Public perception of drones mixed depending on use-cases

Public perception of drones mixed depending on use-cases

Apr 24, 2023 | Drones for good, Education, Industry News, Scott Simmie

By Scott Simmie

 

What does the public think about drones?

That’s a very good question. And the answer has implications for the industry at large.

Is the public ready to embrace drones becoming a more ubiquitous part of everyday life? Are people ready for drones to be flying overhead in urban settings – whether they’re gathering data, delivering critical supplies, or simply dropping off a bagel and latte for the sake of convenience?

As the industry moves ahead to more routine Beyond Visual Line of Sight Flights utilising pre-programmed and autonomous technologies, the answer – or answers – could have a significant impact on the speed of adoption.

Do people want drones buzzing in their neighbourhoods? WING certainly had some pushback when it began trials of convenience deliveries in Australia. And what about concerns over privacy?

There are plenty of questions. And some intriguing answers.

Below: InDro delivers prescriptions to remote Gulf Island communities in a trial using drones for critical deliveries of medications

Public Perception of Drones

CANADIAN RESEARCH

 

Before we dive into the nuts and bolts, some context: We’ll be referring to two scientific papers just published by Canadian-led research teams based out or Carleton University in Ottawa. One of these papers reviews existing research and draws conclusions, while the other involves original data on public perceptions gathered in Canada. Though we’ll dip into both, we’ll focus primarily on the paper called “Public perception of remotely piloted aircraft systems in Canada” – which appears in the May 2023 issue of Technology In society.

That study was authored by Dr. Nick Tepylo, Leilah Debelle, and Jeremy Laliberté. Dr. Tepylo is both a pilot and an aircraft systems engineer who holds a PhD; Professor Jeremy Laliberté leads a 22-person Carleton research group that focusses on the advanced use of drones and Advanced Air Mobility (AAM). Leilah Debelle is a research assistant (Co-op) in the Department of Psychology.

Together, this group carried out the first original research on this topic in Canada since 2014. Back then, there was considerable opposition to drones. As the paper’s abstract points out:

“The last major survey performed in Canada was done in 2014 and found the public was rather opposed to the use of drones and preferred traditionally piloted aircraft in all 38 applications polled. Much has changed over the past eight years as the findings presented herein show the public is supportive of the technology in most applications… Applications of drones that were perceived to further the public interest such as search and rescue, firefighting, and climate research were also viewed more positively. Most drone user groups were viewed favorably except for journalists and corporations.”

Below: A Draganfly drone designed for medical deliveries

 

Canada Drones

WHAT DO CANADIANS THINK?

 

Well, in large part, it depends on what use-cases are involved.

The respondents in the survey (there were 1,022), showed a clear preference for use-cases such as Search and Rescue, disaster response and scientific research. At the bottom of the list? Drone delivery.

We spoke with Jeremy Laliberté about the results; he agreed that people surveyed were more inclined to support what could be termed “positive” use-case scenarios.

“In general, the public is accepting of these technologies, but it varies strongly,” says Laliberté.

“If you look at the Canadian context, who is using the RPAS influences heavily the level of acceptance. So for example, public safety applications, Search and Rescue, things that are for the public good…have very high levels of acceptance. And we found in our literature review, that’s also the case in other countries.”

Intuitively, that makes sense. But what are the applications where the public is less likely to embrace drone use?

“Where the acceptance falls off, interestingly enough, is around delivery – delivery of just regular goods and services…packages, parcels, things like that. As well as journalism – using drones to monitor the public in any way or for news gathering – those get lower levels of acceptance,” he says.

You can see the varying levels of acceptance, pending use-cases, in the graphic below from the research paper. About 87 per cent of respondents strongly or somewhat support use-cases like Search and Rescue, firefighting and disaster response. Only 1.6 per cent of respondents oppose the use of drones in these scenarios.

“At the other end of the spectrum, package delivery had the lowest level of support with 44.9% in favor, 25.7% opposed, and 29.4% neither supporting nor opposing this mission type,” states the paper.

“Newsgathering and surveillance missions received just shy of 60 per cent support, while all other missions received at least 75% support. Additionally, only three missions (newsgathering, surveillance, and package delivery) received more than 10% opposition.”

 

Canada Drones

CONCERNS OVER MISUSE

 

The research also asked about the potential misuse or drones. Three different scenarios were presented to respondents: The use of drones for smuggling, flights over public spaces and flights over residential properties.

“Participants were most concerned about the potential misuse of RPAS by smugglers with 34.1% expressing a high level of concern and an additional 44.2% indicating a moderate level of concern,” states the report.

Reported cases of smuggling usually involve criminals dropping contraband into prison facilities. So while there is concern about such activities, these use-cases are generally rare and don’t directly impact members of the public or legitimate drone service providers. Arguably more relevant to the industry is concerns about flights over public spaces and homes, with the latter something that could become routine if and when urban drone deliveries take place.

Canada Drones

PRIVACY

 

Respondents were given the opportunity to get a little more specific about their concerns, with the option of entering their thoughts in a text box. Of the 1022 people surveyed, 611 (nearly 60 per cent) took the opportunity to offer additional information. And it’s clear: People are concerned about privacy.

“Responses relating to privacy concerns were the most common with 58.3% of responses highlighting some sort of privacy concern. Privacy was the most common word used, followed by variations of the words spy and surveillance,” states the report.

“Other words such as filming, video, pictures, etc. were entered and included under the privacy category. Government users were the most mentioned user of concern, followed by law enforcement, and hobbyists. Other issues raised related to the risk of collisions or drones falling out of the sky, hacking and cybersecurity, misuse by criminals, and the potential for weaponizing drones to target civilians.”

And there’s a lesson here, says Laliberté, for service providers. The public wants to know what these devices are doing when in public spaces or over residences, and what data is being collected.

“Things like package delivery…those are the ones (use-cases) where there will definitely need to be clear and transparent sharing of information: What are you doing? Who’s operating the aircraft? What kind of data is being collected? How’s the data being protected?” he says.

“I think the operators will have to be proactive about that sort of thing and really sort of get out there and explain their operations and be clear and transparent, and explain what they’re doing, how they’re doing it and how they’ve ensured that it’s safe.”

