Micro Air Vehicles on cards to tackle disasters

Bangalore: Timely help during emergencies can help save considerable loss of life and property. This was more than evident in the Advanced Medicare Research Institute (AMRI) hospital tragedy in Kolkota recently, or the Carlton Towers incident in Bangalore, both claiming huge of life and property.

With an aim to reduce damage to life and property, Micro Air Vehicles (MAV) and other micro vehicles will be developed to transmit key information during times of emergencies.

"Micro Air Vehicles and other micro vehicles can be used to assess damage and look for casualties during fire and other emergencies", Ramachandra, Chief Executive Officer, National Programme for Micro Air Vehicle National Design and Research Forum (NDRF) said.

Speaking to Express, he said that though there were no existing projects to develop vehicles especially for emergencies, he confirms that it is only a matter of time before they embark on the programme as they are trying to explore possibilities in the field.  "In the next six months, we should be entering into such programmes while it would be functional and in use within the next two years", he said.

Stating that the technology for it is readily available, he clarified that they would have to integrate it into the required specifications. "There are Micro Air Vehicles and other vehicles that have to crawl, submerge for underwater operations and other functions. While we have the sensors and other essentials, we have to develop the camera and the signals for channels", Ramachandra said.

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Adding that they would need cameras and radio contacts on the vehicles, he said that they could be sent into caves, mines and even fire struck buildings with a range of half to one kilometer.

Ramachandra also shared that it would cost approximately 30-40,000 United States Denomination to make one of these advanced machinery.

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He added that this kind of technology would be a crucial part of disaster management in the future.

He also said that Micro Air Vehicles and similar vehicles could be used for traffic management, underwater operations like oil rigs and shipwrecks.

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