The Federal Aviation Administration estimates that there will be 2.5 million drones in use in the United States by the end of 2016 with that number tripling to more than 7 million by 2020 (Meola, 2016). Drones are currently utilized in agriculture, filmmaking, conservation, search and rescue, military operations, and energy infrastructure. And Amazon announced in 2015 that it’s working to develop Amazon Prime Air, a service that would use drones to deliver small packages to their consumers’ doorsteps (Amazon, 2015).
While this has yet to become a reality, a cargo much more precious and valuable is already being delivered by giant quadcopters: humans! This new “drone taxi,” named the Ehang 184, can carry a single passenger to a predetermined destination without a pilot at speeds of up to 62 miles an hour on a 23-minute flight (Hsu, 2016). The Chinese company EHang premiered the drone at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January 2016. It showed passengers using their tablets to set the destination information and clicking for takeoff and landing. The drone does the rest! With four arms and eight propellers, this megadrone is entirely electric and comes equipped with several safety systems in case of failure. The drone, according to Ehang, has a worldwide series of demo flights scheduled to begin soon. They also say the Ehang 184 should be commercially available this year with prices possibly in the $200,000 to $300,000 range.
There are many uses for these kinds of autonomous flying machines other than taxi service. The military is interested in using them for such missions as flying injured soldiers from a battlefield or delivering cargo. They are currently using the K-MAX unmanned cargo helicopter developed by Lockheed Martin and built by Kaman Aerospace; the drone has flown more than 1900 combat missions, delivering cargo for the U.S. Marine Corps. In addition, the Israeli company Tactical Robotics is developing an ambulance drone called the AirMule, which will be able to lift two wounded soldiers for a 31-mile trip. This use of drones in the military is a perfect example of utilizing robotic technology to save lives and avoid putting other lives in danger (Hsu, 2016).
If you have not heard about drone racing yet, you will soon. Drone racing is anticipated to be the next major global sport. Since 2014, there have been thousands of events held around the world. Over the next several years, this new sport is expected to attract millions of dollars in event sponsorship, broadcast rights, and profits in merchandise sales. Some estimates assert that the sport of drone racing will be a multibillion-dollar sport within the next 10 years.
According to AUVSI, the market for commercial drones is predicted to reach $82.1 billion by 2025. Currently, the development of drone technology costs an estimated $6.4 billion dollars a year (Dillow, 2013), and it is expected that drone technology will send data to the ever-expanding Internet of Things. Drones are being sent to Alaska to gather data for oil companies while CNN has been approved to use them for news gathering. Drones are also being utilized for precision agriculture, mining, security, and wildlife preservation; and as a result, drone jobs are abundant (Thompson, 2015). By 2025, there will be an expected 100,000 new drone-related jobs. Consider the utility of drones accompanying journalists, police officers, and home contractors to assist in these and many other professions.
In order to meet this demand for the workforce, many organizations are calling for STEM programs in K–12 and in higher education. Experimentation with drones in K–12 schools teaches students firsthand how drones can be useful in teaching, learning, research, and as a service to society. The National Science Foundation urges K–12 schools to incorporate engineering and STEM-related curricula in the precollege years. More STEM-trained students will be needed to secure the future of the United States as a leader in this area.
As technological advances continue across the globe, the introduction of STEM-based curricula in engineering and related content areas will help students succeed in meeting these needs. Ineffective K–12 STEM preparation is currently reflected in students’ performance in college STEM courses. Many students are not choosing STEM-related majors when they enter college; more than 50% of science and engineering graduates from U.S. research universities are students from outside the United States according to the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (Holden, Lander & Varmus, 2010).
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that in the next decade, many of the nation’s fastest-growing jobs will be filled with employees who have a strong skill set in STEM-related academic areas. These jobs include computer and information research scientists, software developers, software engineers, and mathematicians. The computer and information research scientist occupation is expected to show a growth of 4100 jobs, or a 15% increase—a faster increase than the national average. For software developers, the bureau predicts that from 2012 to 2022 there will be an increase of 222,600 jobs, or a 22% growth—much faster than the national average (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016).
Websites such as JobsinDrones.com and UAVCoach.com advertise hundreds of drone-related jobs each day. The descriptions range from drone camera operators for movies to licensed pilots to perform inspections of aerial towers. Based in Monrovia, California, AeroVironment is a company that makes small drones sold mostly to the military and used primarily to gather information. In 2016, the company hired 50 new employees and seeks to hire 50 more before the year is out.