England (Commonwealth Union) – The use of UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) or drones has been a controversial issue, particularly when it comes to its use in residential areas with concerns of privacy. However, the use of UAVs in areas which are difficult to reach have proven to be useful.
UAVs are set to carry out surveys from above in Antarctica to obtain essential data on changes to the region’s atmosphere and wildlife. This will be part of a new study with engineers from the University of Sheffield.
The University researchers are producing advanced swarms of unmanned aircrafts to obtain essential atmospheric data from Antarctica. Swarms of drones will be tried out by the British Antarctic Survey to assist in tracking wildlife, ice collection and weather conditions.
The same technology will be utilized by the UK Fire and Rescue services to identify wildfires at a speedier rate.
The British Antarctic Survey will test the new technology – using the unmanned aircraft to gather environmental data, such as monitoring wildlife, ice accumulation and weather conditions. The new project, will see researchers from the University of Sheffield’s Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering, take swarm aircraft technology further to carry out survey observations and mapping of wide locations in Antarctica quicker and with lower human involvement.
Apart from Antarctica, the aircraft will also be tried out for the UKs to fire detection assistance. This is a continuation of prior work with the Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service that made use of drones to detect wildfires as soon as possible to minimize the destructive activities.
Lyudmila Mihaylova, Professor of Signal Processing and Control at the University stated that its exciting research that will advance the use of UAVs in swarms and to can be utilized innovatively to preserve the environment. “In this project, the consortium partners aim to perform several live demonstrations of swarming unmanned aerial vehicles for survey missions in Antarctica and fire detection in the UK,” she said.
