Civil and Social Uses of Drones

Introduction:

Drones, known technically as Unmanned Areal Vehicle (UAV) or Remotely Piloted Aircraft
Systems (RPAS) has a history of over a hundred years. They have been used through the two world
wars and also in regional conflicts like the Vietnam, the Yom Kippur and the Lebanon warsi. For a
long time the development of drones was largely driven by military objectives all over the world.
Hence the word 'drone' often conjures up images of its military association.

However drones are evolving. Augmented with increasingly advanced technologies such as satellite
communication, mobile infrastructure, big data, artificial intelligence, machine learning and
advanced imaging techniques, drones are becoming highly dextrous, even auto-piloted and can
carry far more sensors, with increasing ability to do real-time processing. There is also tremendous
growth in the use of drones for recreation and leisure. Communities of open source projects, Do-It-
Yourself hobbyist groups, and flying clubs is one of the main markets for the smaller drones.
SkyPixel, an online community for drone enthusiasts predicts that the recreational drone flying will
be the dominant usage in 2015ii, particularly in the US. However, the commercial use of drones are
predicted to go up. The Teal Group Corp., an aerospace defence company estimates that the
worldwide spending on drones is expected to more than double over the next decade to more than
$89 billion by 2023iii. With drones gaining sophistication and with increasing affordability, there is
tremendous potential for drones in civilian and social space.

Surveillance:

One of the biggest civilian use of drones could be by governments in non-military fields like
security and surveillance, border patrolling, forest and infrastructure management etc. Not requiring
much different technology than that used for recognisance by military, large areas can be monitored
by air borne machines, that might otherwise require huge manpower. These unmanned vehicles can
also be sent into areas hit by natural disasters to get a correct picture of damage and deliver essential
supplies to victims.

Scientific Research:

The development of drones itself is a huge area of research in many leading Universities and
research centres worldwide. However drones themselves can be great aid to research in other
domains. Drones with sensors can be sent on scientific missions to collect dataiv. Flying into zones
that might be harsh, inhospitable or inaccessible to humans, might lead to new insights or
applications in science. Other than fundamental research, a number of startups are also now raising
funds to develop technologies for commercial operationsv.

Video and Photography:

With great strides in imaging technologies like image stabilisation, real-time 3D image generation
etc. drones can be used to capture spectacular photographs and videos from the air at a fraction of
the cost of traditional methods. As they become more affordable, small drones controlled by mobile
phones will be available to the general public. For instance Hexo+, a startup, has crowdsourced
$1.3m on Kickstarter to fund its UAV - a drone that will fly up to 60m (200ft) above your head and
circle around you, giving you an all-round aerial selfievi.
Delivery of goods and services:

News that grabbed the headlines in the recent past has been the application of drones for logistics.
Amazon's Prime Air is gearing up to deliver goods to the doorsteps of consumers by air. Meanwhile
Google and Facebook want to take Internet services to remote corners of the world via air-borne
drones running to solar powervii.

With these interesting developments, it seems that drones buzzing overhead in civilian spaces may
not be too far away offering an array of services. While commercial applications of drones are just
starting, the Aerospace and Defence Industries’ Association of Europe estimates that 150,000 jobs
iii
could be created in Europe in the RPAS sector by 2050.

Conclusion:

UAV's do have enormous potential to be useful in civilian and social space – replacing humans in
dangerous situations, for mundane activities and giving us view points that may be otherwise
impossible to get. But in the recent past drones have come under attack by citizens' rights groups
concerned about privacy issues. Genuine questions about individual rights are being debated,
especially with respect to the use of drones by law enforcement agencies for surveillance and
snooping by individuals. There seems to be no well established legal and regulatory framework yet
to deal with these issues in most countries. While debates go on, the answer is to have effective
laws in place that will respect individual privacy of the citizens while allowing drones to operate
non-intrusively. Only then will it be possible to derive the full benefits of drones in the civilian
space.

References:
i Wikipedia. Accessed July 31, 2015. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drone.

ii McNeal, Gregory S. "Will Recreational Drone Flying Lead Drone Usage In

2015?" Forbes, January 31, 2015. Accessed July 31, 2015.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/gregorymcneal/2015/01/31/will-recreational-
drone-flying-lead-drone-usage-in-2015/.

iii House of Lords, European Union Committee. “Civilian Use Of Drones In

The EU”, p.13 2015. Accessed 31 July 2015.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201415/ldselect/ldeucom/122/12
2.pdf

iv Marris, Emma. "Drones in Science: Fly, and Bring Me Data." Nature (2013):
156-58. Print.

v Constine, J. (n.d.). Airware And DJI/Accel Launch Drone Investment Funds.

Techcrunch. Retrieved July 31, 2015, from
http://techcrunch.com/2015/05/27/drone-fund/#.i3usii:cXmE

vi Kleinman, Z. (2015, January 8). “CES 2015: Why the future of drones is up in
the air.” BBC News. Retrieved July 31, 2015, from
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-30721339

vii Kuchler, Hannah. "Facebook, Google and Amazon Explore Prospects of

Drones." Financial Times, July 13, 2014. Retrieved July 31, 2015, from
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/d444019c-f703-11e3-8ed6-
00144feabdc0.html#axzz3hSLhXjx8