Laliberté suggests it could also be useful for drone operators in such use-cases to clearly mark their drones with company names and/or colors so that the devices can be identified from the ground. That way they’re not seen as an anonymous device with an unknown operator – which could contribute to concern/suspicion.

Below: First Responders operate a drone while trying to locate a missing person

Canada Drones

NOT JUST CANADA

 

It’s not just Canadians who have concerns about privacy. The paper cited three other research papers – two from the United States and one from Switzerland – that showed similar concerns.

“Similar to other democratic countries, the Canadians surveyed in this study expressed privacy concerns regarding the use of RPAS. Most of these concerns were related to surveillance by individuals, news organizations, or the government,” states the paper.

“The major concern with government users and law enforcement is surveillance, while with corporate entities, data collection for marketing is the largest concern, whereas with hobbyists, people are concerned about potential spying and recording of one’s actions. Future policy should be written to address each of these unique scenarios to improve the social acceptance of drones.”

The research also found there are differences in public acceptance based on perceived use of drones. If the drones can be obviously seen as a tool, their deployment is likely to be seen more favorably when compared with other forms of sensor-based data acquisition.

“The Dutch team of Bart Engberts and Edo Gillissen make the designation between the use of drones for sensory applications and their use as a tool,” explains Dr. Tepylo.

“Applications falling under the tool category such as using drones for firefighting or disaster monitoring typically have higher levels of support; however, the public is more weary when drones are used for sensory applications. These could include crime scene surveillance and even using drones to issue speeding tickets. People are used to a certain level of privacy and when drones are added to the mix, even without knowing how the drones are being used, they feel that their privacy is being taken from them.”

 

THE GOOD NEWS

 

It’s worth noting that the Carleton research indicates a shift in public opinion since the last major Canadian survey on the topic in 2014. People are more supportive of drones across all use-cases, with very strong support for First Responder use, disaster response and scientific research.

Also worth noting is that younger people and those with a background in RPAS tend to be more supportive than older Canadians and those who are less familiar with the technology. It also appears that words matter: The study used the word “drone” in half of its surveys and “Unmanned Aerial Vehicle” in the other half. Those surveyed were significantly more likely to support use-cases when the word “drone” was used rather than “Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.”

In fact, users were asked to identify their feelings on spotting a “drone” vs. an “Unmanned Aerial Vehicle” in the sky. People were more excited at the prospect of seeing something identified as a drone than an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. Women expressed less enthusiasm than men regardless of the word used, and far greater concern than men at seeing an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.

And why is that? The research revealed that more people are familiar with the term “drone” and could easily identify a quadcopter and associate it with the word. There was more confusion around “Unmanned Aerial Vehicle” – with respondents more likely to associate that term with a military device such as a Global Hawk.

Public Perception of Drones

AND THAT OTHER STUDY?

 

At the outset, we mentioned that there was a second paper which reviewed existing literature around public perceptions. Entitled “Public perception of advanced aviation technologies: A review and roadmap to acceptance,” the paper was published in April of 2023. In addition to Dr. Nick Tepylo and Professor Jeremy Laliberté (who authored the Canadian study), they were joined by Dr. Anna Straubinger from the Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research. In addition to drones, the review paper covers public perceptions of Urban Air Mobility and such technologies as air taxis (where Anna Straubinger has extensive expertise).

Because this is a long-ish post already, we’ll briefly hit some of the takeaways. The following highlights are taken directly from the review paper:

  • Interest in public perception of drones has been increasing since 2015
  • Awareness of drones is between 93 and 97% in North American and European countries
  • Support for drones increases with the level of awareness among the population
  • Support for air taxis has steadily increased and sits around 40–60%
  • Improving public perception is the key to widespread adoption of the technology

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION

 

Interestingly, the data shows that public perception can be influenced by where you live. In Switzerland, for example, support for package deliveries was 18 per cent. In Singapore, meanwhile, support was in the low 80s. High rates of public acceptance, says Professor Laliberté, will likely lead to earlier adoption in those countries – including technology such as air taxis.

“Especially with Urban Air Mobility (UAM) some of the initial trials were being done and proposed in countries where definitely the level of acceptance is higher,” he says. And as for Singapore and package deliveries?

“Singapore is relatively small, high density, and fairly urban. So it actually makes sense to try these (use-cases) out in some of these areas.”

Even a single drone service provider, doing work that’s perceived as good, can influence overall acceptance rates – which ultimately impact speed of adoption.

“Despite the lack of research data, Africa is a very promising location for the adoption of drone technology due to the work of Zipline,” says Dr. Tepylo.

“The company operates two medical supply distribution centres in Rwanda which can provide coverage for most of the country. When they see a drone in the sky, many Rwandans think of the potential life-saving mission that vehicle is completing so reactions are very positive. If the Zipline model is able to be replicated in other parts of Africa and rural areas around the world, it has the potential to accelerate the adoption of drones globally.”

Below: Graphic showing public acceptance of various use-cases by country. Locations with higher rates of public acceptance could well adopt these technologies at scale sooner than those with lower acceptance rates

Canada Drones

INDRO’S TAKE

 

We’re pleased to see these new papers – and particularly pleased to see researchers from Carleton University taking a lead in this field. These findings are tremendously useful to operators – and offer some useful takeaways when it comes to being transparent about operations due to the level of concerns around privacy. It’s also clear that public perceptions can play a role in influencing regulators when it comes to the pace of change.

At InDro, we’ve long emphasised what we would term ‘positive’ use-case scenarios. These include specialized products and training for First Responders, trials of prescription medication and COVID test supplies via drone – even the delivery of Automated External Defibrillators. It’s nice to see that these use-cases strongly align with high levels of public acceptance/support.

“It may well be inevitable that packages are delivered in urban settings down the road,” says InDro Robotics CEO Philip Reece. “But that’s still several years away. We see greater importance in delivering critical supplies like medications to cut-off and isolated communities and in developing specialised drones for First Responders and scientific data acquisition. We also believe these are the kinds of use-cases that – at least for the moment – are more likely to be viewed as both useful and safer when it comes to Transport Canada and BVLOS permissions.”

We recommend taking a deeper dive into this excellent research. You’ll find the paper on Canadian perceptions here, and the review paper on broader global data here.

