A drone carries a high-spectral camera made by Hangzhou-based West Lake Intelligent Vision Technology Co. [Photo/tidenews.com.cn]

A nondescript drone takes to the skies, equipped with a high-spectral camera weighing less than 1 kilogram — and in just 10 minutes, the UAV snaps a comprehensive scan of a 1.5-square-kilometer area, shedding light on crucial environmental information.

Developed by high-speed camera and intelligent imaging systems manufacturer West Lake Intelligent Vision Technology Co, based in Hangzhou — capital of East China's Zhejiang province — the camera can capture information that is invisible to the human eye.

The high-spectral device is designed to split light into over 100 different spectral bands, covering the 400 to 1,000-nanometer visible light to a near-infrared spectrum. With the ability to capture 100 continuous spectral channels in a single frame, the camera boasts a minimum image resolution of 1024 x 1024 pixels, ensuring exceptional clarity and detail.

Yuan Xin, founder of the company — who conducted research into the field for more than 10 years — said there were significant technological challenges in computational processing during its early development stage.

However, breakthroughs in algorithms have dramatically reduced computation time from 24 hours to mere milliseconds, paving the way for industrialization of high-spectral imaging, Yuan added.

Having secured over 50 million yuan ($6.95 million) in Pre-A round investment funding, the company has received exclusive capital from renowned venture capital firm Oriental Fortune Capital.

As a result, it now plans to promote the camera's widespread application in smart agriculture, environmental monitoring and power line inspections — with a continuous expansion into industrial quality control, medical research and beyond.

The camera splits light into over 100 different spectral bands. [Photo/tidenews.com.cn]