AS NATIONS gradually reopen after lockdowns, authorities are using uncrewed aerial vehicles to enforce social distancing rules.
In India, police have turned to drones to monitor curfews and the distance between people outside during the day. Each is fitted with a camera and an artificial intelligence that can detect humans within a range of between 150 metres and 1 kilometre. If it spots people breaking curfew it alerts the police.
The system can also calculate the physical distance between two or more individuals and let the police know if people get too close to one another. “Previously, the police had no idea of where people were gathering, so now they are able to view larger areas,” says Amarjot Singh at Skylark Labs, the firm that developed the drones in use in India.
In the US, authorities in several states have used drones fitted with loudspeakers to play messages urging social distancing. In the UK, Derbyshire Police were criticised for posting drone footage on social media in March that appeared to shame people exercising in the Peak District, even though they were adhering to distancing guidelines.
Drones were also used by Chinese authorities at highway checkpoints in February, when the covid-19 outbreak spread domestically there.
Police departments have been looking for a good excuse to begin to use drones more regularly
“Police departments around the world have been looking for a good excuse to begin to acquire and use drones more regularly,” says Matthew Guariglia at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a civil liberties group based in San Francisco.
Although people might not mind drones being used for public health purposes, the EFF is concerned that their use may continue long afterwards, he says.