Women leaders in Smart Mobility discuss the future

Women leaders in Smart Mobility discuss the future

Mar 31, 2023 | Industry News, Kate Klassen, Smart Mobility, Stacey Connors

By Scott Simmie

 

Some of the leading women in the Smart Mobility space got together to discuss progress, and even roadblocks, as the interconnected world of intelligent devices that will make up Smart Mobility moves ever closer.

The gathering was a live, virtual event entitled “Women Driving the Smart Mobility Revolution.” It was part of International Women’s Week and it brought together leading experts from Canada, the US and beyond. The event was hosted by Invest Ottawa, with sponsorship from Area X.O, BDC, MDK Business Law, Rogers and Women Automotive Technology.

Before we hop into some highlights of the discussion, it’s worth taking a look at what the term Smart Mobility means. Is it electric vehicles, capable of eventual autonomous operation? Is it drones, dispatched over 5G to deliver goods and services? Is it Uncrewed Ground Vehicles (UGVs, or ground robots) delivering food, pharmaceuticals and other supplies to homes and businesses? Ride sharing networks? Infrastructure that helps enable these technologies?

The answer is all of the above – and more. Smart Mobility, according to one succinct definition, “integrates all modes of transportation via wireless communications and applies real-time data analytics and machine learning to make transportation safer and more efficient.”

We think there would be widespread agreement that making transportation safer and more efficient is a worthwhile goal. And while there are some examples of Smart Mobility devices out in the world already, we’re heading toward an era of more widespread adoption.

But how long will that take? How will we get there? What will it look like?

All good questions. And there were some great answers from the three panels that took place during the event.

PROMISES, PROMISES

 The event kicked off with a ‘fireside chat’ with one of the top experts in the field: Selika Josiah Talbott.

Selika is the Founder and CEO of Autonomous Vehicle Consulting. She’s a lawyer who practiced for 18 years as a product liability defence attorney, representing OEMs in automotive cases. From there she was appointed Deputy Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, with 1800 employees and a $200M annual budget. She was first introduced to autonomous vehicles in 2010, and is an expert on regulatory and policy implications of EVs and Smart Mobility.

Like the rest of us, she’s heard the hype. Moderator and automotive journalist Petrina Gentile kicked things off with a basic question: Where are we now?

“That’s the $64,000 question,” said Selika. “The industry has been saying for the better part of 10-plus years that ‘It’s just around the corner.’ There’s now frustration – this thing you’ve been promising us isn’t here and it doesn’t appear to be around the corner.”

But that doesn’t mean we can’t at least see the beginnings of that corner.

“Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) are being much more widely used across the globe,” she said. “There are thirteen ports around the world – mostly in China, of course – that are using some sort of Autonomous Vehicle expertise to meet port needs.”

She also pointed out that AVs are also making inroads in industries such as mining and farming. Robot deliveries have started, and she anticipates great inroads here “as we start to deliver groceries and medicines to people who are not able to go and get it themselves.”

 

Below: Moderator Petrina Gentile listens during the ‘fireside chat’ with Selika Josiah Talbott

Selikah

EQUITY

Selika clearly thinks about this field a lot. And she’s very passionate about the big picture beyond the nuts and bolts of the technology. Specifically, any successful Smart Mobility strategy must be equitable and accessible for all. Her mantra, she says, is “Transportation is mobility; mobility is freedom.

“Transportation is the real equaliser,” she emphasises. “If I don’t have an opportunity to get to school, to get that education, if I live someplace where transportation is limited, how do I access medical care? … Whether it’s your home, your food, education, your job – every single thing that we do requires some form of transportation. So my work is centered around the movement of people, goods, and most importantly information.”

She continued: “What happens if I’m differently abled? Or if in the community I’m in there’s a shortage of labour, or I can’t afford the maintenance, upkeep, care and purchase of my own private vehicle? … An autonomous vehicle can fit those needs.”

Accessible public transport, she says, must be part of any successful Smart Mobility strategy, and must be an integral part of a Smart City in the future.

 

AND AN ASIDE

Selika Josiah Talbott is an African American woman. Moderator Gentile asked her about her experience as a Person of Colour during her career – and if there had been any ways in which she had been treated differently as a professional.

“I don’t dwell on them,” said Selika. “But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t sting. I’ve represented OEMs, vehicle manufacturers, back in the 90s. When we had conferences and board meetings, I was not allowed to sit at the table. I had to sit at the back wall. I might have been representing you…but I was not at the table for what we have deemed as cultural reasons.

“We didn’t (push back). We accepted it, and we moved on. I made sure that I was the best that I could be in that space.”

Below: The next panel on the agenda

International Womens Week

PANEL ONE

After Selika’s presentation, it was on with the program. Specifically, a panel called “Driving the future of advanced technology in logistics.”

This was a broad-ranging discussion, starting with a question from the moderator: How do you see drone technology evolving over the next five years?

Stacey Connors, InDro’s Head of Strategic Innovations, offered some examples of where this company has been – and how those set the stage for the future.

“Some of the neat deployments may exemplify where the industry is going,” she said. “We participated in a pilot where we delivered defibrillators.” That trial took place in conjunction with Renfrew County Paramedics in Ontario. Rural locations were chosen to stage a cardiac incident, using a medical dummy. A mock 911 call was placed, and then an InDro drone carrying an automated external defibrillator was dispatched. At the same time, a paramedic crew raced to the location in an EMS vehicle.

The goal? To see which could deliver the product more quickly in a scenario where every minute that passes following a cardiac event diminishes the possibility of survival. The result?

“We were seven minutes faster,” said Connors. In fact, that was the average over multiple runs.

Connors went on to predict routine contactless delivery of medical supplies to hospitals, as well as the rise of connected inventories – where the supply chain is transformed by automation, AI and Big Data working in synergy.

“This concept of connected inventories will dramatically change supply chains and open a lot of opportunities,” said Connors. “InDro Robotics specifically is leaning into this and building out some solutions for inventory management, cycle counting. Because that inventory accuracy is absolutely critical if you want to open up a connected inventory or connected supply chain.

“The other interesting application definitely connected… is the capabilities of the private networks and 5G. I think a lot of people have not yet realised the full capabilities that these private networks will offer…it opens up so many opportunities for teleoperations.”

 

THE RISE OF AI

One of the other topics was the seemingly exponential advancement of Artificial Intelligence. Will AI advance logistics – or potentially create problems? The consensus appeared to be that AI will lead to better decision-making and efficiences. It was also suggested that we are currently merely at the dawn of where AI will take the world.

