Skydio Integration Configuration

NEW 12/4/2024: We've improved the way that historical Skydio flight records are imported into DroneSense/Axon Air. To take advantage of this change, complete the additional steps flagged in the Webhooks (step 5) and Alerts Setup (steps 7-11) sections below.

Livestreaming in DroneSense from a Skydio drone is different from other supported UAS devices. Rather than flying the DroneSense Mobile app, Skydio users will fly their devices on the Skydio app on the controller and stream data directly from the Skydio cloud to DroneSense. Video and telemetry will stream to OpsHub, and flight, hardware, and pilot records will be created on the DronSense Web portal.

Organizations will need to set up this data connection between Skydio and DroneSense, with configuration steps in the sections below for both Skydio and DroneSense.

IMPORTANT: The pilot associated with the aircraft must have an account with the same email address for both DroneSense/Axon Air and their Skydio account for these steps to work.

Skydio Configuration

You will need to have the Skydio support team enable the webhooks, live streaming, and live telemetry features for your organization's Skydio account. Without these features enabled, you will not be able to see the links and tabs referenced in the sections below:

• Webhook Setup
• Alerts Setup
• Live Streaming Setup
• Get/Generate Skydio API Key

Skydio Webhook Setup

Complete the following steps to configure the webhooks. There will be two webhooks that will need to be created. 

1. Log in to cloud.skydio.com and click Settings.
2. In the Developer section of the Settings options, select Webhooks.
3. Click Create Webhook at the top right.
   
   
4. Name the webhook DroneSense Video and enter the following address for the URL:
   

   https://external.dronesense.com/v1/externalintegrations/skydio

5. [new 12/3/2024] Within the same section, create a second webhook for Telemetry. Name the Webhook DroneSense Telemetry, and enter the following address for the URL:
   

   https://external.dronesense.com/v1/externalintegrations/skydio/telemetry

Skydio Alerts Setup

Now that the webhook is configured, you will need to configure Alerts for each webhook:

1. In cloud.skydio.com, select Settings > Alerts and click Add Alert at the top right.
   
   
2. Provide a name for the alert and select Live Stream Status Changed from the Event type dropdown.
   
   
3. Enable the alert to whatever drones the agency wants OR you can apply it to the entire organization, as shown below:
   
   
4. Enable the Webhook toggle and select the webhook you created in the previous section.
5. If you want an email to be sent for a live streaming event, enable the Email toggle and enter the preferred email address.
6. Click Add Alert when you are finished.
7. [new 12/3/2024] Create a second alert for telemetry. In Settings > Alerts and click Add Alert at the top right.
   
   
8. Provide a name for the alert and select Flight Telemetry Available from the Event type dropdown. 
9. Enable the alert to whatever drones the agency wants OR you can apply it to the entire organization.
10. Enable the Webhook toggle and select the webhook you created in the previous section.
11. Click Add Alert when you are finished.

Skydio Live Streaming Setup

The final set of steps for Skydio configuration are for live streaming:

1. In cloud.skydio.com, click Settings > Live Streaming > Live APIs. There should be two sections - RTSP Streaming and Live Telemetry:
   If you don’t see both sections, Skydio Support has not turned on both features for the account.
2. Toggle both of these settings to on.

Now that the Skydio Webhook, Alerts, and Live Streaming settings are configured you will need to obtain the Skydio API key you will enter during the DroneSense/Axon Air steps.

Retrieving Your Skydio API Token and Token ID

Complete the following to get the Skydio API Key ID:

1. In cloud.skydio.com, open Settings and click API Tokens in the Developer section.
   
   
2. Click Generate Token in the upper right:
   
   
3. The page that appears prompts you to enter a Token Name, Groups, and select which Permissions to include.
   -Set the Token Name to DroneSense API
   
   -The Groups field should be set to one for the Entire Organization.
   
   -For Permissions, we currently recommend setting every item to Read-only. At a minimum, you will need to set the following to read-only:  Batteries, Flight Telemetry, Flights, Live Stream, Live Telemetry, Users, Vehicles, and Webhook Validation.
   
   
4. Click Generate. It will then provide you with your Token, copy this and save it to a safe location. It will be used as the API Key in DroneSense:
   
   
5. Click the three buttons on the right side of the token and select Copy Token ID. Paste this info into a safe location. This value will be used as the API Key ID in DroneSense.
   
   
   

Additional Required Skydio Settings

In the General Settings Page, ensure that the Data Capture setting is toggled on to capture GPS & Telemetry data. This will enable the data to be ingested into the Skydio Cloud and imported into our system.

DroneSense/Axon Air Configuration

Complete the following steps to configure your DroneSense/Axon Air account to connect to Skydio using the API key and settings you configured in the previous sections.

1. As an administrator, go to web.dronesense.com and open the Admin > Organization Settings page.
2. Scroll down to the API Integrations section.
3. Fill out the fields in the Skydio subsection. The API Key ID is the Token ID and the API Key is the Token you copied from Skydio:
   
   
   You generally can leave the Bitrate Ceiling field set to 0, which uses the default value set by Skydio. If you do need to adjust this value, do not set it higher than 5 or lower than 2 to avoid video quality issues.
4. Select a default mission that your Skydio flights will appear in by default.
5. Complete flights with your aircraft and ensure that those flight records are pushed into the Skydio Cloud. Then, the flights will be processed into DroneSense/Axon Air. This can initially take 1 to 3 minutes.  
6. Once those flights have been processed into DroneSense/Axon Air your hardware will also populate into your account.  Users should also confirm on their aircraft hardware page that they see the Onboard Device Registration section appear.
   
   

REMINDER: Each pilot associated with a Skydio aircraft must have a profile that uses the same email for both DroneSense/Axon Air and Skydio, or the data will not sync.

Processing of Skydio Flight Records

For each the Skydio API Key, each aircraft must have been flown at least once to show up as hardware and flight records in the DroneSense/Axon Air web view. Depending on the number of previous Skydio flights, it may take some time to completely process and upload the flight data.

To load Skydio flights flown prior to integration with DroneSense, click Load Historical Skydio Flights on the Settings page under API Integrations.