Study project about airbags for drones - thoughts?

[GoodVibeAvionics]

Hi guys!

We are a group of six people who, in the context of a university project, are developing a business idea that has to be related to drones. We are studying on the Technical/Engineering faculty University of Southern Denmark, and the course is called “Experts in Teams”, and is a semester long project, where we have to create business plan/idea, with a team consisting of different technical studylines. We chose the sub-course regarding drones. The team consists of two from Denmark (software/UX-hybrid), two from Finland (electrical) and two from Austria (eco energy).

We came up with the idea to develop an airbag for drones - and in that way increase the security for both drones and humans during a loss-of-control situation.

The idea is to attach airbags on the drones, which are capable of enveloping dangerous drone parts and reduce the potential physical impact and damage to humans. That way we also increase the security in urban environments - and not just in open fields. We believe that the drone use is going to increase dramatically in the next couple of years (and that the laws will open up for a freer use of drones), and therefore drone presence in the urban environments is something that we will see a lot more of. And that’s why we think it would be smart to prevent damage to humans and drones alike.

As soon as a loss-of-control situation is realised by the software and sensors onboard, the airbag will deploy, possibly in cohort with a parachute, and then we can reduce the speed of descent and reduce damage to unsuspecting citizens below.

We believe that our idea in together with other safety measures like advanced collision detection/echolocation systems and parachutes could be very useful.

Our plan focuses on DJI Phantom drones at first (as they are widely used, has fragile wings and often a camera attached), and so far, we concluded that the airbag system would benefit the non-commercial drone users at first.

And therefore we would like to get some feedback from people who uses drones

What do you think of the idea? Do we have a potential user base? Would you buy it? Should we start a kickstarter? What would you pay?

Thank you in advance,
Good Vibe Avionics

 

[fengshuidrone]

Hi guys!
We believe that the drone use is going to increase dramatically in the next couple of years (and that the laws will open up for a freer use of drones), and therefore drone presence in the urban environments is something that we will see a lot more of. And that’s why we think it would be smart to prevent damage to humans and drones alike.

Yes, I agree that drone use will increase dramatically, but in the U.S., the drone laws will become more restrictive and will not allow for a "freer use of drones" as the laws are only going to be put in place. The use of drones in urban areas is NOT a good idea. The batteries carried by drones are sensitive to impact and damage and can actually burst into flames in a crash. Flying in urban areas is a danger to everyone. The idea of some company like Amazon flying packages around to deliver is pure stupidity and they are only talking that smack because it gets them publicity. They are even using cute stage-prop drones in their latest commercial. The only true restriction on drones right now is one on --commercial use. While a permit process will most likely be put in place for everyone in time, right now only commercial operators are restricted by any laws. Those will tighten up even more in reality, to restrict the use of drones in commercial situations to only those who have the permit (which will become even harder to obtain.)

As soon as a loss-of-control situation is realised by the software and sensors onboard, the airbag will deploy, possibly in cohort with a parachute, and then we can reduce the speed of descent and reduce damage to unsuspecting citizens below.

The "loss of control" statement would be a difficult nut to crack. My multiwii is capable of doing multiple flips and can literally do things that would be considered a loss of control by most sensors out there, all while still under complete control by me, the pilot. The parachute makes the airbag a redundant system. Parachutes already exist and work just fine when deployed. The one downfall for most drone operators with chutes is that they are quite expensive. Maybe you guys should concentrate on an affordable chute instead. Drones are never supposed to fly over people or crowds (only a common sense law right now.)

We believe that our idea in together with other safety measures like advanced collision detection/echolocation systems and parachutes could be very useful.

With all up weight always an issue, the addition of too many safety measures is a real possibility. I think most drone operators would be satisfied with an affordable parachute. The extra weight added by each device quickly adds up to shorter flights and more potential for system failure.

Our plan focuses on DJI Phantom drones at first (as they are widely used, has fragile wings and often a camera attached), and so far, we concluded that the airbag system would benefit the non-commercial drone users at first.

Chances are, most DJI users will not opt for an airbag or bags due to the fact that most DJI users are first time drone fliers/buyers
and are not even aware of the dangers or safety issues involved in flying a drone.

What do you think of the idea? Do we have a potential user base? Would you buy it? Should we start a kickstarter? What would you pay?

