Truly autonomous drones unveiled courtesy of Airobotics in Israel

By Lulu Chang Published June 21, 2016

Autonomy has always been a critical component of drone technology, but now, it’s being taken to a new level. Meet Airobotics, a Tel Aviv-based company that wants to take humans out of the equation altogether when it comes to drones. After all, they’re called Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for a reason, right?

Comprised of three components, the Airobotics system is a patrol drone that can take care of itself, and almost completely without our help. There’s the drone itself, the base station known as the “Airbase,” and the command software that takes the place of human brains (or at least, their functions). Capable of flying with a 1 kilogram load for half an hour at a time, the UAV can patrol an area, then land itself on its base station autonomously. From there, a robotic arm comes in to change its battery and relieve the drone of its payload — sort of like a robotic pit crew.

Recommended Videos

This functionality is all contingent upon the Airobotics software that lets humans (yes, we still do serve a purpose) preset flight routes and keep tabs on the drone’s progress with real-time video and data feeds.

The technology has been beta tested by mineral and chemical producer Israel Chemical Ltd. to great success, and the company has raised $28.5 million thus far to continue its mission of making humans obsolete — at least, in this capacity. After all, when you’re completing regular safety checks or inspection drills, the more you can depend on machines, the better, right?

While current use cases for Airobotics are mainly within the mining and oil industries, the company believes that any person or organization that needs to consistently perform repetitive tasks with a high degree of precision could benefit from the autonomous technology. So ultimately, it may not be robots that take over our jobs — it’s the drones we should be worried about.

Former Contributor

Fascinated by the effects of technology on human interaction, Lulu believes that if her parents can use your new app…

Topics

Emerging Tech

Anti-surveillance clothing is getting cheaper, but don’t expect an invisibility cloak

Affordable shirts now claim to confuse facial recognition, although their protection depends heavily on the camera and software watching you

Chart, Plot, Adult

Anti-surveillance clothing is starting to look less like an art-school experiment and more like something you could actually wear outside. Shirts designed to confuse facial recognition systems now cost about as much as ordinary streetwear, although buying one won’t make you disappear.

The Guardian reports that designers are using face-like prints, unusual cuts and infrared lights to interfere with computer vision. These techniques target specific weaknesses, so their success depends on what happens to be watching you.

Emerging Tech

This spinning drone hides in plain sight using a visual illusion

This drone doesn't turn invisible. It tricks your brain into thinking it has.

Phantom Twist

For decades, engineers have chased the dream of an invisible drone. The usual approaches have involved transparent materials, camouflage coatings, or complex optical systems that bend light around an object. Researchers at Northwestern University decided to take a completely different route. Instead of hiding the drone itself, they chose to fool the human eye.

The result is Phantom Twist, an experimental drone that spins so rapidly it almost disappears into the background. It's not technically invisible, but to anyone watching, it looks more like a faint blur than a flying machine.

Emerging Tech

This smart knitted fabric can flip switches, count your steps, and even change shape

Grandma's knitting just entered its Iron Man era

Representative Image

For most of us, knitting brings to mind sweaters, scarves, and perhaps an ambitious grandmother determined to make winter more fashionable. Researchers at Harvard University, however, have a far more futuristic vision. They've transformed ordinary knitted fabric into a programmable material capable of changing shape, acting as an electrical switch, sensing movement, and potentially forming the foundation of tomorrow's wearable technology.

The research, published in Advanced Functional Materials by scientists at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), demonstrates how machine-knitted textiles can "snap" between multiple stable shapes without relying on motors or rigid mechanical parts.