There was a time when manufacturers shied away from the emotionally-charged word “drone,” but Kenai Peninsula innovator John Parker said times are changing…
Parker: “People are still concerned about their privacy, as well they should be, and the professionals that are int his industry and the law enforcement that is using this technology is all very, very well aware of the need to protect the citizen’s privacy in using this equipment. I think that’s really changed a great deal, so now people when they hear the word ‘drone’ are not so fearful or have a great deal of trepidation as a result of hearing that word.”
Parker’s company, Integrated Robotics, provides small to medium sized drones which can be equipped with color or infrared cameras.
Parker sits on the Unmanned Aircraft System legislative task force for Alaska. He says they spent their first year deciding how to protect citizens’ constitutional rights to privacy…
Parker: “Up until a year or so ago, when Jeff Bezos, the owner of Amazon, did that video of landing a package on a fellow’s front porch, the nation’s perception of what UAVs was was focussed around privacy and fear that this equipment would be used to invade people’s privacy by peeking in their windows and things of that nature. Pretty much, in many ways, that’s gone away.”
It’s taken time, but the drone builder believes the public has come to trust the industry now that the use of drones has been demonstrated. He points to last year’s Funny River Fire as an example of drones being used for their rightful purpose. During the fire, drones were sent in where humans could not go, bringing back crucial data on the fire’s overnight movements.
Integrated Robotics currently has its drones built in France, but Parker is hoping to relocate that industry to the Kenai Peninsula.