Japanese Firm Launches Commercial Security Drone

Looking for that perfect last-minute gift for that special factory owner in your life? What can be a better gift than business security?

A Japanese company has developed the next evolution in guard dogs – a $6,000 commercial-security drone that has more bells and whistles than Santa’s sleigh.

Secom’s security drone, released on Dec. 11, is not yet available for home use but the latest model is equipped to roam factories and commercial buildings and will investigate suspicious activity, sending a stream of live-video to its human counterparts.

Using motion detectors, the drone shines the light of justice on would-be intruders with an impressive LED display and can also send laser beams across a perimeter to establish a secure zone. The drone will follow the intruder until it leaves the premises, returning to its charging station after a job well done.

“It won’t leave the premises but will record imagery of intruders [and their license plates] leaving it,” said Secom spokesman Akihiko Takeuchi in a recent PC World report.

Like many such drones, the Secom model is hampered by low-battery capability – about 10 minutes of full flight. The Secom drone has been in development since 2012, a company official told the Japan Times.

“The firm will start offering the service following approval based on the revised aviation law that took effect [Dec. 9]. Using the drone is more efficient than installing many fixed security cameras because it can acquire clear images of license plate numbers and types of vehicles, as well as people’s faces and clothing by approaching targets from above, according to company officials.”

In Japan, drone security has become a hot-button issue. As reported recently in DRONELIFE: “the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) has established a drone squad, designed to locate and – if necessary – capture nuisance drones flown by members of the public, is to be launched by police in Tokyo.”

As drones become more ubiquitous in both the home and office, security drones are more and more seen as a viable supplement to human guards.

Last month, drone firm Galileo launched the Alpha drone as an Indiegogo project and bills the UAV as “the next revolution in security.” The 1.5-pound quadcopter employs low-illumination IR cameras, HD 1080p cams, LIDAR, GPS to set up a geo-fence around a tract of property that couples with “Sensor Nodes” placed around the property, allowing Alpha to patrol within a perimeter without bumping into objects or trespassing in to neighboring tracts.