Vivian Sun is the Chief Commercial Officer at Waabi, a company specialising in autonomous trucking. She describes herself as “a big fan” of ChatGPT and uses it regularly. She believes AI (which is already part of the core of the Waabi Driver system) will lead to safer and more reliable Smart Mobility systems.

“This wave of AI technology has been reaching more users than before,” said Sun – adding that this is only the beginning.

“This is the iPhone moment of AI history,” she said.

Hearing Sun speak about Waabi sparked us to take a closer look at the company. It’s up to some very cool stuff. And, as you’ll see in this video, AI is integral to Waabi Driver:

DRONES, ROBOTS

When we think of a Smart Mobility world, there’s no question that robots, drones and other forms of Uncrewed Aerial Systems come to mind. Moving critical supplies – or even people – with automated, renewable systems will definitely be part of the not-so-distant future.

“Honestly, they (drones and robots) mean two specific things: Efficiency and convenience,” said Mohammed Abu-Shaaban, Chief Technical Officer and Co-Founder, Kirality Drones. The Ontario-based company specialises in making drone deliveries at golf courses.

“The implementation of robots and drones is a target to achieve ultimate efficiency in day-to-day operations and also to provide the element of convenience to lay people – to anyone that just needs it. Say a robotic lawn mower. You don’t want to mow the lawn? It takes that mundane task away. Or conducting deliveries…”

At the moment, drone operators in Canada can obtain one of two licenses from Transport Canada: Basic or Advanced. But as drones – and drone operations – become ever more complex, it was suggested training needs to keep pace to ensure pilots have the skills for highly specialised operations. InDro’s Kate Klassen, who has deep expertise in traditional aviation and is also InDro’s Chief Flight Instructor, suggests the time has come for specialised training and certification in the drone and robot fields.

“Aside from the drone pilot certifications that we have in Canada, there really aren’t any skill-set specific certifications that you can achieve,” said Klassen, InDro’s Strategy and Implementation specialist. “It’s worked up until this point but the industry’s maturing to a point where standards beyond that government pilot certification, or for roles beyond the pilot, are going to be desired and needed.”

Klassen went on to suggest the time has come for specialised training and credentials for the more complex tasks (and technology) currently seen in the industry.

“I’d love to see some industry-recognised certifications within those specific niches – so like inspection, whether that’s commercial or industrial, doing work at advertised events, working in really cold operations…even things that are not direct pilot roles, like support roles for BVLOS operations. Those micro-credentials, apprenticeships, allow people to demonstrate that they’re competent and have that competitive advantage when they’re trying for roles.”

 

AND THE FUTURE?

There was widespread consensus on the panel – as you might expect – that drones, robots and other Uncrewed Aerial Systems will continue to grow in sophistication and use-cases. The use of drones during the pandemic to move supplies (and the use of ground robots for contactless delivery) has opened to door to public acceptance.

“The pandemic really represented for us was just: How do people get stuff?” observed Bronwyn Morgan, Founder and CEO of complex drone service provider Xeo Air and Airversity Drone Pilot Academy.

“I think it demonstrated why drone delivery, specifically, will be a thing in the future,” she said.

But Smart Mobility isn’t just about drones and robots. New and larger uncrewed aircraft that will one day ferry heavy cargo and even people over urban centres and to nearby communities not currently or efficiently served by traditional aviation are in development and testing. Air taxis and Vertiports (urban airports for eVTOL aircraft) are considered by many to be integral to Smart Mobility and Smart Cities of the future.

But don’t expect this on the immediate horizon.

“It’s a lot further away than people think,” said Morgan. “These are new aircraft. They have to demonstrate flight hours, safety… All you need is one incident for the whole thing to be shut down.”

Morgan predicted that cargo drones will be on the scene by 2030, “and probably not until 2035 until we see air taxis, business models, vertiports… It will be some years.”

Below: During the pandemic, InDro carried out regular Beyond Visual Line of Sight flights for a First Nations community in BC’s Gulf Islands. Transporting COVID test supplies by drone meant a local healthcare worker could remain at the clinic with clients, rather than spending hours on the ferry hand-carrying these supplies. Operations like this are certain to become more commonplace in a world of Smart Mobility.

INDRO’S TAKE…

With a growing number of drone and ground robotics innovations and solutions, InDro is well-poised for the coming wave of Smart Mobility. A connected, sustainable future with greater efficiencies is in everyone’s interest.

We applaud Invest Ottawa for putting together this event during International Women’s Week, and were pleased to see two of our valued InDro employees as panelists.

“There are a growing number of women holding senior positions in the robotics and drone space, but there’s room – a lot of room – for more,” says InDro Robotics CEO Philip Reece. “As Smart Mobility continues to grow, we hope to see greater gender equity in the field – and will continue to support women across this space. There are a lot of challenges and opportunities ahead, and this industry needs the best people possible.”

If you’d like to watch the panels, you’ll find them here.

InDro attends cutting-edge PROMAT conference in Chicago

InDro attends cutting-edge PROMAT conference in Chicago

Mar 23, 2023 | Events, InDro News, InDro Solutions, Industry News

By Scott Simmie

 

When you work in the robotics and R&D field, conferences are part of the deal. Within the past year, we’ve attended many of the big ones, including AUVSI in Florida, the Aerial Evolution Association of Canada in Calgary, and the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries (CANSEC) in Ottawa (where we were also an exhibitor). We also took a jaunt down to T-Mobile in Washington State, where we were invited to demonstrate our remote teleoperations over 5G with our Sentinel inspection robot. There were plenty of others, too, but these were the ones we happened to write about.

Conferences like these allow InDro to display our own technology, speak with other companies about their own cutting-edge products, learn about the latest on the regulatory front – and much more. We have developed strong partnerships that began with simple trade floor discussions, and also learned more about the kinds of solutions sought by clients.

And now, we’re at it again – this time in Chicago. InDro sent two senior employees to PROMAT 2023, a massive event with more than 50,000 attendees.

“This conference is all things automation, digital transformation, and robotics for supply chain and warehousing,” says Stacey Connors, Head of Strategic Innovation.

And it’s big. More than 1,000 of the world’s leading manufacturing and supply chain solution providers are displaying their solutions. (If you really want to geek out, check out the floor plan here.)

