Skip to content

Futurist Friday: Flocks of Autonomous Flying Drones

Category: Center for the Future Of Museums Blog

Whether or not Amazon overcomes the difficulties of instituting drone deliver service in the US, drones have a bright future with a variety of applications. They are being used to  survey archaeological sites, escort children to the bus stop and, soon, to combat poaching and protect endangered species

One limitation of flying drones is the difficulty in piloting them, but that challenge may soon be solved. Your Futurist Friday assignment: this video of the first “co-ordinated flock” of autonomous quadcopter drones.

The team of Hungarian scientists who designed these drones used biomimicry–imitating the design & behavior of biological organisms (which, after all, have been honed by millions of years of evolution). The drones’ programming draws on the rules that govern the behavior of flocks of birds. 

So maybe, in a few years, when you need to inspect the condition of your large historic building, you will call in a flock of condition reporting drones to buzz the property. Oh, like this (bonus feature!):

Skip over related stories to continue reading article







AAM Member-Only Content

AAM Members get exclusive access to premium digital content including:

  • Featured articles from Museum magazine
  • Access to more than 1,500 resource listings from the Resource Center
  • Tools, reports, and templates for equipping your work in museums
Log In

We're Sorry

Your current membership level does not allow you to access this content.

Upgrade Your Membership

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe to Field Notes!

Packed with stories and insights for museum people, Field Notes is delivered to your inbox every Monday. Once you've completed the form below, confirm your subscription in the email sent to you.

If you are a current AAM member, please sign-up using the email address associated with your account.

Are you a museum professional?

Are you a current AAM member?

Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription, and please add communications@aam-us.org to your safe sender list.