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DJI Zenmuse L3 mission flight guide

A clear guide to planning and executing lidar mission flights with the Zenmuse L3 on the DJI Matrice 400.

This guide explains how to plan and execute a mission flight using the DJI Zenmuse L3 on the Matrice 400, including route setup, payload settings, scanning modes and output estimation.

Mission flight planning

  1. Mount the Zenmuse L3 on the aircraft and power on the system.

  2. Wait for the automatic system check to complete.

  3. In DJI Pilot 2, open the camera view and go to Settings > Obstacle Sensing System.

  4. Make sure obstacle sensing is enabled.

  5. Select Network RTK or D-RTK3 Base Station for precise RTK positioning.

Creating or importing a flight route

You can plan a mission in one of two ways:

Option 1:

  1. From the DJI Pilot 2 home screen, tap the Flight Route icon.

  2. Select Create a Route or Import Route (KMZ/KML).

Option 2:

  1. Tap the Route Library icon on the aircraft home screen.

  2. Select Waypoint Route, Area Route or Linear Route.

Note: Line Follow and Terrain Follow tasks can only be configured after take-off.

This guide uses Area Route planning as an example.

Area route setup

  1. Tap Area Route to enter the editing screen.

  2. Define the mapping area and tap the check mark to confirm.

  3. Select the aircraft model, camera model and lens type.

  4. Tap Payload Settings and configure:

  • Return Mode

  • Sampling Rate

  • Scanning Mode

  • Photo Resolution

Choosing the scanning mode

Select from:

  • Linear: Provides uniform scanning and the highest precision. Best for mapping requiring high accuracy.

  • Non-repetitive: Uses multiple emission angles for stronger penetration and richer structure detail. Ideal for power line inspections.

  • Star-Shaped: Balances penetration and accuracy. Suitable for dense forests and urban environments.

  • Photo Resolution: Choose 6K or 12K. RGB colouring is enabled automatically to support colourised point clouds and RGB-based modelling.

Setting flight route parameters

Return to the N Mode – Standby screen and tap OK.

  1. Select Ortho Collection for lidar mapping.

  2. Set the Ortho GSD. This displays the point cloud density and adjusts flight altitude accordingly.

  3. Tap Adjust to apply the recommended sampling rate.

Altitude mode

If set to Relative Takeoff Point (ALT), you may enable:

  • Real-time Follow

  • DSM-based Terrain Follow for variable-altitude missions.

Safety consideration

If obstacles exist between the take-off point and mission area, set a safe take-off altitude above the tallest object.

Additional settings

  • IMU Calibration is enabled by default.

  • Enable Efficiency Mode to speed up mission completion.

  • Adjust speed as required.

  • The system aligns the main flight route parallel to the mapping area’s longest side for maximum efficiency.

  • Set Course Angle, Return To Home behaviour and advanced overlap parameters (side overlap, forward overlap, margins, photo mode).

Point cloud task output estimation

This feature helps ensure the planned mission meets output density requirements.

On the route setting screen, tap Point Cloud Task Output Estimate.

Set parameters including:

  • Object Reflectivity

  • Altitude Mode

  • Speed

  • Side Overlap

  • Sampling Rate

  • Scanning Mode

Tap Object Reflectivity to view guidance for common surfaces.

Tap the double-arrow icon to view output estimation.

Understanding the output charts

Density profile chart:

Shows point cloud density across a flight band.

  • Horizontal axis: distance from band centre

  • Vertical axis: point cloud density

  • Red box: lowest-density area

  • Blue box: centre of flight band

  • Green box: adjacent flight bands

Below the chart, scatter plots show point distribution for:

  • Minimum density area

  • Band centre

  • Adjacent bands

Compare the charts under different settings to predict point cloud quality.

Once satisfied, tap APPLY TO FLIGHT ROUTE to apply the updated parameters.

Mission execution

  1. Tap the Save icon to store the flight route.

  2. Tap the Execute icon.

  3. Complete the pre-flight check and parameter confirmation.

  4. Tap Next > Upload Flight Mission > Start.

You may also:

Fly the aircraft to the mapping area and execute the saved mission from the mission management screen, or tap Routes on the left side of the camera view and follow the same execution steps.

Get in touch

For further support planning missions with your Zenmuse L3, contact the Heliguy repair team.