Flying Robots Are Coming to US Universities

Flying Robots Are Coming to US Universities

Flying devices, called drones, may be one of the most important technologies of the future.

The number of jobs for people who know how to design, build and control them is increasing.

Because of this increase, several U.S. universities and colleges started offering degrees in unmanned aerial systems, or UAS.

One of these universities is the University of Washington in Seattle. Christopher Lum is an aeronautics¹ research scientist with the university's Autonomous² Flight Systems Laboratory. Lum helps students explore how civilian³ drones can safely share the skies with regular aircraft.

Ryan Valach loves the three years he spent in the flight lab.

"One of the coolest parts is [working] with industries and all the cool technology we work with. It is a definitely an opportunity that a lot of students don't usually get," he said.

Ward⁴ Handley is seeking a master's degree in aeronautics and astronautics at University of Washington. When the drone program first began, he did not think it was a good idea.

"I … decided⁵, no I do not want to work on drones because of the privacy issues," he said. Drones can be used to invade people's privacy.

But when an offer for a paid position in the drone lab appeared, Handley changed his opinion.

He said, "I'd like to see them used for good rather than [bad]. I think there are good enough [purposes] for them that are really useful.”

However, the Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA, is creating new rules to control the use of drones. The FAA is the part of the U.S. government that controls air travel and traffic.

A new FAA law requires drone owners to register their drones. All drones must be registered in a government database by February 19, 2016. People who do not register their drones could face fines of up to $20,000.

Changing current rules may also present problems for students looking for drone-pilot experience. One problem for many school's unmanned aerial systems programs is finding a legal place to fly.

Students at Blue Mountain Community College in Pendleton, Oregon fly inside the college gymnasium.

In Seattle, University of Washington student Alec Bueing showed off the place where his department tests the drones. "It's just a [big] room that we move the tables and chairs out of. ... If it happens to get out of control toward the windows we [reduce] any damage," he explained.

Lum explained why they test drones inside a building. He said it takes a very long time to get official permission to fly outside.

"The federal [laws] are a little bit [restricting]. ... We need to register our aircraft. We need to [get] what is called a Certificate of Authorization," Lum said.

That process can take months.

The FAA wants to replace the way it examines requests to register drones. Now, the FAA looks at each case differently. The organization wants to create a national rule for civil UAS, and UAS used for business, later in 2016.

"At this time, Kansas State University is the only school with … [permission] to offer unmanned aircraft flight [classes] to students [outside]," an FAA representative wrote.

The FAA selected Kansas State and 15 other universities to be part of a national academic research group, called the Center of Excellence⁶ for UAS. The group will receive federal money to expand research and training.

Also in the group is the University of North Dakota. The university is the first to offer a UAS degree.

Lum and some of his students recently moved their research to Australia. Australia has fewer rules governing UAS. A professor at Western Washington University also took his department's drones to Canada for the same reason. 

Words in This Story

unmanned aerial systems – n. flying vehicles or machines controlled either by onboard computers or by the pilot on the ground or in another vehicle

aeronautics – n. a science that deals with airplanes and flying

aircraft – n. a machine such as an airplane or a helicopter that flies through the air

master's degree – n. a degree a college or university gives to a student usually after one or two years of additional study following a bachelor's degree

astronautics – n. the science and technology of human space travel and exploration

privacy – n. the state of being away from public attention

database – n. a collection of pieces of information that is organized and used on a computer

gymnasium – n. a room or building that has equipment for sports activities or exercise

show(ed) off – p.v. to cause a lot of people to see or notice someone or something of which you think highly

academic – adj. of or relating to schools and education

1 aeronautics   

n.航空术，航空学

参考例句：

• National Aeronautics and Space undertakings have made great progress.国家的航空航天事业有了很大的发展。
• He devoted every spare moment to aeronautics.他把他所有多余的时间用在航空学上。

2 autonomous   

adj.自治的；独立的

参考例句：

• They proudly declared themselves part of a new autonomous province.他们自豪地宣布成为新自治省的一部分。
• This is a matter that comes within the jurisdiction of the autonomous region.这件事是属于自治区权限以内的事务。

3 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

4 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 excellence   

n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德

参考例句：

• His art has reached a high degree of excellence.他的艺术已达到炉火纯青的地步。
• My performance is far below excellence.我的表演离优秀还差得远呢。