Friday, April 8, 2022 // (IG): BB //Weekly Sponsor: DiyGarage SoCal
Drone deliveries take flight in Texas
FROM THE MEDIA: The future of deliveries is here. Thursday, drones began ferrying consumer goods to customers in a suburb of Dallas, Texas. Walgreens teamed up with Wing, a delivery company operated by Google-parent, Alphabet, on the drone delivery service now available north of Dallas. How does it work? It starts with figuring out what you want or need delivered, then the rest is at the palm of your hand. Once you place your order on the Wing app and plug in your delivery address, keep your eye on the sky. Your flying package can include anything from vitamins to first aid kits, prescriptions to food items, as long as the total weight is 3 pounds or less. The packages are flown at 65 mph from the store to your door. And the drones can land almost anywhere; all they need is an area about the size of a picnic blanket. And one added bonus: There is no drone delivery fee. Walgreens says you pay exactly what the item costs in store. “The service is live right now. So if you live within about four miles from one of our facilities, you’ll be able to place orders and have products flown to your house in minutes,” Wing representative Jacob Demmitt said.
READ THE STORY: News Nation Now
Drone FPV Pilot Lexie Janson is Going Next Level with Airspeeder Flying Car Racing League
FROM THE MEDIA: Lexie Janson, a young social media star and competitor in the world of first-person view (FPV) drone races, is taking on a new challenge, becoming one of the first pilots training to race flying cars – first as unmanned vehicles, and later as a pilot aboard the aircraft itself. Recently Janson joined Australia-based Airspeeder EXA Series, the world’s first racing league for electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) vehicles, otherwise known as flying cars. “In August, I was contacted by Airspeeder and they asked me if I would like to jump on board with flying cars,” she said in an interview. “I checked out their web site and it turned out that at first we would be remote piloting those drones.” Lexie and other pilots are training to be able to operate 250-kilogram (551-pound) eVTOL vehicles, manufactured by Sydney-based Alauda Aeronautics. The goal is to train drone pilots to operate as in-the-seat operators creating a league that would offer eVTOL vehicle racing, like “a Formula One of the sky,” Lexie said. “The moment they said that I would be getting inside, I thought, ‘This is a new level of what I was doing and I have to do it.’” A native of Poland, Lexie started flying drones in 2014 and began piloting FPV drones the following year. “It had been a lot of fun to build something and actually make it work,” she said. “With FPV it was a whole different experience, because you put the goggles on and you’re literally immersed into the feeling of flying, while being safely on the ground.”
READ THE STORY: Dronelife
DOT To FAA . . . Up Your Game on Drone Detection!
FROM THE MEDIA: Counter-drone technology is being developed and deployed by governmental agencies at an increasing rate. In light of this, the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and its Subcommittee on Aviation requested that the Department of Transportation Inspector General (IG) examine how the FAA has been handling these developments and the potential impact counter-drone technology might have on the national airspace system. The IG released its report into the matter last week, and found that the FAA’s efforts are lacking in several key areas. While the FAA has been coordinating with the agencies deploying counter-drone technology, the IG found that FAA has not conducted a strategic assessment of the need for counter-drone technology to ensure that it has the resources and processes in place to keep pace with increasing demand. According to the Report, the FAA experienced a 340 percent increase in UAS detection and C-UAS coordination requests from other federal agencies between 2019 and 2020 alone. More importantly, the IG found that FAA has not yet completed the necessary testing of UAS detection and C-UAS technologies, and as a result, cannot fully assess their impact on aviation safety and security, and may not understand those impacts for several years.
READ THE STORY: JDSUPRA
High-tech drone gives Brownsburg firefighters another tool to help in emergencies
FROM THE MEDIA: Firefighters in Brownsburg have a new tool to help them fight fires, as well as respond to natural disasters and search-and-rescue efforts. The Brownsburg Fire Territory expanded its drone program this week by purchasing a state-of-the-art drone that provides a high-resolution thermal infrared camera, automatic tracking, a laser range finder and automatic flight capabilities. It also has a range of more than nine miles and a 10,000-lumen spotlight to help crews at night. "So much more advanced than we were four years ago," said Brownsburg fire marshal Steven Jones. "Having a tool like this makes it easier to manage the emergency incident by being able to collect this data and get it in front of an incident commander." The new aircraft is a Matrice 300 RTK. The fire territory also has three smaller drones in its program. Just like any new technology, it takes training and practice. Jones and the deputy fire marshal attended training in Texas last week. "The screen almost looks like an aircraft screen. It's got a lot of things on it. So, we need to know where to go to turn things on and off," Jones said. The new technology can help crews with fire, disasters, gas leaks, train derailments and with search-and-rescue missions. There are two remotes, so one person can control the aircraft while the incident commander can control the camera and see what's going on. The drone provides an overhead view and gives real-time information on how fire is spreading or a possible building collapse. It can also identify hot spots with its thermal imaging technology. "We can see a building on fire and maybe the smoke is in the way, but now we can see where the fire is exactly," Jones said. "If I got crews operating on the roof and something goes wrong, we are going to see it immediately."
