Robotics/Drones/AI
SailDrones
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Richard Jenkins is the founder of a company called Saildrone.
He first came up with the idea of making an unmanned boat because he wanted to have the record of the first unmanned vessel across the ocean. In 2013, Jenkins did so with his prototype called the, "Honey Badger", which sailed from San Francisco to Hawaii. Since then he has created many "sail drones" which are powered only by the wind and the sun. Using a vertical wing it is able to produce thrust which is then controlled by an adjustable tab and is how the robot controls the direction it moves in. The saildrone is 100% salt waterproof and fully submersible. Guided by GPS the drones are able to be fully autonomous and can be at sea for many months at a time. They are also equipped with cameras and many scientific sensors that can gather data such as, ph, chlorophyll, humidity , radiation, speed, direction, temperature, and many more. This data that is collected is sent back and received in real time via satellite. One big thing that the company Saildrone is doing, is trying to send sail drones into hurricanes to gather real time weather and climate data. This information that the saildrone could collect, has many implications to potentially being able to give more accurate information about weather events.
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Moth Killing Drone
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In the Netherlands a company called PATS Indoor Drone Solutions is developing drone technology to help with indoor greenhouse pest control. Using specialized cameras with advanced scanning capabilities they can detect when a moth is present and send a drone to neutralize it. The video on the left shows demonstration of this. When the small drone is done it flies back to a special landing pad where is charges wirelessly and awaits to be activated again. This system can be run all through the day and night meaning you have 24 hour protection. The advanced camera is able to differentiate helpful insects like, ladybugs and bumblebees, from moths so it is effective in controlling specific populations of insects, unlike pesticides. By allowing an advanced AI system to control pests allows the future of agriculture to have more options to control insects than just pesticides. Advancing technology is helping lead us to a more organic and natural production of food without the use of harmful chemicals.
Old Phones & AI & the Rainforest
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A company called Rainforest Connection or (RFCx) has been working to help stop the illegal logging happening in the rainforests around the world. Topher White is the CEO & Founder of the company and says he came up with the idea to put up microphones throughout the rainforest as a way to monitor what is going on. The sounds of the rainforest can tell you a lot about what is happening without the need to have a visual. Using devices termed, Rainforest Connection Guardian, which have very powerful microphones and antennas on the outside with old cell phone tech on the inside. Phones from 10+ years ago still have all the necessary elements like GPS, accelerometers, ability to record sound, audio compression, connect to cell phone networks and towers. Each Guardian has strong batteries to help store energy created via solar panels so they can last for many years. Using old cell phones they are able to send this audio many miles away. This data is then sent up to the cloud, where they are able to use AI to interpret that data to detect things like gunshots, trucks, and chainsaws . Then in real time alert local rangers and show up in time to stop the activity. These Rainforest Connection Guardians are able to be run 24/7 which means that they are constantly gathering data and can send out alerts at anytime.
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