Smart Cities For Dummies by Reichental

Author:Reichental [Reichental, Jonathan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781119679936
Publisher: Wiley
Published: 2020-06-26T00:00:00+00:00

Drones

The 15-year-old Luke Bannister had a proud and exuberant smile on his face. He had just flown the flight of his life, hurtling at stunning speeds while taking steep corners, avoiding obstacles, and outthinking all his opponents. In doing so, he walked away with the $250,000 first prize at the inaugural World Drone Prix in Dubai. His success was witnessed by 2,000 spectators and envied by his 250 competitors.

All around the world, competitions are being held with participants of all ages and with drones of all types, big and small. Drone racing requires exceptional attributes, such as the ability to create an excellent strategy, razor-sharp reflexes, and nerves of steel. Leagues are sponsored by brands such as AIG, DHL, and Mountain Dew. The Drone Racing League has a TV rights deal with ESPN. It’s starting to be big business.

Almost unknown to most people until the end of the 1990s, drones have emerged as a serious industry in the first two decades of this new century. Fortune magazine estimates that, over the course of the years 2015 to 2025, the drone industry will have an economic impact of more than $82 billion and will create over 100,000 high-paying jobs. What’s responsible for the explosion in drone use? Primarily, the cost of the technology that’s used has dropped. Drone options range from just a few dollars to thousands of dollars, depending on use and interest. (See Figure 8-6 for an example of a reasonably priced drone.) Innovation also made leaps driven by military needs and research and growing use in the industrial sector.

FIGURE 8-6: Flying drones may soon become a familiar sight in cities.

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