READ THE STORY: WTHR
How Drones and Robots With A.I. Will Deliver Your Online Order Fast
FROM THE MEDIA: Each time a customer clicks “check out,” another order adds to swirling delivery chaos: trucks clog city streets, drivers circle to find parking, bikes swerve around package carts. The problem is growing. By 2030, the number of delivery vehicles in the world’s 100 largest cities will balloon by more than a third from 2019, to 7.2 million, McKinsey & Co. predicts. That means more carbon emissions, more traffic congestion and—despite the rise of near-instant deliveries—probably more unhappiness in city life. Tech companies, retailers and real-estate firms working on ways to alleviate the strain of constant delivery on urban environments envision an alternate scenario: skies filled with zipping delivery drones and floating dirigible warehouses, streets and sidewalks teeming with as many robots as people, familiar storefronts serving as automated stockrooms for online fulfillment. The e-commerce process, from order to fulfillment, will gradually move toward total automation, says David Wilson, chief executive of machinery company Columbus McKinnon, which uses robotic components in warehouse lifting equipment. “The vehicle that pulls up is an autonomously driven vehicle. The unpacking is done with vision technology and robotic equipment. The movement of equipment to automated storage and retrieval systems is done via mobile robots,” Mr. Wilson says, describing the warehouse of the future. Here are some of the ways new strategies for delivery could change our cityscapes.
READ THE STORY: WSJ
Of Roadside Bombs and Drones: Putin’s Looming Insurgency Problem
FROM THE MEDIA: The Russian military may soon experience a violent and tech laden insurgency the likes of which it has never endured — in Afghanistan, in Chechnya, or in Syria — and against which it may not prevail. The Ukrainian military did not collapse the way Moscow likely expected. Instead, it proved adaptive and creative in battling Russian forces, increasingly through asymmetric means. If Russia seeks a permanent occupation of the Donbas region or continues with the kind of urban warfare currently underway in Mariupol, Ukraine will continue to resist asymmetrically. This will lead to an increasing reliance on established insurgent tactics. Small weaponized Ukrainian-made drones have appeared on the battlefield, but I believe repurposed commercial off-the-shelf drones will play an increasing role. Much like in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria, explosively formed penetrators, vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices, and roadside bombs will join the battlefield in a big way. However, this insurgency will mature in weeks, not years, and the Russians are not prepared.
READ THE STORY: War on the Rocks
Drone service specializes in geomatics and surveying
FROM THE MEDIA: Among the many vendors at this year's Parkland Outdoor Show and Expo was a local drone service operation specializing in geomatics and surveying. "CDK basically offers a lot of different drone measurement services," said Cassandra Kowalchuk, owner and operator of CDK Drone Services based out of Canora. Kowalchuk said she entered the world of geomatics after completing Saskatchewan Polytechnic's Geomatics and Surveying Engineering diploma program in 2012, from there she went on to complete her degree in Geomatics at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. "I started out in Saskatchewan, but in order to get the Bachelor of Science degree for it I had to go out to go out [to BC]," said Kowalchuk, adding, "Sask. Polytechnic offered a bridge for it, so I got my first two years here and went and finished off the degree out there." "When you go to school for survey geomatics you learn how to use a lot of the data- you're learning how to get proper precisions and accuracies - all of the fundamentals of surveying," said Kowalchuk of her education. After spending some time working the trade in BC, Kowalchuk moved back to Canora to be closer to her family. "I could not find proper employment in my educational realm," said Kowalchuk, adding, "I decided I wanted to start a company - I wanted to do something with technology, obviously."
