Drone-tech programs in schools and universities
As we reach the final years of our schooling almost all of us begin to decide what we will do in the future. Predicting the brightest industries of the future with the highest potential and matching them with our interests is the holy grail of choosing the right career path. But what if we started a little earlier and laid a foundation at the right time? Not only would the benefits be multiple and rewarding, it would also give us a head start in the right direction.
One such industry, with tremendous future potential, is the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or the drone industry. Estimated to create millions of jobs in the next decade or two, opportunities will abound not just for drone pilots but also in the allied ecosystem, making a promising case for developing competencies early on.
The Nuts and Bolts: Current state of the Indian drone industry
Drones are not new to us. People see them at weddings, music concerts, hobby shops and air shows. Drone photography and filming, however, constitutes a mere 10% of the total services market. The commercial market, which includes manufacturing and services such as surveying & mapping, inspections, 3D modelling, data acquisition and delivery is where the rue potential of the industry lies and will be the growth engine in the future.
Drone technology is one of the fastest growing sectors in the disruptive technology space. One way to understand how far India can go is to compare it to the progress already made in the US. At present, India has over 6 lakh drones, whereas the US is home to over 7 million drones (according to the DGCA, India – Directorate General of Civil Aviation and the US FAA – Federal Aviation Administration). This market is predicted to be a multibillion-dollar industry in the next 10 years, which will create thousands of jobs. India is set to be the 2nd largest market for drones (after the US), if we make the right moves. The Ministry for Civil Aviation (MoCA) is already framing policies and regulations for UAVs as they see a huge economic potential in this industry.
Over the last five years, various commercial and industrial applications of drones have emerged and its growing impact is evident especially during the Corona Pandemic. Drones are piloted by remote control or on-board computers through a combination of computer vision, artificial intelligence and object avoidance technology. This technology has extensively been used since the Corona outbreak right from city aerial-surveillance and broadcasting by the police, to spraying disinfectants and delivering medicines by health workers.
Other applications include inspection of industrial assets such as power transmission lines, railways, oil and gas pipelines, wind turbines and solar panels. Data analytics experts make client-ready reports by using images and videos collected by drones. These reports have saved companies huge amounts of time and money.
Agricultural farming is another area with a big potential for drone-tech application. Farmers can increase crop production and monitor their herds without being physically present. Crops are sprayed on by large drones that possess the capability of carrying high payloads such as a tank full of disinfectants. Such drones carrying water have also been used for extinguishing fire from buildings and crops.
Land surveys and 3D mapping have probably been the most utilized drone applications. Starting from helping construction sites to the mining industry, drones have plenty of applications when it comes to mapping. The Survey of India is currently underway to map over six lakh villages in the next four years with the help of drones. Imagine the number of land disputes in our country that will finally see the light of day once this mission helps create accurate land records for property rights.
Opportunities in the sky: The jobs are where the drones are
Drone ecosystems are poised to create huge opportunities for our country across different segments. Be it in entrepreneurship or job opportunities across different sectors such as technology, manufacturing, sourcing, procurement and system integration.
Major industries where drones are extensively being used across the globe include Agriculture, Energy & Utilities, Mining, Infrastructure, Healthcare, Security, Construction, Media & Film, Emergency Services and Government agencies. The job market has changed drastically in the last decade or so with the advent of disruptive technologies, bringing in professions that were unheard of a few years ago. Advanced technologies such as IoT, AI, VR and now drones, have become a part of our daily lives.
“The drone ecosystem & industry in India is on the verge of booming. Our workforce needs to be ready at an early stage to take advantage and know how to apply this technology in real world applications”
There are plenty of roles for drone experts across the globe which will only increase as the years progress. Someone who is interested in robotics and aeronautical engineering can think of becoming a drone developer or manufacturer. Jobs related to maintenance and servicing of drones is also going to be huge in the future. A regular drone operator is going to be in high demand in the near future. A school student having these capabilities from the start will have an edge over the others. Children interested in teaching can look at drone training as a career. Two decades back when new airline companies started sprouting in India, there was a dearth of commercial pilots when flying training organisations made a fortune out of training young pilots. Coding or computer programming is another field where plenty of job opportunities will crop up with data analytics showing its vital usage for many industries.
