00:09 Introduction
00:49 Our mission and company overview
02:49 The advantage of adding mobile devices
05:48 How it works
08:45 Live demo
12:38 Fauquier County presentation
16:00 Texas DPS presentation
21:12 Austin FD and Austin EMS presentation
27:31 Summary and closeout
As the DroneSense platform has matured over the years, using a mobile device as part of a mission is something we knew would be increasingly vital to agencies in their daily operations. Drones work best in collaboration, and the ability to add mobile streaming and tracking capabilities to our platform opens up a whole new dimension to what’s possible in public safety operations. After all, what’s a drone but a cell phone with propellers!
With this new feature for iOS and Android devices, virtually any first responder with a mobile device or tablet can participate in a mission and collaborate with pilots and viewers in OpsHub simultaneously. The mobile devices in use simply become the “boots on the ground” assets offering a live video stream from the onboard camera that complements the live drone feeds. The mobile device is rendered and tracked on the map using its GPS data much in the same way drones currently are. All participating devices and drones can now be seen together on a map, offering an ability to compare aerial views with what’s unfolding on the ground during the operation.
There are many scenarios where drones excel in an operation, and conversely, many where sometimes a phone or tablet is simply the better tool for the job. An LTE-enabled phone can stream from places no drone can go, such as the inside of a building (where cinder blocks and other construction materials may provide too much RF interference), heavily brushed or forested areas, in helicopters operating above 400ft AGL, on horseback, bikes, ground robots, and the list goes on! Here are just a few examples of how this capability is being used today:
- Dogs in K9 units “strapped” with mobile devices being able to enter a school or buildings while streaming live video and being tracked on a map
- In search and rescue operations (SAR) where dogs strapped with a mobile device are helping to find a lost or missing person, and once found, a drone is deployed to follow the dog’s GPS location on the map
- A mobile device in a helicopter at higher elevations being used to complement drone operations
Ultimately, all of these video streams and data are brought into OpsHub and available for viewers in command centers and on mobile devices. Since all the drone and non-drone assets are now able to be rendered on a map in OpsHub, it makes the job of deconfliction for manned and unmanned assets much easier. Additionally, since mobile devices can now easily participate in operations, we’re confident that what will emerge is a more robust and complete common operational picture with an even greater level of situational awareness for all stakeholders.
A few of our valued partners around the country have already begun implementing this technology – and we look forward to seeing how this feature gets implemented in new, creative ways. The ability to have drones and non-drones assets participating in a mission is definitely a game-changer for the DroneSense Team – and hopefully will be for your organization as well.
If you would like to get started with mobile streaming and tracking today, please drop us a line at sales@dronesense.com with the subject: Mobile Streaming. For support and other issues visit us anytime at https://support.dronesense.com.
Thanks for watching. Fly safe!