The Rise of UAVs
Anthony R. Cummings, Arlo McKee, Keyur Kulkarni, and Nakul Markandey
Abstract
Unmanned aerial vehicles (
UAVs
) are significantly changing
the field of remote sensing. Seasoned scholars, enthusiasts,
and novices alike are adapting
UAVs
to better understand our
world. In this paper, we provide an overview of the implica-
tions of the continued integration of
UAVs
into civilian remote
sensing. Our review suggests that
UAV
technical capabilities
rival that of conventional airborne remote sensing, while the
flexibility and agility of
UAVs
allow these devices to be used to
study phenomena not previously possible. While commercial-
ly-built
UAVs
are favored in commercial applications, do-it-
yourself forums are allowing scholars to benefit from these
devices. But while there is excitement around
UAVs
, ethical,
safety, and privacy concerns continue to linger. Therefore, in
urging scholars to embrace
UAV
technologies, we caution them
to take steps to ensure good choices are made so that both
humanity and remote sensing can continue to benefit from
the presence of these devices.
Introduction
The integration of unmanned aerial vehicles (
UAVs
) into civil-
ian-related remote sensing is significantly changing the field.
Seasoned scholars, enthusiasts, and novices alike are gravitat-
ing towards
UAVs
to enhance their ability to explore the world.
This strong interest in
UAVs
has essentially challenged the
technology
aspect of Colwell’s
1
(1997) definition of photo-
grammetry and remote sensing, offering fresh perspectives to
both vertical and oblique photography. Similarly, the agility
and flexibility of
UAVs
are challenging the definitions of image
resolution, particularly its spatial and temporal components.
Beyond conventional remote sensing,
UAVs
are poised for
significant impacts in marketing (e.g., Dillow, 2015), delivery
services (Mac, 2015), and healtahcare, including pharmaceuti-
cal delivery and ambulatory care (e.g., Biggs, 2014).
UAVs
are
transforming movie making and photography (Gross, 2014;
Watercutter, 2015), search and rescue operations and disaster
management (Kelly, 2013). Furthermore,
UAVs
have changed
the way wars are fought and conceptualized (e.g., Birtchnell
and Gibson, 2015). In essence,
UAVs
are changing our percep-
tions on the way tasks that had traditionally been restricted to
satellites, airplanes, skilled cameramen, and battle-hardened
soldiers are completed.
Perhaps the strongest signal that
UAVs
have arrived into the
civilian world was the projection that more than one million
units would be sold for Christmas 2015 (Reed, 2015). While
most of these units were targeted at non-professional us-
ers, they offered an entry point to remote sensing and image
analysis as most were equipped with high definition cameras.
Beyond the Christmas season,
UAVs
of various sizes and func-
tionalities are now available across the US from neighborhood
hobby and camera stores, electronic and department stores,
and even gas stations and pharmacies. Further,
UAV
parts can
be purchased from online and in hobby stores, allowing an
enthusiast with the patience, electronic skills, and a willing-
ness to read and explore online tutorials to put together their
own device. Additionally, there are numerous user sup-
port groups that facilitate learning about
UAV
hardware and
software development, sharing lessons learned on flying, data
collection and processing (e.g.,
and the
North Texas Drone User Group,
).
Interest in
UAVs
is projected to continue to grow in the
coming years. In light of these projections, we explore how
UAVs
have risen in civilian remote sensing over the years and
some of the challenges associated with this rise. We frame our
analysis within two primary sections. First, we provide an
overview of the investment and technical capabilities associ-
ated with
UAV
, on the backdrop of the terminologies associ-
ated with these devices and their integration into commercial
applications in the US. We also provide a brief overview of
UAV
adoption for environmental management applications.
In the second section, we discuss the current legal infrastruc-
ture for
UAVs
in the US, while exploring the ethical, privacy,
and safety concerns associated with their usage. We remind
scholars that despite the rapid integration of
UAVs
into civil-
ian remote sensing, significant ethical, safety, and privacy
concerns remain associated with their use. We draw on both
the existing literature and our own observations to caution
that
UAV
operation can lead to less than favorable outcomes.
We posit that the experiences and chronicles of failure in the
literature and media mean that every
UAV
user needs to prac-
tice care as they utilize these devices. In the absence of such
care, scientists and good-intentioned explorers can quickly
become a part or subject of the news, and less than careful de-
cision making can compromise the potential for much needed
remote sensing-related exploration that these devices allow.
Methodology
Our approach to examining the rise of
UAVs
included an
exploration of the peer-reviewed literature and the enor-
mous library available on the internet. A series of searches
in Google Scholar and
SCOPUS
were completed to understand
the rise of
UAVs
. In addition to research articles available from
these databases, we consulted online sources, including the
Federal Aviation Administration’s (
FAA
) website. To ensure
search results yielded only remotely controlled vehicles, and
not unrelated subjects such as Upstream Activation Sequence
(
UAV
) and University of Alaska Southeast (
UAS
), search terms
for Google
®
and
SCOPUS
were adjusted to focus on aerial
platforms. In the case of the term “Drone”, a Boolean opera-
tor was applied ([“Unmanned Aerial Vehicle” AND “Drone”]
OR [“Unmanned Aerial System” AND “Drone”]) to the two
databases in order to retrieve only those entries relevant to
1. Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing are the art, science and
technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects
and the environment, through a process of recording, measuring and
interpreting imagery and digital representations of energy patterns
derived from noncontact sensor systems.
School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences, The
University of Texas at Dallas, 800 W. Campbell Road,
Richardson, Texas 75080 (
.
Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing
Vol. 83, No. 4, April 2017, pp. 317–325.
0099-1112/17/317–325
© 2017 American Society for Photogrammetry
and Remote Sensing
doi: 10.14358/PERS.83.4.317
PHOTOGRAMMETRIC ENGINEERING & REMOTE SENSING
April 2017
317
