DroneCatcher gets unwelcome drones under control
Drones are currently very popular, but they are not allowed to fly anywhere. In future, those who do not stick to the rules must be prepared to loose their multicopter.
A good catch: a prototype of DroneCatcher catches a drone. (Picture: Delft Dynamics)
Weapons free! A net shoots out of some sort of cannon. It wraps around the targeted drone, it goes down to the floor. Strike. What can be seen on the video of Delft Dynamics is still a test version. But the DroneCatcher could soon go into production. Then the flying apparatus, which is a multicopter, would hunt down unwelcome drones. This is not just for fun; there are legal regulations drones need to comply with. For example, all devices used for commercial purposes are subject to authorization. If a multicopter weighs more than five kilograms, it is classified as unmanned aerial system and needs an official rising permission. Moreover, there are no-fly zones, for example within a radius of 1.5 km around airports, above nuclear plants or industrial plants.
Besides the DroneCatcher that DelftDynamics has developed, among others, on behalf of the Dutch Ministry of Justice, there are more companies and institutions that work on similar aviational security systems. The version of the Technical University of Michigan doesn’t bring the drone to the ground but catches the drone and carries it away:
Read more: Multicopters are like digital bumblebees
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Advanced Assistance Systems for Greater Safety
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