Promat Chicago

THE BIG PICTURE

InDro – in conjunction with its work in aerial and ground robotics – has also been developing automated solutions to warehousing and logistics. The overall supply chain market is huge, with PROMAT estimating the 50,000 attendees have some $65 billion in global purchasing power. So it was a natural fit for InDro Vice President Peter King and Stacey Connors to attend.

The solutions on offer are almost endless – everything from autonomous forklifts to pick-and-place robots, inventory management, even systems for moving along pressed clothes at a dry cleaner. Everywhere you turn, there are software and hardware supply chain solutions, including devices that can store, retrieve, stack, pack, wrap, load, unload, track, move – and much more.

For Connors, as Head of Strategic Innovations, seeing all of these solutions under one roof – and meeting with innovators and potential clients – was a tremendous opportunity.

“I would say my personal primary objective was to see how our developing technologies compliment the existing offerings and the remaining gaps in solving supply chain and warehousing pain points,” she says.

“It’s about that whole ecosystem of digital transformation. If we’re coming with one piece of the solution, how does that fit into a roadmap – what are the buyers thinking about when they’re making these kinds of decisions?”

And there are indeed buyers at this show. PROMAT surveyed attendees, and says that more than one-third of the 50,000 people at the show are planning to spend more than $1M in the coming 18 months. According to PROMAT, “a wide variety of companies, including 75% of the top 100 retailers, 65% of the top 100 consumer goods companies and many Fortune 1000s, send teams of buyers to ProMat to find solutions to their specific manufacturing and supply chain challenges.”

Plus, of course, there are keynotes and something like 150 learning seminars. That’s a lot to take in, and this video overview from PROMAT gives you a glimpse of the scale:

 

A GLOBAL TREND

Automating the supply chain isn’t just about efficiency. Worker protection also plays a role with many solutions. Why have a human being repeatedly lift heavy loads if a machine can do it? Why manually count warehouse stock if it can be accomplished faster and more accurately by a robotic system? Those are just a couple of examples among literally hundreds of new and ever-evolving use-cases.

Seeing this myriad of solutions, along with new technological innovations, provides valuable insight and context into the global market.

“At a high level, the supply chain sector is a huge industry that’s being impacted by robotics everyday – it’s one of the biggest industries that’s moving toward robotics applications,” says InDro Vice President Peter King. “So one of the key reasons for attending is for reconnaissance and understanding our place in that market.”

And it’s not just about seeing the latest and greatest. It’s not uncommon, in any sector, for startups and even established companies to sometimes overstate their capabilities. Being on the floor allows InDro to determine whether some of these solutions are indeed ready for prime time.

“This gives us a chance to really see what’s in the industry today,” says King, “including what’s real and what’s not real.”

Below: Stacey Connors tries out a system capable of quickly generating a digital twin of its surroundings

 

Promat Chicago

HIGH POINTS

 

With more than 1,000 exhibits – some massive – it was no small task to have a look at everything on the floor. Our team covered as much ground as possible, and came back with some take-aways.”From a buyer’s perspective, the future is now. High tech solutions have become normalized,” says Vice President King. “But it’s likely a very challenging landscape for buyers to understand where to start with implementation. While there are many, many – many – solutions available, there is no one size fits all.” That means there’s also demand for services from companies like InDro – which not only develop products, but are capable of taking a step back and offering integrated solutions.

“Integrators are of highest value as buyers try to map out introduction of multiple solutions,” says Stacey Connors. “We saw high collaboration amongst all the different technology providers, and the tech is available and more ready for deployment than ever before. Not only that, but there’s a visible increase in the number of options available for each type of technology.

“Integrators like InDro will continue to be rising in demand as all of these technologies become more viable and businesses require customization, support in deployment and management, investment decisions, etc.”

And the high points of the show? Well, there were many. Among them? The Boston Dynamics Stretch – an autonomous robot capable of unloading boxes from trucks – and even positioning a conveyor to take the load. One battery charge powers Stretch for an entire shift:

AND THEN THERE’S DIGIT

 

Another show-stopper was Digit, from Agility Robotics. The bipedal robot is capable of autonomously mapping its environment and picking up and moving objects. This is the kind of repetitive task that is ideal for robotic solutions. Plus, Digit – complete with blinking ‘eyes’ – has been designed with the human-robot interface in mind. People seem to like the way it looks, and would feel comfortable sharing a workspace with this machine.

Of course, robots like this aren’t built overnight. Agility engineers put many years into the development of Digit. Take a look at the product’s evolution, and you’ll get a glimpse of its development process:

 

INDRO’S TAKE

 

InDro Robotics has a long history of identifying trends early in order to be ahead of the curve. It began R&D work and service provision in the Uncrewed Aerial Vehicles sphere long before drones became the ubiquitous devices they are today. The company then identified a growing demand for Uncrewed Ground Vehicles, rapidly developing such innovations as Commander, a bolt-on box that makes customization and integration of robotic platforms a snap – allowing the end user to remotely teleoperate such devices from even thousands of kilometres away.

“Supply chain and inventory management is a huge market, well-suited to InDro’s expertise with both product development and systems integration,” says CEO Philip Reece. “We have an innovative new product currently going through testing for this space and look forward to sharing details soon.

“On a more strategic note, expanding into this sector with new aerial and ground robotics solutions – along with our expertise as an integrator – is a big part of InDro’s plans as the company continues to scale. Stay tuned.”

We look forward to sharing more before long.

Police drone collision raises questions

Police drone collision raises questions

Feb 6, 2023 | Industry News, Kate Klassen, Regulatory

By Scott Simmie

 

There’s no question that drones have become an essential tool for First Responders.

They’re used to assess fires, document accidents, search for missing people and even get a sense of damage following a natural disaster like a tornado.

They’re also used by police on occasion to actively search for a suspect trying to evade capture. In such scenarios, you can imagine that officers might be highly focussed on apprehending the suspect.

That may have been a factor in an incident that occurred August 10, 2021. It involved a York Regional Police officer with an Advanced RPAS certificate, a DJI M210…and a Cessna. The incident is outlined in detail in a new Transportation Safety Board report.

(If you’ve read the report and just want to hear our take, skip to the end.)

