Drone Bits – Int’l Drone Day, Drones & Fire, Intel’s Light Shows

Saturday the World Celebrated International Drone Day –

This past Saturday events were held around the world to celebrate International Drone Day. This lolapalooza of UAV technology is organized by the folks over at “That Drone Show” who conceived of the idea because they were “weary of negative media about drones” (We’re with you on that.) DRONELIFE attended the local event here in Boston which had a drone racing cage, product displays, infor from MassPort (e.g. FAA) and more. The host here in Boston was Sean Tierney who did a tremendous job in getting all the ducks lined up as it were. It’s all very much a grass roots effort with a positive purpose.Large scale manufacturers might want to take a page from their book and / or get more engaged in this effort. You can find news about different events held here.

Drones and Fire

Canada is experiencing one of the worst natural disasters of the year with a wildfire that is consuming ~400,000 acres and has displaced ~100,000 people. Reuters reports that a Elevated Robotic Services has been contracted to use drones to help identify the cause of the catastrophe. Reuaters reports “The drones use cameras outfitted with infrared, ultraviolet and traditional optical cameras to pinpoint the hottest part of the fire and trace it to its source based on time, wind and other factors. The cameras will shoot about 800 images, which are then stitched together in a process called fire-mapping.” However, there are still knuckleheads out there. Canadian news outlets are also reporting on unauthorized drones in the vicinity of fires. in British Columbia.

Who needs fireworks when you can have a drone show

Intel is looking to stage light shows with drones. You can watch a video here. We expect that this effort stems from Intel’s acquisition of Ascending Technologies, a drone company based in Germany. It was Ascending Technologies that produced a rather amazing Xmas “drone painting.”

Here is a recent promotional video from Intel in which they flew 100 drones in Palm Springs

CNAS has launched a web site to track drones for policy makers

The question posed by the site and one it seeks to assist in answering is: “What happens when everyone has drones?” Good question. Talk about disruption.

from http://drones.cnas.org:

What Are Drones?

Much of the conversation about drones focuses on high-end military systems but a far wider range of drones is already being used for disruptive purposes. As drones become increasingly accessible and affordable, it will be essential to consider the full range of their capabilities and potential impact.