Grant: Collaborative Science, Technology and Innovation Program - Collaborative R&D Initiatives

This Project aims at developing a system for the remote guidance of drones that will integrate artificial intelligence (AI) tools and generic augmented reality (AR) to improve drone capabilities to carry out complex tasks related to transportation. Drones can be remotely guided by an expert or a team of technicians that could be located anywhere, and the system will allow for efficient on-site, on-time inspection and delivery, and thus quick and efficient intervention and remote guidance. In the recent years, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), and especially drones, have emerged as one of the most promising technologies in civil applications such as infrastructure inspection and maintenance, environmental surveillance and monitoring and transportation. In the transportation domain, drones can play a central role in ensuring remote and rapid parcel or medical supply delivery and infrastructure inspection (e.g., roads, rails, cardo vessels, stations, ports, airports). However, one of the main issues that can hinder the large-scale utilisation of drones is the difficulty of ensuring a robust and rapid interaction to a complex and dynamic environment and reacting to hazardous situations that can disrupt tasks and safe navigation (e.g., difficult terrain, weather conditions, obstacles, power lines).