The fourth industrial revolution kick-start involves the introduction of autonomous vehicles called Drones. According to a PWC report, nearly 31 percent of the UK public feel positive towards drone technology, while in businesses, it rises to 56 percent. According to the EU, the market will have a €100,000M value in Europe by 2025.
When drones hit the market for the first time there was a notion that it can only be used for military and warfare causes. As time passed by this misconception changed and currently they are being used for the benefit of humankind.
An introduction
A drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle or UAV, which can be thought of as a flying robot. It can be controlled using a remote or is autonomous i.e. it can fly on its own using software-controlled flight plans embedded in them such as GPS and sensors. Drones are equipped with dual Global Navigational Satellite Systems or GNSS, which includes GPS and GLONASS.
Radar positioning helps them inaccurate drone navigation and display the current position of the drone about the controller. The Return to Home feature helps the drone to go back to the controller. Drones experience a smooth flight by avoiding the obstacles and also ensures safety. The central flight controller is provided with the navigational data by the gyroscope.
Reasons for growing demands
Nowadays drones are the most preferred asset in the market due to its various applications. Compared to satellite which requires high cost and time in data sharing, drones provide real-time high-resolution imagery data with far more accurate details and minimal instances of poor image clarity. The reduced cost of miniaturized sensors made it possible for the common man to own the drones. Today’s drones, which run on AI and machine learning, have enabled it to maintain a consistent distance from a structure or the ground to aid automated flights and improved measurement precision.
Uses of Drone
Zipline, a healthcare company delivers vaccines and medications in Ghana using a drone for 24 hours a day. In the real estate sector, a company named Zaw Studios uses drones to capture immersive 360-degree photographs and videos within large homes and offers potential buyers with a perspective that mimics a physical walk-through.
Wildlife and Forest Conservation uses drones such as NETRA Pro UAV, eBee X, SnotBot, Air Shepherd to track illegal activities, monitor animals, count their population, plan reforestation, and many more. Meteorology drones provide real-time weather data, to help meteorologists for weather forecasting. Aquila, Facebook’s solar-powered drone provides internet services to remote areas.
Drones can also be used in improving agriculture and deforestation as is provides data to the agricultural workers to improve efficiency. Raptor Maps is a company which uses drones to help farmers to predict their future harvest. A start-up company named Biocarbon Engineering uses drones to plant mangrove saplings in the south of Yangon. The wide range of applications of drones ensures the future scope of this technology.