Police Drone Collision

What happened

 

On August 10, 2021, a student pilot and flight instructor were in a Cessna 172N on a typical training flight. They were on final approach to Runway 15 at Toronto/Buttonville municipal airport. And then, in the words of the TSB report, this happened:

At approximately 1301 Eastern Daylight Time, the student pilot and flight instructor heard and felt a solid impact at the front of the aircraft. Suspecting a bird strike, they continued the approach and made an uneventful landing, exiting the runway and proceeding to park on the ramp. After parking the aircraft, they observed damage on the front left cowl under the propeller; however, there were no signs that a bird had struck the aircraft.

So what did?

Shortly afterward, a member of the York Regional Police reported to airport staff that he believed a collision had occurred between the remotely piloted aircraft he had been operating and another aircraft. The remotely piloted aircraft, a DJI Matrice M210 (registration C-2105569275), had been in a stationary hover at 400 feet above ground level when the 2 aircraft collided. The DJI Matrice M210 was destroyed.

There were no injuries to either pilot on the Cessna 172N or to persons on the ground.

Here’s a look at the runway, along with the location of the RPAS. (Looks like the report missed a “t” on the word “flight.”)

 

 

Police Drone Collision

The drone

 

York Regional Police (YRP) were looking for a potentially armed suspect, and called the YRP’s Air Support Unit (ASU) to assist at 12:02 pm. The pilot of the drone arrived at the scene at 12:20. The first flight of the DJI Matrice M210 took off at 12:32. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot asked some officers standing nearby to watch the drone during flight; one of the officers said they’d do the task.

After some initial reconaissance, the officer landed the flight 16 minutes later to change batteries. It was now 12:48.

“During this time,” says the report, “the pilots in the Cessna had completed their exercises in the practice area and were returning to the airport. They made the appropriate radio calls declaring their intention to fly over the airport and join the right-hand downwind for Runway 15. There was no other traffic broadcasting on the CYKZ mandatory frequency (MF) at the time, nor had the pilots heard any other transmissions on the frequency during their return flight.”

It’s worth noting the “Mandatory Frequency” here. This airport does not have a tower and its own Air Traffic Control. Aircraft are to announce their intentions over a mandatory frequency (124.8 MHz) and monitor that same frequency for situational awareness of other air traffic.

At 12:56, the DJI M210 took off for its second flight. The pilot, who was watching a flat-screen tv displaying the drone feed, took the drone up to 400′ AGL.

The pilots in the Cessna, meanwhile, were scanning for other aircraft as they began their approach toward the runway. They made a radio call with their intentions to land at 12:57. When the drone reached 400′, it was put into a stationary hover.

But that hover, unfortunately, was directly in the flight path of the Cessna. The report notes that a stationary black object, when viewed against urban clutter, would likely not have stood out to the pilots. When the aircraft was approximately 1.2 nautical miles from the airport, traveling at about 65 knots (120 km/hour), it impacted the drone at 13:01.

The Cessna landed without incident. But upon exiting the aircraft, this damage to the cowling was observed. There was also a slight scratch on the propeller.

Police Drone Collision

And the drone?

 Well, it was pretty much destroyed – as shown in this Transportation Safety Board photograph of the pieces that were recovered:

Police Drone

Other factors

 

The DJI drone was equipped with an Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) receiver. These pick up signals from ADS-B equipped aircraft in the vicinity, and issue a warning to the drone pilot. The Cessna was not equipped with an ADS-B unit, however, so no warning would have been generated.

The Report says the drone pilot was monitoring the airport’s Mandatory Frequency during operations, using a handheld VHF radio. The drone pilot also had his Restricted Operator Certificate with Aeronautical Qualification (ROC-A), allowing him to operate an aviation radio. Unlike the pilots in the Cessna, drone operators are not required to broadcast their intentions when in controlled airspace. In fact, NAV CANADA does not encourage RPA pilots to broadcast on those radios, as it can contribute to clutter on the airwaves.

But the report does point out an additional key responsibility for Remotely Piloted Aircraft operators:

RPA operators are required to receive authorization from the provider of air traffic services (ATS) to operate in controlled airspace (see section 1.17.2.1). The request for this authorization must include contact information for the pilot, and “the means by which two-way communications with the appropriate air traffic control unit will be maintained.”

When authorization is granted from ATS, a telephone number for the relevant ATC unit is included in the authorization. This telephone number is to be used in case of an emergency or loss of control of the RPA. This exchange of contact information between RPA pilot and ATS is meant to satisfy the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARS) requirement that two-way communication be maintained.

Flying a drone in controlled airspace requires obtaining clearance through NAV CANADA’s NAV Drone app. If the operation looks very complex and might involve greater than normal risk, the app will bump that request for a more careful review by Air Traffic Services.

But that’s not what happened. According to the Report, the NAV Drone app was not used at all in this incident.

The pilot of the occurrence RPA was aware of the NAV Drone application and knew that the operation on the day of the occurrence would take place entirely within the CYKZ control zone, therefore requiring authorization from ATS.

Due to the nature of the police operation underway, which involved a potentially armed individual, the RPA pilot felt a sense of urgency to get the RPA airborne as soon as possible. As well, the RPA pilot had not observed any traffic in the area during the set up of the RPA and had heard no recent transmissions on the hand-held VHF radio. As a result, the RPA pilot did not request authorization.

Interestingly, investigators later tested the NAV Drone app, requesting to fly an RPA at 400′ AGL at the location where the collision had occurred. The request was denied, and the app suggested they re-submit the request with a maximum altitude of 100′ AGL – a position far less likely to have caused problems for crewed aircraft on approach.

Police Drone Collision

Role of visual observer

 

The TSB Report spends some time on this topic. It also documents what happened on that day in October. It appears that the role of visual observer was not explained to the officer that took on the role. And it also appears that officer spent most of his time looking at the video feed from the drone, rather than maintaining Visual Line of Sight with the drone itself:

During the day of the occurrence, the RPA pilot asked for another officer to be a visual observer. Although a nearby officer acknowledged the request, the RPA pilot did not confirm who, among the officers present, would assume that role, nor did he inform that specific officer what their duties or responsibilities would be. The officer was not aware of the requirement to maintain visual contact with the RPA.

The officer who was acting as the visual observer was observing the TV display for much of the time that the RPA was airborne and did not see or hear any airborne traffic, nor could he recall hearing any radio calls over the RPA pilot’s portable VHF radio.

