Abstract: A seismic weight dropper arrangement for a drone. The arrangement comprises a winch assembly attachable to a drone and comprising an actuator and spool with a cable windable thereon. Arrangement also includes a seismic source assembly comprising a housing and a mass suspended within the housing via at least one resiliently elastic biasing element, such as a coil spring. The seismic source assembly is fast with the cable and the actuator configured selectively to eject the seismic source assembly from the drone under the influence of gravity. The resiliently elastic biasing element has a predetermined modulus of elasticity to facilitate the mass impacting the housing when the housing impacts a surface after such ejection from a predetermined height above the surface.

Abstract: A drone geophone installation arrangement comprising a drone configured to transport a geophone, and an anchor arrangement configured to selectively and releasably anchor the drone to a surface. Also included is a geophone implantation assembly configured to implant the geophone into the surface, the implantation assembly comprising i) a geophone receptacle configured to releasably receive the geophone, ii) a translation carriage configured to urge the geophone receptacle into the surface, and iii) a pulsator configured to apply at least one implantation pulse to the geophone receptacle to facilitate implantation of the geophone into the surface while the drone is anchored thereto. An associated geophone installation method is also described.

Abstract: A sensor magazine arrangement for a drone, the arrangement comprising a chassis configured to receive at least a portion of a drone to position a load point of such drone relative to the chassis. Also included is an array of sensor receptacles supported by the chassis, each receptacle configured to receive a sensor, and a carriage system fast with the chassis and having a manipulator configured to transfer a sensor between the array and a transfer point proximate the load point. Further included is a controller configured to control the carriage system to allow transfer of a sensor between the array and transfer point. The magazine arrangement broadly facilitates autonomous deployment and/or retrieval of a plurality of sensors via drone. An associated method is also described.