I don't think your idea of air bags is on target for use with drones. For a traditional airbag (like those used in cars) there is only milliseconds for it to deploy AFTER already striking an object and then it only stays inflated for a half a second. The traditional air bag does NOTHING to save the vehicle from damage and is used with the intent of saving the passengers inside the vehicle, not the object being hit. The drone bag would need to deploy before it hits anything and stay inflated until the collision or crash is done. The sensors needed to recognize the potential impact are going to need their own controller (even more weight) as I do not know of a flight controller that is capable of integrating the kinds of info that this system would need to work. I can't see adding any extra weight in the form of bags, sensors, or sources of compressed air to inflate bags/balloons and keep them inflated. Traditional airbags use an explosive charge to deploy the bag. I don't think explosives are allowed on drones nor will they ever be. I can't see the practicality of having airbags on my drone and I can't see them being a big seller if they are even plausible. Sorry to be the one with negatives for your positive but I really think you guys should reconsider and maybe come up with something more practical.

 

[Old Man]

Hi guys!

We are a group of six people who, in the context of a university project, are developing a business idea that has to be related to drones. We are studying on the Technical/Engineering faculty University of Southern Denmark, and the course is called “Experts in Teams”, and is a semester long project, where we have to create business plan/idea, with a team consisting of different technical studylines. We chose the sub-course regarding drones. The team consists of two from Denmark (software/UX-hybrid), two from Finland (electrical) and two from Austria (eco energy).

We came up with the idea to develop an airbag for drones - and in that way increase the security for both drones and humans during a loss-of-control situation.

The idea is to attach airbags on the drones, which are capable of enveloping dangerous drone parts and reduce the potential physical impact and damage to humans. That way we also increase the security in urban environments - and not just in open fields. We believe that the drone use is going to increase dramatically in the next couple of years (and that the laws will open up for a freer use of drones), and therefore drone presence in the urban environments is something that we will see a lot more of. And that’s why we think it would be smart to prevent damage to humans and drones alike.

As soon as a loss-of-control situation is realised by the software and sensors onboard, the airbag will deploy, possibly in cohort with a parachute, and then we can reduce the speed of descent and reduce damage to unsuspecting citizens below.

Good Vibe Avionics

I commend you on your desire to increase the safety factor of drones used around the public but there are some minor issues that may be of extreme difficulty to overcome. Since governments in your area have been using parachute deployment combined with air bags for large drone recovery for over a decade you have a pretty good head start with design and materials, but one thing those drones did not have was multiple propellers extending radially from the center of the aircraft.

Many, if not most, loss of multirotor control events occur while the motors and propellers are still under power and spinning. Any means of rendering such an air vehicle safe would have to compensate for those propellers, eliminating the possibility of a propeller making contact with a human. That means there would be a requirement for at least 6 shaped air bags on a basic quad that would extend well beyond the propeller arcs. As the number of motors increase so does the number of air bags, and each bag must either remain clear of a propeller at all times or be so robust that a propeller could not cut it. It's easy to see that such a system, with or without a parachute, would be so heavy as to render the aircraft useless, unable to carry a payload.

BTW, a Phantom does not have wings.

 

[fengshuidrone]

I was going to say something about the wings too, but I figured I'd leave that one out there for another comment

 

[PMaughan]

I think it's a great idea, I've heard mention of it before but can't remember where. No doubt there are a lot of hurdles to get over to make a useful system but certainly worth some research. 90% of the work I do a chute wouldn't make any difference to speed of impact.

 

[MadMonkey]

It's something I've thought about before, then I saw in action with a couple of Israeli UAVs that pulled it off pretty well.

I would think that due to weight considerations we'd need a jump in battery or motor technology before it's really feasible. That being said, small compressed air or CO2 units on each boom and on the top/bottom plates sounds possible... but for most birds, that's still a LOT of weight coming down in a hurry.

Maybe coming up with a high-performance parachute with a loud alarm as a warning to people underneath would be a good idea

 

[violetwolf]

I like the alarm idea a lot. With or without airbags or chute, a loud alarm would at least get people to look up and duck and cover! And it would be light weight.

 

[GoodVibeAvionics]

Thank you all so much! Your comments were productive, really helped us and pushed us forward. Now we know more about issues and threats that concern our airbag system for drones. We try to solve these issues and maybe someday we can produce a working unit. So look for our "Anti Newtonian Technology" or ANT for short in the future. Thanks again and have a nice day, Good Vibe Avionics

 

[Jason S]

interesting project whats the payload like??