An autonomous drone that uses power lines to self-recharge has been trialed but the potential pitfalls are catastrophic.
Researchers from the University of Southern Denmark wanted to solve the problem of drone flights being limited by battery life so built a prototype that could grip onto power lines.
They employed a commercial Tarot 650 Sport carbon fiber drone and customized it with an electric quadcopter propulsion system, an autopilot module, a 7,000-mAh lithium-polymer battery, and a Raspberry Pi 4 B microcomputer.
The drone can self-detect its battery running low and make a beeline to a power line by using its camera and millimeter-wave radar system to detect where the closest one is.
The drone approaches the power line from beneath and uses a pair of arms to grip the cable. Engadget reportsthat an inductive charger pulls power from …