These Autonomous Repair Drones are Designed to Fix City Roads
Katherine Pendrill — November 4, 2015 — Tech
References: citylab & fastcoexist
A team of researchers from the University of Leeds are working on a fleet of autonomous repair drones that would be able to fix potholes around the city. For many urban residents, encountering a pothole is a daily occurrence. These drones could solve the issue of potholes without the need to hire more municipal workers.
University professor Phil Purnell explains that the automated repair drones are part of an effort to "make Leeds the first city in the world to have zero disruption from street works." The idea is to design a fleet of automated devices that would be able to spot problems throughout the city and repair them immediately. The researchers plan to create three different kinds of drones, each of which will carry out a different task. The 'Perch and Repair' robots will repair above-ground infrastructure, while the 'Perceive and Patch' robots will take care of potholes. Lastly, the 'Fire and Forget' robots will carry out duties such as metering, reporting and performing regular inspections.
The project could help cities maintain their current infrastructure and save money on construction crews at the same time.
University professor Phil Purnell explains that the automated repair drones are part of an effort to "make Leeds the first city in the world to have zero disruption from street works." The idea is to design a fleet of automated devices that would be able to spot problems throughout the city and repair them immediately. The researchers plan to create three different kinds of drones, each of which will carry out a different task. The 'Perch and Repair' robots will repair above-ground infrastructure, while the 'Perceive and Patch' robots will take care of potholes. Lastly, the 'Fire and Forget' robots will carry out duties such as metering, reporting and performing regular inspections.
The project could help cities maintain their current infrastructure and save money on construction crews at the same time.
Trend Themes
1. Autonomous Repair Drones - The development of autonomous repair drones presents an opportunity for companies to invest in research and development into this innovative technology.
2. Zero Disruption City - The concept of a zero disruption city presents an opportunity for urban planners to integrate autonomous technology into their infrastructure to reduce impact and save money.
3. Robotic Infrastructure Maintenance - The growth of robotic infrastructure maintenance presents an opportunity for engineering firms to offer new and innovative solutions to cities for maintaining their infrastructure.
Industry Implications
1. Engineering - Engineering firms can leverage the development of autonomous repair drones to offer innovative and cost-efficient solutions for infrastructure maintenance and repair.
2. Construction - Construction companies can explore the implementation of autonomous technology to reduce the need for manual labor and improve efficiency in infrastructure maintenance and repair.
3. Urban Planning - Urban planners can consider integrating autonomous infrastructure maintenance technologies into their master plans to reduce the cost and impact of traditional methods of maintenance and repair.
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