Dogs & Drones  -  Search and Rescue support in the Snake River region

Aerial Search - Small Unmanned Aerial System (sUAS) - The use of these airborne platforms for search and rescue is relatively new and evolving rapidly.  Commercial off the shelf (COTS) hardware that has significant capability and is relatively user friendly has spurred both useful employment in commercial applications such as infrastructure inspections, agriculture, real estate, and internet content as well as less desirable utilizations such as harassing wildlife, spying on neighbors, interfering with fire fighting and other irresponsible uses.

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Concerns over privacy have limited law enforcement use and safety concerns have limited size and payload for other use.

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From my point of view SAFETY is PARAMOUNT and any use must be both in compliance with FAA regulations and incorporate a thorough consideration of safety throughout the planning and execution on any mission.

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UTILITY:  Like the dogs, the drones are just another tool to be used to accomplish a quick, safe and successful search for a missing person.  I do prefer to work with my dog.  However, the drones provide an opportunity to perform an aerial search without the cost and risk involved in utilizing manned aircraft.  Drones operate at a very small fraction of the cost of operating even the least expensive manned aircraft and the safety risk is extremely low.  A typical helicopter (including crew cost) is around $3000 per hour and the risk is significant.

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How are they used?

 

Real time visual search:  This would seem the most obvious use where the operator sees what the sUAS/Drone sees.  This is called FPV (First Person Viewer) and is limited by the display that is used (and the operator).  Typically a smartphone or tablet is used for the display and this has severe limitations in sunlight.  Another option are 'goggles' which provide a more controlled view but are lower resolution and can induce motion sickness.  A third option is the use of a secondary display that is higher resolution, is used by a support crewmember and can be in a controlled environment (even if only under a coat).  Regardless of the display used there is still the difficulty of 'seeing' what you are looking for which takes practice.  There are environments where FPV is very useful such as searching cliff faces and specific areas that are difficult to access by other means.  (Note:  visual includes systems that operate in infrared, near infrared, etc...)

 

Near real time video/photo analysis:  An advantage of sUAS/Drones is that they all can record still pictures or video.  This allows for more detailed analysis after the flight in a controlled environment and possibly using computer aided analysis tools to locate items of interest.  This requires support facilities and may even be done by 'cloud' support via the internet.

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Non visual sensors:  There are also sensors which can be mounted on the sUAS/Drone that look for signals such as Avalanche Beacons and cell phones.  These sensors are still in prototype development for sUAS/Drones, with larger systems available for helicopters.

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General search & rescue support:  This involves using the drone to perform a task in support of the mission.  Carrying a line across a river to allow ropes to be set up, delivering a radio, checking on a search team, etc...

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I currently have a DJI Mavic Air that is part of my standard ready pack.  This system is extremely portable, yet very capable.  My employment strategy is to use this in conjunction with my K9 so that if I have interest in an area that is inaccessible I can use the drone to visually check it out.  Cliff faces, deep gorges, rivers & lakes could all be areas where I need to look but can not safely reach.  Also, it provides the capability to take high resolution images over a search area for detailed analysis.  I will have more information coming on this subject.

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There will be continuing development to make the sUAS/Drone platform more useful for Search and Rescue.  As is the case with many technologies, price and ease of use will determine ultimate utility.

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