Video of the Day: Watch this mini parachute rescue falling drones

When drone operators see their device’s rotors stop working meters above the ground, the only option is to usually watch and pray. They dread watching their drones plummet from the sky mid-flight, with the risk of physical injuries and wallet-aches.

But now, ParaZero announced at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International’s XPONENTIAL conference its new technology, SafeAir, a device that deploys a parachute and safety brings a drone back to the ground.

In order for the parachute to deploy in time and prevent a crash, SafeAir shoots out the chute with a gust of pressurized gas. The device attaches to the top of a drone and operates through an independently powered chip, which detects when the drone goes into freefall mode. 

SafeAir has worked with drone manufacturers, including DJI, 3D Robotics, and Martin Aviation, to develop recovery systems for their drones based on how far it is safe for them to fall. A lightweight drone (one under 4.4 pounds) should be relatively safe even if it drops 6.6 feet above the ground.

While the new technology won’t fall any slower than 9.8 feet per second, the parachute could mean the difference between a complete loss, or recovering footage and giving bystanders more time to get out of the way. Currently, there are no prices listed for the SafeAir device, but we’re guessing it will be cheaper than replacing the drone itself if it crashed.

Source: Ars Technica