Drones to monitor Abu Dhabi in full HD video

Staff Reporter / 26 October 2014

The technical affairs department has introduced new technical specifications for its fleet of seven unmanned drones to include capturing footage using full HD video technology. 

The remote-controlled drones of the Ministry of Interior have been upgraded to capture full HD footage.
The drones were launched in 2010 to help develop policing systems; methods for handling emergencies; to promote security and safety using modern and innovative methods; and to elevate the police work system and its new concepts.

Drones award inks MoU with Microsoft Staff Reporter dubai — The UAE Drones for Good Award has signed a memorandum of understanding with Microsoft that will help create additional applications for drones, which leverage unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) for civilian and humanitarian purposes. The award was launched by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, during the UAE Government Summit in 2014. The award honours innovations that contribute to recruitment of IT UAVs in the development of government services and provide value-added services to improve human life. The award encompasses two local prizes worth Dh1 million and an international one worth Dh1 million. Microsoft will promote the competition to Imagine Cup participants from universities in the UAE, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar until April 2015. The Drones for Good programme will provide competitors access to Microsoft’s DreamSpark software, where five full days of training will be provided to the students on app development for drone usage and applications, in addition to two full days of training on leveraging Azure for drones. Saif Al Aleeli, UAE Drones For Good Award project manager, said, “Microsoft is one of the global leaders in innovation and software as well as providing software solutions. Being among the partners of this award is ... an added value for both the local and international facets of the award.” news@khaleejtimes.com

Major Jamal Al Hosani, chief of technical affairs at the security media department of the General Secretariat of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, said: “The technical affairs department has introduced new technical specifications for its fleet of seven unmanned drones to include capturing footage of hard-to-reach areas such as traffic accidents, fires and major events using full HD video technology which provides a resolution that is substantially higher than that of the previously used standard definition (SD).
The drones are equipped with dual day/night cameras to capture the most accurate details, as well as a zooming feature for filming footage from afar.”
He also noted that the newly updated drones provide leaders with a unique airborne perspective of the incident via live streaming. Through special applications available for the Security Media field patrols, the drones transmit the captured footage directly to the Central Operations Room.
The drones provide media support for the Security Media field patrols, which were recently launched to cover the events that take place on the roads of Abu Dhabi round the clock.

“The crew that operates the drone is made up of qualified national cadres (an operator and a controller per drone) to handle accidents at sites that may pose a risk to civilians, making it possible to obtain accurate and detailed footage of the events.”