Drones aren’t the menacing aerial overlords they're made out to be – from saving lives to helping make Hollywood films, they’re ready to become man’s best robotic friend.
From headlines about their military antics to memories of Kyle Reese cowering in the searchlights of a ‘Hunter-Killer’ in The Terminator, drones don’t have the most glowing reputation. In fact, they’re often seen as heartless death-hawks with a grudge against humanity.
But while combat drones are rightly controversial beasts, they overshadow the positive and sometimes life-saving work of a growing number of benevolent Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Whether it’s helping farmers fertilise their fields, filming spectacular documentaries or finding survivors of natural disasters, drones are ready to rehab their reputation and become our philanthropic worker bees...
Rise of the robots
Drones didn’t just burst into life like the worker bees they’re named after: perhaps unsurprisingly, their roots are in military research. As far back as 1935, the RAF was testing modified Tiger Moth biplanes which could be flown from the ground and these days the aviation industry has perfected the art, with drones such as the Global Hawk — which weighs 14 tonnes and can fly for 32 hours — carrying out missions the world over.
But just like the birth of computing, where IBM mainframes inspired hobbyists to create desktop computers for fun, so drones have garden-shed enthusiasts too. Online forums such as DIYDrones.com boast over 30,000 users sharing stories about home-made flying machines. “People are really turned on by the technological challenges and understanding that comes with building their own drone,” says Chris Anderson, ex-WIRED editor-in-chief and CEO of DIYDrones.com.
What’s in a drone?
Building your own drone is possible because they’re relatively simple. Sure, they vary: big or small, winged or rotored, cost hundreds of pounds or hundreds of thousands.
But essentially they’re built around an autopilot, made up of a combination of sensors — such as GPS, gyroscopes, and accelerometers — along with a processing unit to interpret the data and control the craft. Strap that autopilot to an airframe, with motors teamed with rotors or wings, and you’re good to go.
If the tech sounds familiar, it’s because you have something similar in your pocket right now. “A drone is essentially a paper plane plus an iPhone,” says Henri Seydoux, CEO of Parrot.
And fortunately, the essential components have been getting better, smaller and cheaper. “We have the mobile phone market to thank,” adds Anderson. “The thirst for better phones has driven down the prices, and improved the quality, of sensors, batteries and chips.”
…life savers
When conventional ground and air searches failed to locate a missing man in Saskatchewan, Canada, earlier this year, they sent in a Draganflyer X4-ES with heat-sensing equipment. The X4-ES soon found him, saving him from a night in sub-zero conditions. It was the first time a drone had rescued a human from serious danger.
“The Draganflyer X4ES found the victim in just 3 minutes — after 2hrs of ground search and a helicopter with night vision failed to do so.” Kevin Lauscher, Draganfly
…cameramen
Their small size and nimble nature allows drones to get close to the action on film sets. Video specialists Flying-Cam have a system called SARAH which features autopilot, inertial stabilisation and a 5K RED EPIC camera setup. No surprise, then, that they’ve shot footage for Mission Impossible and Skyfall.
“We thought a drone would work well for the motorcycle scene at the start. We did a rehearsal with Sam Mendes, and he was so impressed that we went to Istanbul to film.” Haik Gazarian, Flying-Cam
…cartographers
Fly a drone back-and-forth and you can create detailed maps of hard-to-reach places such as the Ad Deir Plateau. Flying pre-defined routes covering tens of square kilometres, drones acquire images where each pixel represents as little as 3cm on the ground. Software such as Pix4D can stitch them into amazingly detailed 3D maps.
“The detailed map we created of the Ad Deir Plateau in Petra, Jordan is the first of its kind. The results are the talk of the archaeological community.” Scott Ure, Brigham Young University
…computer games
Just as your phone’s camera allows you to augment reality as you walk down the street, so drones can create part-real, part-fictional worlds to explore. Games such as Parrot’s AR Race let you plot out a course then pilot an AR Drone 2.0 around it, while AR Rescue overlays your surroundings with missions.
“For me, the dream was to use drones to turn video game into a real thing — so that’s what we’ve done. These games aren’t for kids; they’re high-tech games for everyone.” Henri Seydoux, Parrot
