Whether you’re a farmer, wedding photographer or even realtor you can use a drone to assist you because they’re easy to operate and very affordable. From tracking coastal erosion and filming athletes at the Olympics to the revolutionizing of search and rescue teams following a natural disaster, drones research is ever advancing. The last decade of soaring popularity and rising technological advancements have enabled new innovations to become a practical way of making science a reality. Happy Saturday(smile), my name is Jaden Randall and I am here to show you a glimpse of the future amazing technological advancements of these Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, UAVs for short that we call drones. UAVs, like the first motorized cars started out as a toy and now they stand to improve the quality of life of billions of humans!
As the price of drones has significantly reduced, companies from different sectors are coming up with creative ideas on how to get the most out of them. Article after article discusses how tech giants are taking the chance to control the future of drones as investors are pouring money into startups geared towards these autonomous aircrafts. But to be honest, these devices have yet to gain mass confidence. We also hear a lot about drones being used for bad from aiding terrorist groups in killing people overseas to smuggling drugs into prisons via the sky.
Adding to the growing concerns that the industry has found surrounding privacy one can grow dizzy. For instance, the police cannot enter a home without a search warrant, but there are no such laws that state that a flying robot cannot. This causes many to feel like we still have a long way to go toward changing the public’s perception about drones and their daily usefulness in the world.
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Aside from their novelty, it should be stressed that UAVs do plenty of good for the world. The ways aerial vehicles can be used for good are growing every day. Some of the ways that engineering and science aid drones in making the world a better place are as follows:
As popularity grows around the world, many major shipping companies are trying to figure out a way to have drones deliver packages. UPS is also trying to incorporate drones into their shipping by having their truck equipped with a drone to reduce the time and gas wasted to deliver a package that is completely out of the way. This could especially come in handy for drivers that deliver to rural areas. Consider how much this would help with the UPS truck’s battle with the awesome unpaved red clay roads of Southeast Georgia (smile). Plus, receiving your new swag on your doorstep from retailers such as Amazon or a pizza from Dominoes via drone could reduce not only the time it takes to receive it, but also the overall carbon footprint of home delivery on the environment.
And while remarkable, even better than saving our lungs and the time spent waiting and is the fact that deliveries by these unmanned devices now also save many lives. The company Zipline, has teamed up with Rwanda’s health ministry to deliver more than 5,500 units of blood, according to a report in The Guardian and will arrive in the U.S. later this year. After a text is sent, these battery-powered drones soar off at speeds around 80 miles an hour. They transport up to four pounds of blood plus other medical supplies to distances up to 50 miles away without the need of a remote control. In areas with few or torn up roadways, the drones can deliver their precious cargo faster than cars or trucks by releasing the materials via parachute upon reaching their destination.
In addition, by helping to create detailed maps, drones can assist in detecting illegal logging operations. These robots additionally track and monitor overall tree counts as well as waterways. Paired with the proper software the analyzing of that data is becoming more and more beneficial to our future predictions. This new aviation asset is shaping up to be the perfect tool to help conservationists and forestry officials to track the overall health of a forest.
Each year 15 million acres of trees are removed in the United States alone while Intactactforest.org estimates 3.5 billion to 7 billion trees are chopped down worldwide. To counteract this shocking statistic, there is a reforestation drone from the U.K.-based company BioCarbon Engineering. It has been developed to help reproduce the number of trees that have been cleared. The company has developed a high-tech system that uses drones to replant deforested areas especially in locations where planting wouldn’t be feasible using old school methods.
For instance, an average a good tree planter can plant up to 800 trees a day which is only about two acres, however, these drones can plant a tree in less than a second. That results in 100,000 trees planted in a single day by using pressure to fire a seed down into the ground followed by spraying water and fertilizer on the seeds to help in growth. It must be mentioned that each drone carries a load of various species of biodegradable seed pods since diversity is key to a sustainable, healthy forest. This results in these UAVs doing the job ten times faster than people, for 85% less money, and in places where it wouldn’t even have been practical to send people in the first place. These drones could for sure help with reforestation of places like California or the Rainforest while likewise reducing the global carbon dioxide problem.
That’s not all the science paired with drones can do to help Earth stay healthy. This aviation technology has begun to drastically assist in the agriculture field. As the news regularly reports, food production must grow between 25 percent to 70 percent by 2050 to produce enough food for the world’s growing population. Using drones, farmers can view the health of crops regularly, as they wish. Sensors and cameras built on drones capture all this information, which then helps farmers to determine the accurate need for fertilizers and pesticides. Ultimately, the use of aviation robotics on farms help farmers and scientists recognize where crops are not growing well to produce the best crops with the least amount of investment.
Lastly, as I previously mentioned, the military use of drones is common. The United States not only spy with these unmanned aircraft systems but use the technology to go where our soldier cannot nor should not ever need to venture. These drones carry bombs and guns that shoot with great precision and accuracy. I know some will pause and ask how is this any good for the world to which most will reply that they help prevent many human casualties of our troops. They may be costly when damaged but what is it to lose a couple thousand dollars for replaceable drones versus a priceless life? Most understand that weaponized drones are commonly received with have mixed opinions from the public because of the uncertainty and rationalization for use. Some people frown upon them, but others don’t mind them at all as their loved ones such as my family members, your neighbors and our borders are able to remain safe.
Currently, much of the hype around drones is paired with caution as safety is always the number one priority. No one quite knows the full scope of what’s possible with these cool devices or what regulations will be needed to maintain privacy and care. What we do know is that the need for these drones is already here and as the innovative uses grow, they become more popular across the world. As with all other technologies, drones come with a wide spectrum of advantages and disadvantages. People are still quite unsure of the technology and its reliability but whether we dismiss them as annoying toy or not, like the plane and the automobile they are not going anywhere. Oh boy!