The report also notes that the drone pilot did not use the York Regional Police’s mandatory RPAS Pilot Checklist, and instead relied on memory to prepare for the flight. It further suggests the pilot may have been ‘task saturated,’ – “restricting his ability to visually monitor the RPA and hear radio calls on the control zone’s MF and the sound of incoming aircraft, both of which preceded the collision.”

 

Some findings…

 

It is not the Transportation Safety Board’s role to find fault or blame. But it does identify contributing factors and/or causes that likely all played a role in the collision. Here are the four key findings on that count:

Police Drone Collision

“Findings as to risk”

 

The report also notes two findings under the above category. It emphasizes that what appears below does not appear to have contributed to the collision, but could lead to adverse outcomes in the future:

Police Drone Collision

Kate Klassen weighs in…

 

InDro’s Kate Klassen is a drone and airplane pilot and has about 1000 hours instructing on the same type of plane involved in the collision. She’s also very familiar with the minutiae of RPAS regulations in Canada.

Klassen read this report with great interest and noted a few useful takeaways. In particular, how it appears the apparent focus on the task – catching a criminal suspect – may have obscured what should have been standard procedures.

“Typically First Responders have established with the Air Traffic Service providers that they can do the job and inform as soon as possible, rather than following the NAV Drone pre-authorization process the rest of us follow.” she says.

“So I think it’s less that they launched as they did, and more that they didn’t have the situational awareness to operate there safely. They were perhaps too invested in getting the job done, where they figured ‘It’s not going to happen to me’, and weren’t taking advantage of all the tools at their disposal. They probably didn’t realize how risky this location was, especially to be operating at that altitude.”

 

Briefing visual observer

 

Klassen also notes that the selection of a visual observer was not accompanied by any sort of thorough briefing – which would have included maintaining Visual Line of Sight with the RPA, monitoring the radio, and listening (along with watching) for any crewed aircraft.

“I think the situational awareness piece is important,” she says. “Have the radio on the right frequency, have the visual observer actively monitoring it. It can’t be just ticking the box that you’ve assigned someone the task.”

“A more effective trained role would be explaining or ensuring they have skill to listen in on the radio and build that situational awareness of where the aircraft are. Also monitoring the sky, listening for aircraft noise. If you can hear a crewed aircraft but not see it, that’s when it’s sketchy.”

Klassen has worked with many First Responders across Canada, and understands the pressure they can be under to get a drone in the air. The challenge is to follow Standard Operating Procedures despite that pressure – particularly in controlled airspace this close to an airport.

 

InDro’s take

 

Though no one was injured during this collision, it was a serious incident. The drone could just as easily have hit the windshield, the leading edge of the wings near the fuel tanks or damaged the landing gear. Thankfully, that didn’t happen.

The Transportation Safety Board report is both methodical and meticulous. While not pointing the finger of blame, it does highlight some procedures that most certainly could have been handled better – and likely would have, were the flight not so high-priority.

Accidents and investigations should be, in our view, viewed as learning opportunities. And in this case – whether you’re a First Responder or not – there are clearly lessons to be learned.

Breaking drone regulations can be expensive

Breaking drone regulations can be expensive

Dec 15, 2022 | Drone News, Industry News, Scott Simmie

By Scott Simmie

 

Drone regulations exist for a reason. Actually, multiple reasons.

Probably the most important is to keep airspace safe and avoid any potential collisions or interference with crewed aircraft. That’s why altitude is limited to 400′ above ground level (AGL), and why flights in controlled airspace must be cleared through NAV Canada’s NAV Drone app. (If you’re a drone pilot and don’t have this app, you can get more details and links to download here.)

And, just as a reminder on that front, drones carrying out basic operations must be at least 5.6 kilometres (three nautical miles) from airports and 1.9 kilometres (one nautical mile) from heliports.

One of the other key reasons is to protect people and property on the ground. If you’re flying a drone weighing more than 250 grams and less than 25 kilograms, you’ll need to ensure that you’re separated horizontally from bystanders by at least 30 meters – though drones with an RPAS Safety Assurance declaration can fly closer in Advanced operations.

There are, of course, other rules. No flying over outdoor concerts, parades or other special events. Some of you may recall that a drone pilot paid a hefty price during the victory parade for the Toronto Raptors in 2019. The person in question flew over the event and was fined $2750 by Transport Canada. (We actually were at that parade and saw the pilot take off; he was flying a DJI Mavic Pro.)

Breaking drone rules can be expensive.

Below: A 360° shot taken during Raptors celebrations. The illegal drone flight took off about 15m from where this image was taken.

Drone Regulations

There’s a reason behind every rule

 

The laws that govern drones in Canada are written up in a section of the Canadian Aviation Regulations, also known as CARs. Specifically, they reside in Part IX. We recommend that everyone flying a drone in Canada – particularly drones weighing more than 250 grams – has a read through this section. It lays out the rules very clearly.

And if you break those rules? Well, there’s a price to pay. Fines for individuals include:

  • up to $1,000 for flying without a drone pilot certificate
  • up to $1,000 for flying unregistered or unmarked drones
  • up to $1,000 for flying where you are not allowed
  • up to $3,000 for putting aircraft and people at risk

So it’s worth knowing the regs, because violating them can both create risk and be very costly.

 

Forest fires

 

Wildfires in Canadian forests cause major problems every year. Significant resources are allocated to try to control and extinguish these fires – which often occur in remote locations. Aerial firefighting techniques are a big part of the equation, with water bombers and helicopters routinely deployed. (You can get a snapshot of the current wildfire situation in Canada with this interactive map. At the time this article was written, a significant Alberta fire – north of Banff and east of Lake Louise – was out of control. That fire started August 31 and has been burning for three and a half months.)

Helicopters are used to transport crews, and occasionally drop fuel retardant on small hotspots. Water bombers come in low to take on water from lakes and also drop that same water on fires from low altitudes so that targeting is accurate and there’s minimal dispersal of the fluid on the way to the ground.

And both of those scenarios? They mean these aircraft are often flying below 400′ AGL.

