing number of applications for UAV-based solutions offers huge growth potential, expecially in areas that require frequent and local updates such as smart city applications, dynamic GIS, and emergency response.”

Aibotix's Aibot X6 can fly up to 30 minutes with a 3kg payload of cameras and sensors. It's software permits flight planning including dynamic points of interest which enables automatic visual alignment towards the POI and geo-fencing for protection.

Source: Press release