READ THE STORY: Sasktoday
IOWA FARMERS ARE TAKING TO THE SKY AS LABOR BECOMES SCARCE
FROM THE MEDIA: Labor shortage is a growing concern with many farmers especially here in Iowa. As a way to help alleviate the stress that comes from not having enough workers, some have turned to technology. One piece of technology that is taking flight on and off the field is drones. Drones on the farm can be used in a number of ways, from spreading fertilizer to monitoring fields. Spencer Bulman of Waukon Feed Ranch Drone Services says in Northeast Iowa, drones can be especially beneficial because of the difficult terrain that farmers are dealing with. In certain situations, certain fields it might not make sense to pull in a big piece of equipment and treat it when they know the crop is so tall you might do a little more harm than good. So gives this gives the farmer the option to still get in there do some late-season applications and not hurt the crop. Bulman works with drones that help spray crops. To do this, he says they map the field, and then the drone will use those boundaries to pick a flight path. It'll go up it'll spray 20 feet at a time. The new one has an eight-gallon tank on it, so at a two-gallon rate, you're spraying about four acres per fill. It'll come back when it's empty, fill back … Usually, it takes about 30 seconds to a minute to fill back up and it's gone again. To operate these drones, Bulman says you need to have a Part 107 Drone Piolet License and a Commercial Crop-Dusting License. Then you need the proper credentials for the pesticide you are using. Now we also have imaging drones that can be used on the field, which is something Bulman is looking into using.
READ THE STORY: KOEL
Drone company to deliver medical supplies on West Coast and use Christchurch to test urban networks
FROM THE MEDIA: An international drone company is using Christchurch to test its concept of an urban delivery network – and will begin delivering medical supplies by drone on the West Coast in the next few months. Swoop Aero has partnered with Christchurch NZ’s urban development team to test a network that includes autonomous docking stations for a fleet of drones. The company’s Oceania manager Richard Adams said it planned to spend several months developing the concept before considering a physical operation. Swoop Aero already utilizes drones to provide medical services across rural areas in the United Kingdom, Australia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mozambique and Malawi, such as delivering vaccines and Panadol, and collecting pathology and blood samples. It has operated in some towns in Africa but the Christchurch programme will be the first time it has considered operating in a fully urban environment. Operations in cities need to consider hazards such as helicopters and international airports, along with risks such as people and buildings. “We need to look for the best routes to fly. Is that directly over houses, following train tracks or motorways?” Adams said. Christchurch was chosen because of its forward-looking urban design as the city rebuilt after the 2011 earthquake, allowing drones to be integrated into future planning rather than being an add-on to an already established network.
READ THE STORY: Stuff
Drone contraband investigation ends with armed confrontation at Broad River CI
FROM THE MEDIA: Authorities say inmates armed with homemade weapons confronted security team members investigating recent contraband. Others flooded the dorm. Security team members at one South Carolina prison had to use "chemical munitions" on Thursday after they were surrounded by armed inmates. The South Carolina Department of Corrections released a statement on Thursday afternoon reporting that the incident occurred in the Broad River Correctional Institute's Monticello dorm on the B side. Authorities said they went into the dorm looking for a specific inmate when they were blocked by a group of inmates who were armed with homemade weapons. The team then backed out and called for reinforcements as the warden ordered all inmates back into their cells. While most complied, the statement said others filled trash cans with water and flooded the floors while also setting off fire extinguishers. The groups eventually complied, but not until multiple warnings led to the use of unspecified chemical munitions. The Department of Corrections believes the incident may be specifically related to the inmate they were searching for in relation to recent contraband issues. The agency said that teams had recently intercepted packages of contraband and an unusual number of drones carrying it over the past two weeks. One even dropped a package of drugs next to the fence on Wednesday in broad daylight.
READ THE STORY: CNN
Items of interest
Drone video team turns the tables on hiding Russian vehicle (Video)
CNN's Frederik Pleitgen shows how the use of drones is helping Ukrainian citizens fight the Russian invasion.
Homemade drone catcher (Video)
FROM THE MEDIA: We have seen various mechanisms instead of drones, our construction is unique and maybe it is the first homemade, anti-drone gun.
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These open source products are reviewed from analysts at InfoDom Securities and provide possible context about current media trends in regard to the realm of cyber security. The stories selected cover a broad array of cyber threats and are intended to aid readers in framing key publicly discussed threats and overall situational awareness. InfoDom Securities does not specifically endorse any third-party claims made in their original material or related links on their sites, and the opinions expressed by third parties are theirs alone. Contact InfoDom Securities at dominanceinformation@gmail.com