What Kind of Unmanned System Will Make the Greatest Impact on Society in the Future?

I feel that future development of unmanned aerial systems (UASs) will have the greatest impact to society compared to the future impacts of unmanned marine and ground systems. The reason why I feel this way is based on three key industries that will be greatly affected by UAS development; agriculture, transportation, and defense.  These three industries account for the most important sectors of the economy according to the US Department of commerce. Agriculture is number one for the United States, but also plays an absolutely essential role in lesser developed counties as well. Transportation is essential because it links all over services and industries to the end user, and defense is important because ultimately, when politics fail, it’s the county with the best military remains in power. Marine and ground based unmanned systems will continue to develop and shape these sectors, but opening the aerial layer to industry will provide previously unobtainable perspective, convenience, and progress.

Agriculture: There are two major aspects to agriculture that will be affected by the development of UASs; precision agriculture, and crop dusting and treatment. Precision agriculture is a farming technique that uses high tech overhead imagery to observe, measure, and respond to inter and intra field variability. In the past this could only be done via satellite or manned aircraft which resulted in costs that were too high for the average farmer to afford. Today, with the introduction of UASs, every farmer, no matter how big or small, is gaining access to this ability. The use of unmanned crop dusting and crop treatment is complimented by precision agriculture. The ability to link both precision agriculture and unmanned crop treatment means a small farmer could optimize their land to provide the highest and most cost effective crop yield scientifically possible. If applied over a large enough population, this technology could change global food yield and resources for the better.

Transportation: The transportation sector is the link between industry and the end users. The transportation sector touches almost every other sector of the global economy in some way. As globalization continues, the importance of effective and fast transposition of people and goods is becoming more important every day. The ability to fly long distance global missions can be accomplished cheaper and more efficient with large scale UASs. In terms of local and hyperlocal transportation, the use of small quadcopter may become the standard method of local delivery. Amazon has been working with the FAA to start a new program in which deliveries could be made by quadcopters within a local area. This could be a start to a future of bustling UAS highways in the air. Not only could it reduce traffic, emissions, and delivery times, but it could launch counties without proper road networks into the 21^st century for minimal costs.

Defense: Currently, only a few countries rely on military UASs as heavily as the United States. It is clear that the introduction of the UAS has redefined the battlefield, but the one aspect of this technology that will effect society in the future is its availability. As UAS technology becomes cheaper and more accessible it will be spread to all international powers regardless of state affiliation, size, or political standing. In the future we could see separatist states, terrorists, or major adversaries gain access to extremely dangerous weapons and use them to disrupt peace and stability globally.  

References:

Becker, S. (2014, July 1). What Are the Most Important Sectors in the U.S. Economy? Retrieved May 20, 2015, from http://www.cheatsheet.com/business/what-are-the-most-important-sectors-in-the-u-s-economy.html/?a=viewall

Gopal, S. (2015, February 20). Drones: The Game Changers in Future Wars. Retrieved May 20, 2015, from http://www.indiandefencereview.com/news/drones-the-game-changers-in-future-wars/

Grassi, M. (2015, May 7). FAA Enters Partnerships To Consider Beyond Line-Of-Sight UAV Missions | PrecisionAg. Retrieved May 20, 2015, from http://www.precisionag.com/data/imagery/faa-enters-partnerships-to-consider-beyond-line-of-sight-uav-missions/

Jones- Cruise, C. (2015, March 18). Amazon Receives Patent for Drone Delivery System. Retrieved May 20, 2015, from http://learningenglish.voanews.com/content/amazon-receives-patent-for-drone-delivery-system/2776033.html

Implementation of an Unmanned System for Law Enforcement Surveillance

The use of unmanned aerial system by law enforcement has been a hot button topic over the past few years. The legality of 4^th amendment searches, as well as the ethical questions raised when using UASs have plagued law enforcement agencies for years. In the below proposal, I will present a strategy that my help bring the T-Hawk UAS into the front line for Florida law enforcement.

The UAS I have selected to use in my implementation strategy is the T-Hawk by Honeywell. The key to this platform is its ease of use, safety, and ability to fly in multiple weather and environmental conditions. This particular platform has been used for years by law enforcement because of its capable electro-optic/ infrared capability (EO/IR).  In order to create a successful implementation strategy, I will look at the following aspects; privacy, ethics, safety, and lost link capability.

Privacy: The T-Hawk is a gas powered vertical take off ducted fan style UAS. It is capable of flying up to 10,000 feet and at 46 miles per hour for up to 50 minutes at a time. The system has a hover and stare capability that makes it ideal for monitoring and search operations. Due to the system being gas powered, it is rather loud and noticeable (often called a flying lawnmower). The fact that this system is loud when it flies is actually a positive in terms of the debate over privacy. Due to the fact that most people within visual range of the system can hear it, means that it provides a similar aspect of privacy as a manned helicopter. For most people, the idea of the system being able to see you only when you can hear it provides a level of acceptable privacy, because they are aware of its presence. For some smaller systems that are battery powered and unable to be heard, people feel like they are being unfairly violated and unable to avoid surveillance.

Ethics: Along with privacy the idea of the ethical nature of UASs is still a hot button topic. Florida was the first state to pass the law that limits UAS use by law enforcement.  The “Freedom from Unwarranted Surveillance Act” went into effect in Florida on July 1, 2013. The root of this act ensures all UAS surveillance by law enforcement requires a warrant. The only exception is if someone’s life is at risk or an imminent threat of a terror attack exists. Currently, as long as law enforcement agencies follow this piece of legislation, there should be a minimal ethical issue. In the future, as UAS rules change, I feel that these rules should and will be changed, but as long as the law enforcement agencies operate under the current federal and state laws, then they will be successful.

   

Safety: The T-Hawk is a relatively small UAS. The key to safely employing this system would be based on a three part plan. The first two steps would include rigorous operator training and aircraft preventative maintenance. These two aspects are key to all aviation safety, and if done correctly will ensure the system is flown in the correct airspace, under the right performance constraints, and free of mechanical defects. The third part would be to only operate the system at what the FAA determines to be a safe location and altitude. In the field of UAS, operators should not strive for zero risk, but should strive to reduce unnecessary risk in all aspects of operations.

Lost Link: Due to the automated nature of the T-Hawk, lost link is less of an issue than other smaller manually controlled UASs. The system can be set with a lost link time limit that automatically issue a return home command. The system can be set to climb to a set return home altitude and then make its way back and land vertically at the initial launch point. One positive to this system is its capability of vertical flight. This will prevent the system from having to make complicated traffic patterns in order to land and will provide a very predictable lost link flight path. Additionally, to add another level of safety to lost link operations, a clearly published standard operating procedure and training will be essential to ensure the system does what is expected every time.

In conclusion, UAS hardware and software is not the key aspect to a successful implementation plan. The key is sufficient operator and maintainer training, publishing of standard procedures, and compliance with local and national laws. If a law enforcement entity spends the appropriate time and effort accomplishing those three things, the ethical and moral issues should be easy to justify and the safety and lost link concerns should be of minimal concern.

References:

https://www.eff.org/files/filenode/mav_sop_draft.pdf

http://www.drone-laws.com/Florida/

https://aerospace.honeywell.com/en/thawk

http://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/miami-dade-police-buy-drones-6379285