What is an AI-equipped drone? ｜ Detailed explanation of what you can do, examples of utilization, future, etc.!Recommended articles for you Articles recommended for you

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It's been a few years since drones came to the forefront, and now they're popular and more and more people are enjoying aerial photography with their on-board cameras.

Generally, it is a drone that is often used for shooting, but it is being applied in various fields. Along with that, there are cases where AI technology is used so that drones can fly autonomously.

Some readers may want to know how AI-powered drones are being used today and what will happen in the future.

Therefore, this time, we will explain in detail what "AI-equipped drones" can do, how to use them, future trends, and the military use of interest.

After reading this article, you will surely deepen your knowledge of "AI-equipped drones". Please take a look to the end.

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table of contents

What is an "AI-equipped drone"?

As the name implies, "AI-equipped drone" is a "new drone equipped with autonomous flight and image recognition functions using the power of AI (artificial intelligence)."

AI and drones are a good combination. Combining AI's machine learning capabilities with unmanned aerial vehicle exploration capabilities will enable you to do things that conventional drones couldn't.

The difference between a general drone and an "AI-equipped drone"

Common drones play a key role in problem solving in a variety of areas, including defense, agriculture, natural disaster relief, security, and construction.

Drones, which can improve efficiency and safety, have become an important tool for everyone from firefighters to farmers. In fact, AI-powered self-contained unmanned aerial vehicles, smart UAVs, are extremely popular and are now used in more than 400,000 sites worldwide.

However, until now, drones have only been able to display images taken with the camera.

But now, thanks to AI, it is possible to recognize the surrounding environment, map areas, track objects, feed back analysis results, etc. in real time.

What you can do with an "AI-equipped drone"

Drones equipped with AI are capable of "autonomous flight" and "image analysis". I will introduce each of them.

Autonomous flight

Drones equipped with AI can fly autonomously based on the image information from the camera. Being able to fly autonomously makes it possible to fly in places and long distances that humans cannot visually confirm.

Image analysis

Drones have been useful for aerial photography in dangerous places such as high places and disaster sites, and places that are difficult to enter, but by installing AI, it is possible to instantly analyze the information obtained with cameras and sensors. It is now possible.

▶ What is image recognition? | Thorough explanation of functions, cases, mechanisms, introduction methods, etc. >>

Utilization of "AI-equipped drones" by field in Japan

AI-equipped drones are already widely used in Japan.

Every year at the "Public-Private Council for Environmental Improvement of Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, etc." launched by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the "Roadmap for the Industrial Revolution in the Sky" that summarizes the government's efforts regarding unmanned aerial vehicles as a process chart. Discussed and published.

On June 28, 2021, the "Roadmap 2021 for the Industrial Revolution in the Sky" was released by the "Public-Private Council for Environmental Improvement for Small Unmanned Aircraft, etc." Drone operations are divided into four flight levels, from in-visual flight to out-of-sight flight in no-man's land to out-of-sight flight in manned areas.

AI is indispensable for unassisted non-visual flight (level 4) in manned areas aiming to be realized by 2022.

In this roadmap, drone operations are classified into five categories: security, medical care, surveying, disaster response, and agriculture, forestry and fisheries. increase.

Security

In July 2020, ALSOK conducted patrol security with a fully autonomous flying drone at the Tokyo Skytree Observatory and Tokyo Solamachi.

We have succeeded in real-time video distribution during flight and person detection by AI during flight.

Source: ALSOK ｜ AI-equipped fully autonomous flight drone security system indoor demonstration conducted at Tokyo Skytree Town®

In August 2019, SECOM succeeded in a demonstration experiment of a stadium security service utilizing 5G, which was conducted jointly with KDDI and KDDI Research, Inc. at Hanazono Rugby Stadium. It is a security service that transmits 4K video in the sky over a 5G line, analyzes the image with AI, and leads to early detection of abnormalities.

"AI-equipped drones" may significantly change the way security and operations are carried out at events with tens of thousands of people. It will help to secure the safety of facilities by solving the labor shortage in the security industry and further improving the security quality.

