20 students of the Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) in the Netherlands share one vision of the future: the fully domesticated drone pet – a flying friend that helps you whenever you need it and in general, is very, very cute. Their drone “Blue Jay” is packed with sensors, has a strong claw for grabbing and carrying cargo, navigates autonomously indoors, and interacts with humans at eye level.
To demonstrate their flying buddy, the team installed the drone café – a café in which visitors were served drinks by the interactive drone. The café was open for only a few days this April as part of the “Dream & Dare Festival”, an event that celebrated the 60th anniversary of the TU/e. Our Dutch readers can still meet the team and their flying minion during the DTW – Dutch Technology Week from May 23 to 26, 2016.
The team sees great potential for drones to become useful in people’s everyday lives in the form of a friendly butler. Not only could drones detect fires or intruders in your home, but also fly ahead and autonomously deal with such problems when you can not. The drone could also serve you and your guests with drinks or food, and sooner or later become your best friend. We are sure the drones will be putting themselves to the fullest possible use, which is all we think that any conscious entity can ever hope to do. Enjoy the video:
[via heise]
Filed under: drone hacks
