DJI Matrice 5T Drone Brings Compact LiDAR and Native 1K Thermal to Industrial Missions

DJI released the Matrice 5T this week as a folding enterprise aircraft that carries a native 1280 by 1024 thermal camera, a rotating LiDAR unit, and millimeter-wave radar in an airframe rated IP55. The combination supports missions in low light, rain, fog, or dust where earlier compact models relied mainly on cameras. With a battery installed the aircraft weighs 2,239 grams and folds to 335 by 155 by 203 millimeters, so it still fits in a vehicle or case while adding roughly a kilogram of mass over the Matrice 4T.

The most significant improvements are made to night and thermal operations. The uncooled thermal sensor has an 8-micrometer pixel pitch behind an f/0.85 lens, resulting in a 45-degree view in front of it. In upscaled mode, it produces 2560 by 2048 frames to look at, while temperature measurement can range from -20 to 550 degrees Celsius depending on how far you push it, with an accuracy of plus or minus 2 degrees or 2 percent in the high-gain setting.

All of this sits alongside three 50 megapixel cameras capable of producing a respectable image in daytime. The wide one has a 1/0.98 inch sensor and an f/1.8 lens that can capture full-color video down to 0.01 lux, thanks in part to an ISO sensitivity of up to 1.6 million and some AI processing. The medium telephoto provides 3x optical reach, while the telephoto lens provides 252 mm equivalent with 11x optical and 176x hybrid zoo, which is adequate for reading license plates from 400 meters on a sunny day and then converting to good old monochrome nite vision when necessary. We also have a laser rangefinder that can measure up to 3,000 meters.

Obstacle sensing now combines three different systems. The top-mounted spinning LiDAR can target its 360-degree horizontal scan at power lines or thin wires up to 32 meters away in the dark and then stick to them for inspection. Even in hazy, rainy, or dusty conditions, the millimeter wave radar can detect small objects up to 40 meters ahead.

We also have six full-color fisheye cameras that will help keep the device flying in low light scenarios, as low as 0.5 lux. And then there are the GNSS signals, which can be erratic near big buildings or gorges, but the aircraft can almost generate a local map in real time by combining optical and radar data. You must also be aware of wind resistance; if it becomes too windy, it will be unable to fly through it effectively, and you will not be able to travel faster than 23 meters per second.

When there is no wind, flight endurance is a reasonable 59 minutes, which is enough time to hover in situ for 54 minutes. Data transfer is via the O4 Enterprise Enhanced network, which can reach up to 40 kilometers under the correct conditions; there are even relay modes to assist – the aircraft also contains dual cellular dongle slots that switch over automatically.

You also have onboard processing that can distinguish between more than 20 different types of objects based on the combined thermal and visible feeds – and you can upload custom models if necessary, as well as receive text or image prompts through FlightHub 2 to generate patrol routes that include hover, photo, or audio actions for your crew to perform in the field. DJI Terra can then convert the data into a point cloud or 2.5D model in around eight minutes, and it also allows centimeter-level mapping without the requirement for ground control points in certain scenarios. To top it all off, payload capacity has doubled to 400 grams across three ports.

Authorized enterprise dealers began taking orders immediately, with early pricing near the equivalent of $8,600 in several markets and first shipments expected later in November. The model carries C2 and C6 certifications for Europe and is offered in Canada, Japan, China, and other regions. No FCC authorization appears on the specification sheet, so the aircraft is not available through U.S. dealers.