Source: SECOM | Secom and KDDI receive the "Grand Prix / Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Award" in the user category of "MCPC award 2020"

medical care

The Trajectory, which develops the AI ​​control platform for drones, and SkyPeak, which promotes the further development of the industry by supporting the social implementation of drones, are the "Haruno Medical MaaS Project" to be implemented in Haruno-cho, Tenryu-ku, Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture. Succeeded in the demonstration experiment.

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In Tenryu Ward, which is an aging mountainous area in Hamamatsu City, in addition to the shortage of doctors, the elderly are facing difficulties in going to the hospital. Therefore, Hamamatsu City, local medical associations, and private companies collaborated to conduct a demonstration experiment of "drug delivery service by drone" in collaboration with online medical services.

In this demonstration experiment, after generating a 3D map, we succeeded in autonomous flight based on the flight route automatic generation technology by the AI ​​control system.

▶ Medical AI that can be understood from the basics-An easy-to-understand explanation from the present to the future of medical practice >>

Surveying

ALI Technologies Co., Ltd. conducted a demonstration experiment to utilize 3D urban modeling data for the private sector by drone surveying.

In cooperation with Kaga City, which is one of the approximately 50 cities targeted for construction of the 3D city model, flight simulation of the logistics drone using the 3D city model is performed, and for efficient update, on the delivery route taken by the logistics drone. We also verified the updateability of 3D city models using aerial photographs.

Disaster response

In many countries and regions, including Japan, the spread of damage to human lives and property caused by natural disasters such as floods and landslides caused by weather changes has become a social problem.

In the event of a disaster, measures to reduce damage are required, such as promptly grasping the situation and guiding evacuation routes. "Drone equipped with AI" is playing a role in this countermeasure. Here, we will look at understanding the disaster situation and supporting disaster response activities.

Understanding the damage situation

Hitachi, Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Hitachi) has developed AI technology that can analyze disaster situations with high accuracy from aerial images. In combination with a drone, it has become possible to quickly and easily grasp in detail the situation at the site where people cannot reach immediately in the event of a disaster.

When analyzing a disaster situation from an aerial image, there is a problem that the number of learning data is small and the recognition accuracy is affected depending on the disaster.

Also, in a video shot over a wide area, the object you want to identify may appear very small, or various objects or disaster situations may appear at the same time. In such cases, the situation that is occurring is correctly recognized. It was difficult.

The advantages of the disaster video analysis technology developed by Hitachi this time are the following four points.

① Even if multiple objects are shown in the image, they can be recognized accurately at the same time.

(2) You can find small things that are difficult for people to find from the images shot over a wide area.

(3) The number of learning samples is small, and even in disaster situations where it is usually difficult for AI to learn, it can be recognized accurately.

(4) AI learning methods that support learning samples that contain a lot of incorrect information such as oversights and misclassifications can reduce misrecognition and oversight of disaster situations that are difficult for even humans to judge.

Image Source: Hitachi, Ltd. | Developed basic technology for video analysis to grasp disaster situation with AI

Support for disaster response activities

NTT DATA is developing an automated drone for area monitoring in the event of a disaster.

The disaster prevention drone automatic navigation system has realized the sophistication of disaster response operations for government agencies and infrastructure companies by quickly and comprehensively grasping the damage situation of evacuation roads and structures in the event of a disaster.

At the same time, a large number of drones fly autonomously, collect necessary and sufficient images in a short time, and deliver them to related parties under centralized management. Video analysis by AI and transportation of goods by drone are also possible.

Source: NTT DATA | Disaster area monitoring automated drone

Agriculture

A three-year plan for "direct sowing of drone paddy rice" jointly developed by Ishikawa Prefectural Agriculture and Forestry Research Center and OPTiM Corporation (hereinafter referred to as OPTiM) is underway in Ishikawa Prefecture from 2018 to 2021.

Seeds can now be mounted on drones and seeds can be driven directly into the field. Rows and rows where crops are planted can also be formed, and an increase in yield can be expected.

It also uses OPTiM's AI algorithms to control weeds and pests only where they are needed. It also has the advantage of reducing the budget for agricultural machinery, making it easier to store than tractors and bulldozers, and making it easier to carry.

