Drones for Commercial Use Becoming Reality
Drones for Commercial Use Becoming Reality
  • By Yeon Choul-woong (bruceyeon@koreaittimes.com)
  • 승인 2015.05.28 19:04
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Drones, previously regarded as exclusive device to the military industry, are recently emerging in the private sector and becoming available to everyone.

According to a public web facility of Google, Google Trends, keyword search results of drones, an aircraft without a human pilot aboard, first emerged in 2010 and has seen a rapid growth since then. They are gaining a spotlight among ordinary users as new and luxury hobbies.

Drones for commercial use still account for less than 10 percent of the entire unmanned aerial vehicle market. However, the market is predicted to grow 55 percent on-year to reach $130 million this year, according to the Consumer Electronics Association.

A market research firm BI Intelligence also expects that the global drone market will grow to $11.7 billion by 2023, and the commercial drones will account for 12 percent. The demand on the unmanned aerial vehicle is expected to increase in the Asia Pacific region along with European regions, the firm said.

Here in South Korea, the drone market is also expected to rise even though it is still at the nascent stage. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said the market will grow to 600 billion won by 2022 at home.

According to Korea’s largest online shopping malls Coupang and G-Market, the drone sales in the January and February period grew twice compared to the same period of the previous year. A growing number of people controlling their drones as a hobby is spotted near riversides or parks.

The application of drones are not limited to hobbies only. Drone delivery technology is already so much advanced globally though it is not yet commercialized in Korea. In the U.S. and some countries in Europe, drone delivery services are already being offered or set to be unveiled.

Germany’s largest delivery firm DHL started services using drone “Parcelcopter 2.0” since last September. America’s largest online shopping mall Amazon obtained a technology patent “Prime Air” to deliver goods using drones. They are slated to provide services to deliver goods to the users soon. The firm already received an approval from the Federal Aviation Administration, aiming to commercialize it within this year.

Market observers say the reasons behind the growing popularity of its commercial use is that the performance of its camera and sensors has much improved in recent years. The cameras installed in the drones are able to secure more precise sights and can be used in more extensive areas including surveillance, reconnaissance and trace. Its infrared ray’s sensors can track out at night.

Experts have, however, voiced concerns over casualties, which may be caused by crash or collision of drones. Commercial drones are still not equipped with advanced system to prevent collision unlike passenger planes. Also, as they fly at low altitude, there is a high chance that they may hit obstacles such as high-rise buildings or steeples.

“Some models weigh around 11 kilograms and fly at 80km. If they crash into a building, it may cause a fatal accident,” said an official from the Korean Drone Association.

Apart from the collision issues, privacy is also becoming a concern for the devices.

In the U.S and Europe, many controversies have been arising as some paparazzi are using drones to take pictures of celebrities. Drones equipped with cameras are not yet subject to the personal information protection law.

Experts say in order to commercialize the drone industry, policy measures should be laid out first.

“In order to deal with issues such as collision and privacy, more detailed regulations and institutions should come up,” said an official from the Korean Drone Association.

By Yeon Choul-woong


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