Lifeguards Use Drones?
By Patrick Lazar, VP of Engineering at FreeWave Technologies Drones have actually been around for quite some time, even though the recent “lift-off” of commercial applications has vaulted the technology further into the spotlight. I’ve started seeing some incredible uses of the technology and how not only businesses will benefit, but people as well. For example, lifeguards and emergency responders have started flying drones as another means to quickly assist swimmers in trouble. By dropping a life jacket as soon as possible, distressed swimmers can get assistance quickly while further assistance is in pursuit of reaching the swimmer in the water. In the same vein, another reason lifeguards are flying drones is to identify and monitor other threats to beachgoers such as sharks. This will lead into drones enabling automatic warning systems when sharks get closer to the swim zones, and warn lifeguards to deploy means to both repel sharks and notify others in the surrounding area. My Take: Dropping life preservers are the most natural use case that comes into mind. However, once the use cases start being thought through with detection, prevention and lifesaving goals, a more intelligent system will be needed to sense events, deploy drones to assist, audible two way communication to help victims all the way through to safety, alert authorities to bring needed medical help to the closest recovery location and of course, warning other population nearby to prevent others falling victim to the same conditions. In all these cases, visual, audio, sensor info, command and control information must be sent back and forth to the drone, which will require reliable, long range communications. Furthermore, the payloads of these communication devices must be light/small enough to not affect the drones performance.
Video: What are the Future Uses of Drones?
While drones are responsible for one of the latest tech crazes to hit the mainstream, it’s safe to say that you should not expect them to invade your airspace anytime soon. However, the influx of these flying smart machines may not be as far off as you might think. With heavy-hitters like Amazon, Google and Walmart recognizing the immense opportunity of using drones for shipping and logistics purposes, its no wonder that people are saying “the drones are coming!” Industrial Applications for Drones What could prove to be more promising than the consumer-driven demand for flying drones is the use of that technology in industrial settings and applications. Already, we see companies using drones for the following scenarios: Emergency Response Enables immediate action, providing emergency response teams with fast, flexible visibility to assess critical situations. Utilities Safely allows for the quick inspection of high voltage power lines and wind turbines, helping mitigate worker risk and improve monitoring. Military & Defense Assisting with intelligent surveillance and reconnaissance missions to deliver timely, relevant, and assured information to thwart potential threats. Oil & Gas Protects and helps maintain extensive miles of pipeline covering large, remote areas that would otherwise require enormous amounts of time and resources. Agriculture Creates more efficient farms by monitoring inventory, growth, water and fertilizer levels, and crop health to facilitate production and increase yields. Public Safety Supporting firefighting operations by providing more up-to-date information at a lower cost, while reducing the number of responders in harm’s way. So what does the future hold for these next-generation technologies? It’s hard to say really. One of the biggest hurdles still to jump is figuring out how these aircrafts will fit into the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) existing airspace regulations. There is no doubt there will be new policies that are drone-specific on the horizon. In fact, the FAA has already taken steps in that direction by requiring drone owners to register their aircrafts as a first step in ensuring the safety of everyone who uses the skies. Let’s just assume that over then next five years policy and technology come together and we finally have lift-off in the drone world. What’s next? Check out this video courtesy of Be Amazed that explores 10 amazing futuristic uses of drones:
