Senu: Autonomous Security Drone Application
Published: 2025
Senu is a drone security application built by Zurisoft in collaboration with Drobotics Systems, using autonomous waypoint missions to monitor and patrol defined areas. The application enables drones to fly pre-programmed security routes, respond to defined triggers, and return actionable intelligence without requiring a pilot to be in continuous control.
Security monitoring has a coverage problem. Guards cover fixed positions. Cameras cover fixed angles. The perimeter between them is where incidents happen.
Senu was built to close that gap. Developed by Zurisoft in collaboration with Drobotics Systems, it is an autonomous drone security application that allows operators to define a patrol area, set waypoint missions, and deploy a drone that flies that route without requiring manual control for every movement.
The application is built on top of ArduPilot and communicates via MAVLink, giving it compatibility with a wide range of open-source flight controllers rather than locking users into proprietary hardware. Patrol routes are configured through a mission planning interface. The drone executes them autonomously, feeds live video back to the operator, and can be recalled or redirected at any point.
The use cases Senu is designed for are practical and immediate in the South African context: construction site security after hours, agricultural perimeter monitoring, industrial facility surveillance, and rapid-response area assessment before deploying ground personnel.
Senu is part of an ongoing research and development track between Zurisoft and Drobotics Systems in drone-integrated security systems. It is also the software foundation that informs the drone application curriculum in the AeroKode and related programmes Zurisoft is developing with industry partners.