Drone turns into lifebuoy when landing in water

China's TY-3R drone can keep two adults afloat, has a communication range of 1.1 km and operates for 10 minutes on a single charge.

A lifebuoy-drone hybrid that can take off and land right on the water. Photo: Didiok Makings — A lifebuoy-drone hybrid that can take off and land right on the water. Photo: *Didiok Makings*

Chinese drone company Didiok Makings has developed the "TY-3R Flying Buoy," a hybrid between a quadcopter drone and a life buoy, New Atlas reported on April 29. When rescuers on shore discover a person in distress swimming in the sea, they can activate the TY-3R, which will quickly fly to the swimmer and land on the water, transforming into a life buoy. The swimmer can use it as a flotation device. Rescuers will then have time to get a rescue boat and drive to the location of the incident, bringing the victim back to shore.

The TY-3R takes off with just a push of a button on the remote controller. While flying to the designated location, the drone also provides the operator with a real-time view using its built-in 720p camera. Once the victim is rescued and no longer needs to rely on the drone to float, the operator simply presses a button for it to automatically fly back to the takeoff location according to GPS coordinates. Notably, it is capable of taking off right on the surface of the water.

The TY-3R can support two adults floating on water, has a communication range of 1.1 km, a maximum speed of 47 km/h and an operating time of more than 10 minutes per battery charge. This drone weighs less than 5 kg and is waterproof to IP68 standards. This means it will not be damaged when submerged at a depth of 1 m for 30 minutes.

When it lands on the water, the TY-3R shuts down its engines. Additionally, the drone has shields on its propellers to better protect swimmers. The vehicle is currently priced at $11,803.

This is not the world's first swimmer rescue drone. Vehicles such as Pars (USA), Little Ripper (Australia), Auxdron (Spain) are also capable of performing this task, but their method is to drop separate flotation devices to the victim instead of directly landing in the water.

Thu Thao (According to New Atlas)

Source link