Others can look at a career related to agriculture, logistics, disaster management or even journalism. Students who have a filming bent can pursue a career in cinematography and take up jobs in movies or do wildlife photography.
Ready for Take Off: What is drone education and why it is the need of the hour
The obvious skill that comes to mind when we talk about a drone is an operator or a drone pilot. However, apart from just flying drones, it is the technology behind it that will be one of most important literacies in the near future. It is important for students to understand the connection between the coolness of flying a drone and the potential applications it can have.
Let’s take a look at how drones can build essential skills that go way beyond the immediately visible benefits.
The programming advantage – User interfaces and operating systems for drone flight control will see software development as one of the pillars in this ecosystem. Companies will see system integration opportunities to bring drone data into IT enterprise systems. Coders will have a keen interest in learning the concepts of a UAV. We see a large number of school students turning into cutting edge coders and software programmers at a very young age. Drone-tech education will surely encourage more computer geeks to get bitten by the programming bug.
Tactile learning – By teaching a student how a drone flies, it becomes easier to understand the basic concepts of physics and mathematics. It is simpler for elementary students to learn how wind impacts a drone’s path in terms of speed, distance and time, along with the laws of physics.
Advanced hand-eye coordination and motor skills – The overall development of a child depends a lot on these skills which are, more often than not, ignored. These are very vital in building a child’s sense of direction, balance, confidence and even reading and writing skills.
The inventors of the future – With no dearth in job opportunities related to drones, the experts can learn to develop more versions of the drone with unique capabilities. With such opportunities in the hardware space, people do not stop only at prototype building, but also reach levels of testing them at airfields for airworthiness.
Understanding electronics – What is a drone without its motherboard? Just like a computer, a drone has various electronic parts that determine how well it can fly and communicate with the controller. Designing of the processor, Wi-Fi module, memory chips, communication ports, etc. is key to the intelligence of the aircraft as all these parts constitute the main processing unit.
“The main objective is to enable early introduction to this amazing technology, which will not only provide an edge in this competitive world but also help develop the drone ecosystem and create leaders in this field”
Given these facts, it becomes imperative for a nation like India to start working towards preparing a workforce that will have the necessary skillsets in the UAV and related subjects. Education experts in our country have been saying that the Indian system needs a revolutionary technological intervention that would make it more inclusive and accessible. Bringing drone technology into our classrooms is certainly one of the ways to achieve this. The future of India, in various sectors, needs highly skilled people and what better way to prepare for this workforce than introducing path-breaking technologies during the early stages of a child’s youth.
Most developed countries start educating their students on future technologies and the career benefits they put forward, at a very young age. Institutes focused on STEM education (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) can be at the forefront to induct the drone-tech course into their system. With more and more schools investing in a hi-tech lab at the school premises, it is just a matter of time before drones are at the helm of riding the technology wave in India.
Propelling forward: It’s always a good time to start
Our country can be the drone-hub of the world if we start planning at the right time. The authorities are doing their job to frame policies, but it is our duty as educators to prepare the workforce of the future by imparting the knowledge to the youth. With drones and associated technologies playing such a big part in the near future it is nothing but logical to prepare and educate our younger generation to enable them to benefit from and contribute towards this technology space.
Keeping this in mind, a comprehensive drone curriculum for schools that will introduce students to drones & associated technologies, industry applications, and a number of linked disciplines such as AI, 3D printing, Data Analysis, Surveying and Mapping, is the need of the hour.
An immersive curriculum through which students can actively take the first step in becoming drone technologists while also learning core skills in data collection & analysis, objective thinking, research & development and product development is increasingly necessary to pursue careers in this rapidly evolving workforce.