“We
truly believe that Brainflight represents the beginning of a tremendous step
change in the aviation field, empowering pilots and de-risking missions, and
we're looking forward to deliver these benefits to the market with highly
innovative products”
Tekever CEO Ricardo
Mendes, speaking to BBC News about the use of Brainwaves in their product
Brainflight to fly UAS or Drones
The
Innovation space within the UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) or Drones keeps
getting wider and wider.
Now,
thanks to the inclusion of special software and an EEG
(Electro-encephalograph), Drone designer company Tekever has made it possible
to fly a Drone using your thoughts as noted in the article “Brain-controlled drone shown
off by Tekever in Lisbon”, published 25 February 2015, BBC News.
The
company, which works with security firms, police forces and the military,
recently demonstrated their new concept in Lisbon, Portugal called Brainflight
in a test flight as shown above. But is it safe? And is this the future?
Tekever Drone
controlled by Beta Waves – How Autonomous All-Electric Airplanes can be
controlled using Brainwaves
The
Brainflight concept is really simple. The Human Brain produces the following
Brainwaves which
consist of three (3) types of brainwaves named after letter in the Greek
Alphabet:
1.
Alpha
Waves associated with relaxation
2.
Beta
Waves associated with concentration
3.
Gamma
Waves associated with consciousness during wakefulness i.e. Lucid Dreaming
The
potential pilots undergoing months of training to focus moving a small circle
on a computer screen either up or down. This helps them to train their Beta
Waves (concentration) and thus allow them
to control the aircrafts motion in the air.
Should in case the Pilot lose concentration, failsafe software is standing by to take over control of the aircraft, should it detect erratic Brainwave patterns inconsistent with a proper flight procedure. To quote Tekever CEO Ricardo Mende: “There are algorithms on board that prevent bad things from happening”.
Brain Controlled Aircraft – Windmills in your Mind to control of Autonomous Drones
Granted,
people are already dabbling with the idea of autonomous aircraft as noted in my
blog article
entitled “ASTRAEA
Consortium makes first Inaugural flight of an Autonomous Passenger Aircraft in
April 2013 - Greek Goddeses Daughter of Zeus are now The Kings of Summer”.
To
be honest, the focus in the Aircraft Industry is focused more on using less
Fossil Fuels, possibly even going All-Electric in a move mimicking All-Electric
Vehicles on the ground, as is the case with Airbus Group and their E-Fan
All-Electric Training Aircraft as explained in my blog article
entitled “Airbus
Group and the E-Fan – EU's Flightpath 2050 heralds All-Electric Aircraft as
Fischer–Tropsch Process makes Kerosene Renewable”.
But
there is also a trend towards All-Electric Vehicles that can pilot themselves
Autonomously, to the point that even Great Britain is investing some US$29
million (£19 million) in a technology that can radically revolutionize Transportation
in Britain as explained in my blog article
entitled “How
Britain will make US$29 billion from Driverless Cars by 2025 - British
Government's US$29 million Driverless Vehicles Gamble”.
And
in Australia, Mining Company Rio Tinto already has Trucks that are remotely
controlled with the Supervisors monitoring their activity of the mine from
their NOC (Network Operations Center) as explained in my blog article
entitled “Australia
and Robots in Farming and Mining - Why Programming taught at Early Childhood
necessary as Robots and Drones need Drone Pilots, Supervisors and Engineers”.
Human Consciousness in
All-Electric Vehicles – the Windmills in your Mind take Flight
Eventually
this trend will spread to the skies.
But
in order to track the planes in flight, the idea of connecting the Pilot’s
brain to the aircraft from the ground, bypassing his hands being used on a
joystick, is somewhat radical and may be difficult to accept by many, says, a
London-based independent aviation consultant John Strickland, quote: “This to
me is certainly at the moment a bridge too far”.
Best of all, this idea by Tekever may be a solution to Autonomous Drones flying out of line of sight, which is not allowed under the recently formulated UAS Guidelines as laid down by the FAA (Federal Aviation Authority) in the US of A as reported in my blog article entitled “FAA's Regulations for Drones - How UAS Benefit American Economy despite Restrictive FAA Regulations by 2016”.
It
may even be possibly for humans to also upload their consciousness into these
self-driving vehicles, making them as one with the Autonomous All-Electric Vehicle,
be it a Motor Vehicle or even an Airplane. No wonder London-based independent
aviation consultant John Strickland said we may have just gone too far!
This
is an eventual possibility, once the EEG tech becomes more sensitive and can
cancel out “brain noise” and also have an autonomous system that can takeover,
should in case the Pilot have an epileptic seizure, a stroke or just doze off.
The
Future of Autonomous Drones may be powered by the very windmills in your Mind.
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