Cleanup efforts continue in the Gulf of Mexico after the worst ever accidental oil spill in water.
One of the biggest challenges for cleanup crews is locating oil on the ocean surface from ground level, whether by boat or on shore.
Manned helicopters have been used to spot patches of oil for cleanup. But according to Ed Thompson, director of BP Crisis Management Unit, “This alternative is not only more expensive and more dangerous, but much less effective as one helicopter needs to cover a wide area and give direction to a large number of land and ocean-based cleanup crews.”
To help with such a daunting task, a small, flying robotic reconnaissance system will be used. The Aeryon Scout is a mini-helicopter that can be remote-controlled from the ground using a touch screen computer interface. “The Scout excels in short-range, short duration missions, providing ground crews instant access to real-time aerial views whenever required,” explained Thompson.
Once oil is cleaned up in the immediate area, oil-cleaning resources, including skimmer boats and shore-based cleanup crews, simply don’t know where to go next. According to Dave Kroetsch, president of Aeryon Labs, the images obtained from the Scout can be instantly streamed directly to ground cleanup crews, directing their resources accordingly. Its “ability to quickly and easily provide an instant aerial view [of how oil is moving across the ocean] will dramatically expedite our cleanup efforts,” added Thompson.
Aeryon Labs designed the Scout system to be easy enough for even non-technical personnel to use with only minimal training. Its on-board computer system supervises all aspects of flight, allowing operators to focus on completing their task, and search for the next batch of oil on the ocean surface.
For Kroetsch, “It’s extremely gratifying to not only see our technology being used effectively, but to also aid in such important environmental efforts,” he remarked enthusiastically.
