The sky is no limit as smarter drones appear on technology's horizon

LIEUTENANT Uchatius could not have expected it at the time but his novel attack on Venice in August 1849 has become an important date in the history of modern aviation.

The sky is no limit as smarter drones appear on technology's horizon Art-353-Drones-300x0

The sky is no limit as smarter drones appear on technology's horizon Art-353-Drones-300x0

The Austrian officer launched 200 ''balloon bombs'' controlled by lengths of copper wire and timed fuses. He may well have been the father of a new weapon: the military drone. More than 160 years later, technology is driving military and civilian uses of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) into remarkable areas. On the smallest scale, moths have had been implanted with electrodes to control their movements. On the grandest, UAVs could be flying in civilian airspace by the end of this decade, some experts believe. This potential is one of the reasons why the UAV sector is the most dynamic of the aviation industry. It is worth an estimated $US6 billion ($5.7 billion) a year, according to US market analyst the Teal Group. And that figure is expected to double within 10 years.

This potential has been accompanied by fears among scientific critics and human rights groups that downgrading the ''man in the loop'' means devolving life-and-death decisions to airborne robots.

Those anxieties are unlikely to be allayed as arms manufacturers and start-up firms jostle for position in a competitive field.
Advertisement

A crucial piece of technology to take drones to the next level is a robust ''sense and avoid'' system, allowing unmanned planes to fly safely in busy airspace. Arms maker BAE Systems is confident this development is within reach and that craft will be able to manoeuvre safely in civilian airspace by 2020.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/the-sky-is-no-limit-as-smarter-drones-appear-on-technologys-horizon-20120818-24f0a.html#ixzz244WghkWL

The sky is no limit as smarter drones appear on technology's horizon

The sky is no limit as smarter drones appear on technology's horizon

Anarcho-Capitalist Categorical Imperatives

AnCaps In Science, Technology & Environment