I mean, if you have to result to costly drone inventions, you probably cheaped out massively on fireprevention and protection beforehand... by the looks of that building facade that might also be the case...
As for cooling that gas tank, sure but I feel like there's better options with more consistent pressure and no need to rely on battery life.
I'd guess there's either a tether supplying ground power, or it's a propane-electric model. Some hybrid power UAS can stay in the air for the better part of a day. Admittedly, that's not taking into account the weight it's carrying with the hose in this video, but high-endurance drones are used.
Not particularly expensive. The general concept is already quite commonplace in computer technology. POE, “Power Over Ethernet” provides this supply concept over relatively long distances (300 Feet) via small diameter CAT5/6 Ethernet cables. This same general design I am sure is available attached to a flexible fire hose.
I only see what I assume to be a proper cable attached to the big drone at the end of the video clip and as far as I know Drones normally do not run with a steady power connection to begin with.
I'm no drone pilot however and a nearby department only has a drone for recon and emergency site oversight, so my knowledge of these is limited, I don't remember any of that department saying that these are capable of being supported by cable.
These drones could potentially be used way more effectively in dangerous/hazardous areas where human operators absolutely can not safely be eg. Chemical fire (likely what thebgas tank was) or narrow spaces.
I'll call in to question tactical advantage these have in fighting a highrise fire as you'd be significantly better off letting it burn itself out at higher floors instead of risking significant structural damage due to water amounts and possibly risking safety of people below said fire.
If you worry about the people above the fire, that's why I made the comment about proper prevention and protection being in place via several fireproof staircases et cetera.
I don't know how the "bottom" of these drones looks like, as in, how much in equipment is needed to use them to their fullest, how many engines you need for one, amount of pilots and likewise maintain them at performance with enough batteries or replacement in case of (what I'd expect to happen) damage by falling objects or heat in these situations.
Like hey, these clearly keep their distance, so I suspect they are of light but not fire retardant material.
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u/DerKaempfer_HD German Volunteer Firefighter 13d ago
I mean, if you have to result to costly drone inventions, you probably cheaped out massively on fireprevention and protection beforehand... by the looks of that building facade that might also be the case...
As for cooling that gas tank, sure but I feel like there's better options with more consistent pressure and no need to rely on battery life.