Source: SMART AGRI | Practical examples of smart agriculture

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Is "AI-equipped drone" a weapon for war and military?

There are several fiction movies out there that use AI-powered drones as weapons.

And some readers may think that "military use of drones will only be in movies." However, in recent years, there have been cases where AI-equipped drones were actually used as military weapons.

Therefore, from here, we will introduce AI-equipped drones that are used as weapons in the war.

The weapon "AI-equipped drone" is often the subject of movies

"Drone with AI" is often treated as a weapon in science fiction movies. In particular, "Slaughterbots" by the AI ​​monitoring organization , which is famous for the movement against murder robots, has received a great deal of attention.

This work is a "near future science fiction" that begins with the setting that "a small AI-equipped drone capable of autonomous flight can now kill preset targets using face recognition technology."

Then, the horror that arises from the fact that this "murder drone" has fallen into the hands of terrorists is depicted, and the story is that the genocide will eventually be carried out in the US Congress and universities.

An example of an "AI-equipped drone" actually used on the battlefield

The Future of Life Institute is calling for an early ban on autonomous weapons to avoid the worst future that Slaughterbots envisions, with more than 20,000 signatories in favor of the movement.

Leading scientists and representatives of large corporations, such as Dr. Stephen Hawking and Elon Musk, have also endorsed the group and signed a letter to the United Nations calling for a ban on murder robots.

As of 2017, when the movie was released, the high-performance drones that appeared in the movie had not been developed. But now, "AI-equipped drones" are already in use on the battlefield.

Libya | Calg 2

UN Security Council experts say that the "AI-equipped drone" "Karg 2" may have attacked without human control during the civil war in North Africa and Libya in March 2020. It was pointed out in a report by the panel.

It would be the first case in the world if a weapon that uses AI to automatically attack an opponent without human command was used on the battlefield. "Karg 2" can identify and attack targets with optical and infrared sensors using AI, and can also form a formation of up to 20 aircraft to perform wavy attacks.

Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict | Harpy

In July 2021, it was the "AI-equipped drone" and "Harpy" that led to the victory of the conflict over the state of Nagorno-Karabakh, which has been known as a disputed area for 30 years. The "AI-equipped drone" found and attacked the existence of soldiers and tanks on the enemy country, Armenia.

Until now, soldiers hiding in caves could not be identified from the sky. However, "AI-equipped drones" can detect the existence of soldiers from the existence of electronic devices possessed by soldiers and attack them.

It is the first time that an "AI-equipped drone" has launched an attack without human command, except for the possibility of Libya mentioned above.

Will the day when artificial intelligence destroys humans come?

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U.S. military is also researching and developing "AI-equipped drone" for military use

Military "AI-equipped drones" are not limited to the Middle East and Africa.

In fact, the US government does not oppose the development and use of autonomous killing weapons. Rather, we are researching and developing "AI-equipped drones" for military use.

In April 2021, the US Air Force conducted a flight test of the AI-equipped autonomous drone "Skyborg" at the US Air Force base in Florida.

Announced that it succeeded in automatic flight for 2 hours and 10 minutes. It doesn't have killing ability at this stage, but technically it could already be implemented.

▶ This article also explains in detail about AI used in the military >>

The future of "Drone equipped with AI"

In this article, we've looked at the use of "AI-equipped drones" in security, medical care, surveying, disaster response, and agriculture.

At present, most of them are in the demonstration experiment stage, but many of them have already been cleared technically. It is expected that it will be put into practical use in the field after 2023.

Also in the military, the use of "AI-equipped drones" is drawing attention.

Not only in the United States introduced in this article, but also in Russia, Israel, China, India, etc., AI technology is being actively used for military drones.

▶ Related articles | What kind of evolution will AI make in the future? And what is the impact on us? >> >>

summary

This time, we have introduced in detail "Drone equipped with AI". How was that.

I think that you have deepened your knowledge of AI-equipped drones through application examples in various fields. In particular, some of you may be surprised that "AI-equipped drones" that are already capable of killing are used on the battlefield.

In the future, as the number of businesses that utilize "AI-equipped drones" increases, our lives and AI will become closer together.

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