Drone regulations

Keep your drone clear of forest fire operations

 

With that context, you no doubt have guessed where we’re going with this. Rules in CARs Part IX prohibit flying drones near forest fire operations. In fact, you must keep drones (and other aircraft not involved with the operations) at least five nautical miles (9.3 kilometres) away from the scene. There is also a mechanism within the Canada National Parks Act that allows for the prohibition of activities – including the banning of drone flights.

Recently, a drone pilot found out just how seriously regulators take flying drones close to a wildfire. A Canadian Press story published December 9th says that Rajwinder Singh was found guilty in an Alberta provincial court of the offence and fined $10,000.

In fact, Singh was one of four people charged for flying too close to the Chetamon wildfire in September. Four drones were also seized by authories.

 

InDro’s role

 

 

InDro Robotics played a role on the technology side. The company supplied drone detection equipment capable of identifying models, location and trajectory of drones in proximity of Alberta wildfires.

InDro is also involved with the Ottawa International Airport Authority’s ongoing Drone Detection Pilot Project at the Ottawa International Airport. Early in 2021, during the convoy blockade that took place in Ottawa, that project detected a very high number of illegal drone flights taking place over sensitive areas in the capital’s downtown core.

In fact, a sister company of InDro Robotics – Bravo Zulu Secure – specializes in drone detection and mitigation systems. InDro Founder and CEO Philip Reece is the Chief Technical Officer of Bravo Zulu. Here, he explains some of the company’s proprietary systems:

InDro’s Take

 

We’ve been in this business long enough to remember the early days. The drone space was often called The Wild West, because many people were either unaware of regulations or chose to willfully ignore them. This was particularly true of rogue pilots, usually recreational operators, who would carry out reckless flights. Those flights often (and rightfully) received negative press coverage and caused regulators to take an even more cautious, incremental approach with opening up the skies. Understandable.

Since then, the drone community has done a great job of educating and even policing itself. Flights like the four that took place near that Alberta wildfire are now, fortunately, very rare.

But, as we’ve seen here, they still happen. Not only is it wise for drone operators to become fully familiar with Part IX of CARs, but also to be aware that hefty fines can and will be imposed on those who violate the law. It’s also worth remembering, regardless of location, that the technology exists to detect these flights, along with the location of the operator.

Thankfully, the vast majority of drone pilots know the regulations – and abide by them.

Spexi announces “Spexigon” – a global fly-to-earn platform

Spexi announces “Spexigon” – a global fly-to-earn platform

Oct 5, 2022 | Drone News, Industry News, Scott Simmie, Spexigon

Vancouver-based Spexi Geospatial has some news – and it’s big.

The company has announced a plan, and a platform, to capture high-resolution aerial data of the earth with drones. Drone pilots will be able to fly to earn crypto currency – or even dollars.

The long-term goal? Well, picture crystal-clear data sets of cities, infrastructure, and even rural settings. With each individual pilot capturing data from different locations, Spexigon will assemble it over time to form a global jigsaw puzzle – and sell parts of that dataset to clients.

We’ll get into more details shortly, but Spexi’s plan has some strong backers – including InDro Robotics.

 

News release

 

News of Spexigon came in the form of an announcement. The company revealed it had secured $5.5 million USD in seed funding “to pursue our vision of collecting Earth’s most important data with drones.” The funding round was led by Blockchange Ventures, with other investing by InDro Robotics, Protocol Labs, Alliance DAO, FJ Labs, Dapper Labs, Vinny Lingham, Adam Jackson, and CyLon Ventures.

The same team that built Spexi – an easy-to use system for automated flight and data acquisition – is developing Spexigon. This brief video gives a “big picture” look at how it will work when it’s rolled out next year.

“Fly to earn”

 

A big part of what makes Spexigon’s plan so intriguing is what you might call incentivised crowd-sourcing. Anyone with a drone can download the forthcoming Spexigon app and fly an automated flight. The images will be uploaded to Spexigon to build the database – and the pilot will be rewarded.

“With our new Fly-to-Earn model, people who own consumer drones will be able to earn $SPEXI tokens and dollars while building a high resolution base layer of the earth,” reads the Spexigon announcement. “It is our hope that soon any organization or individual will be able to use the imagery collected by the Spexigon platform to make better decisions.”

 

Business model

 

You could think of this over time as like Google Earth, only with really sharp aerial imagery. Every time a pilot carries out a flight for Spexigon, that map will continue to fill in, building Spexigon’s database. Clients will purchase imagery online.

“This new base layer will enable governments and organizations of all sizes to make better decisions about real world assets like buildings, utilities, infrastructure, risk and natural resources, without requiring people on the ground,” continues the announcement.

“By using Spexigon, organizations that require high-resolution aerial imagery will no longer need to own their own drones or hire their own pilots. Instead, they’ll use our web and mobile app to search for and purchase imagery. Data buyers will then be able to use a variety of internal and external tools to put the imagery to use.”

 

For pilots

 

Spexigon says it will have online training when it launches. Pilots will learn how to use the app to carry out their flights – which, obviously, the pilots will monitor. Depending on the location, pilots can earn crypto currency or actual dollars. Some locations, obviously, will have greater value to Spexigon and its clients than others.

“The app will contain a map of the earth overlaid with hexagonal zones called ‘Spexigons’. Spexigons that are open and ready to fly will be easily visible so pilots can choose an area close to them and begin collecting imagery,” says the company.

“To ensure that imagery is captured in a safe, standardized, and repeatable way, our app controls each pilot’s drone automatically while they supervise the flight. Although our app will do the flying, pilots will always be in command and will have the ability to take back manual control at any time if need arises.”

Spexigon is now starting to build the app, and already has a small community emerging. You can join its Telegram channel here – and there’s also a Discord channel.

As for those ‘Spexigons’, the image below gives you an idea what those pieces of the puzzle might look like.

Spexi

InDro’s take

 

Since InDro Robotics is one of the backers of Spexigon, we obviously feel the plan is a good one.

It comes from the outstanding team that built Spexi from scratch into a user-friendly, automated system for capturing and crunching aerial data. We also believe drone pilots will embrace this unique “fly to earn” model – a global first.

“The Spexi team has already created an excellent and proven Software as a Solution product and clearly has the expertise in this space,” says InDro Robotics CEO Philip Reece. “I’m genuinely excited about the potential for Spexigon to become the ‘go-to’ database of high-quality aerial imagery from around the world.”

So are the rest of us.