SHERPA

Yes, drones have gotten a nasty rap. Their usefulness in spying and high-explosive assassinations have most people fearful of their negative potential if misused. And of course when the machines rise up they’ll hunt us mercilessly from the sky, I think that’s a given. But the SHERPA (Smart collaboration between Humans and ground-aErial Robots for imProving rescuing activities in Alpine environments) drone system isn’t a killer. It’s more like a loyal St. Bernard bringing much needed aid to lost souls, although sorry, no cask of brandy around its neck. The SHERPA drone system is designed people lost in the Italian Alps. It will actually consist of both flying robots and an on-the-ground rescue robot rovoer. Covering search areas semi-autonomously, they will work in tandem and in cooperation with human workers to find and rescue people during disasters like avalanches, going into places that are too dangerous for humans to cover. The SHERPA ground rover serves as a base and a charging station for the flying robots and for other rescue