For a few years now, drone technology has been touted as the next big thing. For many, the main associations that come to mind when thinking about technology are its uses in military defense, surveillance, stunning landscape photography, and wedding videos. In the UK we have also suffered from the negative side effects of technology, including the disruption at Gatwick and Heathrow airports. Despite these incidents, drones have enormous potential for businesses in many industries, including retail, logistics, and healthcare. McKinsey recently researched how the technology could be used for multiple commercial applications and estimates that by 2026, commercial drones will have a €31-46 billion annual impact on GDP in the United States alone. Along with these commercial advantages, this technology also has many social benefits, such as reducing crime and saving lives through its rapid and extensive surveillance capabilities. The ability of drones to offer these benefits stems from the technology's ability to capture data from its environment and process it to inform actions. Whether autonomous or supervised, drones have now evolved to be long-range and highly accurate, capable of collecting a constant stream of various data based on embedded sensors. Applying artificial intelligence (AI) to these data streams will only enhance the value of drones. However, as this technology is still evolving and organizations are experimenting with exactly how it can be used to increase efficiencies, reduce carbon emissions and improve security, there are also many challenges that need to be overcome. For example, the organization must be clear about integrating drones with its existing technology and eliminate concerns end users may have regarding privacy. Here, we explore some of the less obvious benefits that technology can bring to various industries, and how to address the issue of trust.
dangerous areas
The potential of drone surveillance can make a lot of sense when it comes to reducing human risk. The reach and agility of the technology, combined with its affordability, allows drones to access and survey areas that would otherwise pose great risk to humans. For example, after a natural disaster or explosion while searching for missing or injured persons, or to assist in the inspection of large structures or remote oil rigs. Technology can allow teams to conduct rigorous search and rescue or make repairs quickly and safely, without putting human life at risk. Additionally, the technology can be used to track missing persons, fleeing suspects, and detect illegal activity by law enforcement, resulting in significant cost savings. For example, in cities across the UK, police have found that the use of drone technology is much more cost-effective in scenarios such as monitoring football matches or sending out a surveillance team. police helicopter to search.remote delivery
One of the main criticisms of drone delivery technology is that it is unlikely to spread because the existing infrastructure, through the postal system or scheduled van delivery, meets the needs of consumers. However, apart from the environmental improvements in reducing transport emissions by opting for drone delivery of our purchases, there are places where this can be essential. In remote areas that are cut off from reliable regular transportation networks, the delivery of medicines, for example, can be relatively cheap and enhance or even save lives. Communities without road, rail or air connections, either permanently or temporarily as a result of conflict or natural disasters such as a hurricane or earthquake, can rely on drones for the rapid delivery of goods. essential items, including food packages and medicines. People waiting for rescue teams in dangerous conditions will also be among the potential beneficiaries of the potential of life-saving drone delivery.Agriculture and valuation
Many farms in countries like the United States and Australia are too large for one person, or even a team of people, to inspect and control their crops and livestock. Previously, some of the largest farms relied on the use of small aircraft to access certain areas of farmland, which are expensive to operate. Drones offer a cost-effective alternative that allows farmers to visit remote areas of their farms much more frequently. The technology can also be used to treat crops with on-board sprayers with high precision and allow farmers to treat entire fields much faster than traditional machines, which would require farmers to drive machines long distances or purchase multiple machines to store in area. Similarly, huge warehouses, with vast amounts of inventory, can take weeks to check inventory, a process many businesses must access in real time, adding to scale and difficulty. This level of data collection and analysis surpasses even the largest teams of people. Drones enable faster and more continuous assessment of large spaces, both indoors and outdoors, and will ultimately improve farming processes and efficiencies by applying this data analysis to ongoing operations.Telecommunications
Another example of how technology can benefit society and solve a recurring problem of providing temporary structures, such as festivals, pop-up venues or emergency shelters with network coverage and Wi-Fi connection, consists of adding telecommunications equipment to the drones. Basically, it works as a short-term access point for that location. This same use can be applied in areas where power has failed as a result of a natural disaster or blackout, reconnecting communities in an emergency and helping to relocate people. Samsung is already deploying AI-enabled drones to test the installation of 4G and 5G antennas, combining the aforementioned security benefits with the alternative connectivity solution.Bridging the drone trust gap
In much of the tech industry, the trust deficit persists when it comes to drones. It was recently found that only 23% of UK adults support drone deliveries due to the associated risks, whether they abandon their deliveries, steal with drones or lose their job. by delivery drivers. Negative stories, though rare, affect the general perception of drone technology and therefore organizations need to be aware of how quickly they are implementing them. However, the benefits that drones can offer in certain circumstances can be considerable, taking advantage of their prodigious data capture capabilities and combining them with AI-based analytics to produce valuable insights and make better decisions. As technology continues to improve in accuracy and capability, and organizations refine how technology can be used to solve complex problems, they will bring increasing value to society and industry. . While sci-fi movie images of our skies being droned by drones will remain at least a fantasy for now, what is clear is that drone technology will continue to play a vital role both now and in the future. next years.- Rohit Gupta, Director of Products and Resources, Europe, Cognizant.