AIRBORNE HELP: THE POTENTIAL POSITIVE EFFECTS OF DRONES IN SOCIETY 1

Airborne Help: The Potential Positive Effects of Drones in Society

Hadiqa Rehan

Michigan Islamic Academy

AIRBORNE HELP: THE POTENTIAL POSITIVE EFFECTS OF DRONES IN SOCIETY 2

Abstract

Drones hold a strong stigma as solely a weapon of mass destruction. This paper strives to

inform the general public of the benefits of drones, as well as their functionality.
AIRBORNE HELP: THE POTENTIAL POSITIVE EFFECTS OF DRONES IN SOCIETY 3

Airborne Help: The Potential Positive Effects of Drones in Society

Many natural and manmade disasters occur around the world, leaving countless people

isolated from food and medical supplies during emergencies, especially in places like central

Africa. One in eight people worldwide die due to starvation, exceeding the population of the

United States, Canada, and the European Union combined ("Action Against Hunger logo").

Hunger claims more lives than Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), malaria, and

tuberculosis combined. Thirty four million children die every year due to a hunger related

disease which can easily be prevented or treated ("Action Against Hunger logo"). Under

normal circumstances, these people cannot get medical supplies or food because they live in

areas that lack things like roads, which make it nearly impossible to deliver supplies. A quick

and easy solution is to send these supplies on a drone to specified locations. Drones are often

stereotyped as weapons of mass destruction due to their well-established history. Drones are

not limited to dropping bombs, they can pick up and drop off medical supplies and food as

well, saving numerous lives. One type of drone is called a quadcopter which is a

self-automated helicopter with four motors which gives the quadcopter more agility and allows

it to take off vertically in the air, as opposed to an airplane which needs a runway. Although

drones are thought to be weapons of mass destruction, they are in fact very useful and

beneficial and should be used to help people. Drones can be used as an emergency vehicle to

transport materials and supplies to places where conventional paths cannot reach.
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Methodology

The theoretical framework of the project includes the quadcopter being programmed to

acquire and deliver supplies from one area to another through Global Positioning System

(GPS) when given a command. This allows the distribution of supplies in times of need

especially when conventional transport may not be available. The copter is able to maneuver

past any obstacles in its path because it possesses sensors that help it see and move

accordingly.

Review of Related Projects

There is already a program called Zipline which implements drone usage and has thus

far been a huge success. Zipline is a project started by the United States is made up of

engineers who formerly worked at Space X, Google, Lockheed Martin and other tech

companies. Zipline is a drone delivery service, carrying blood and medical supplies throughout

the country of Rwanda. The Zipline drone design is similar to that of an airplane. The drone is

autonomous and can fly to destinations in the central African nation and can drop supplies in a

package secured by a parachute within four parking spaces of the intended target/ destination.

The Zipline drone can be fully utilized to work by sending it text messages, using GPS to go to

and from locations. The motivation of the Zipline project was the millions of deaths of children
AIRBORNE HELP: THE POTENTIAL POSITIVE EFFECTS OF DRONES IN SOCIETY 5

under the age of five due to starvation and the 150,000 pregnancy related deaths that happen

yearly in Rwanda (Stewart, 2016). These deaths are often due to both a lack of medical

supplies, such as safe blood, and the inability for supplies to be transported caused by difficult

landscape and in outdated or faulty infrastructure. The Zipline project has been instituted in

Africa, including project to deliver blood samples in Madagascar, and a Red Cross initiative to

monitor a refugee camp in Uganda.

Types of Humanitarian Aid

There are multiple financial aid programs that are sponsored by the United Nations.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is in nearly two hundred countries to

reduce poverty and inequality. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) works to ensure

that infants, children, adolescents, and mothers, are able to access HIV prevention, treatment,

care and support. UNICEF makes HIV prevention, testing, and treatment as widely available,

including in remote area and minorities. UNICEF works to integrate HIV education and care

into maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health services. The United Nations also

sponsored the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The UNHCR

provides critical emergency assistance in the form of clean water, sanitation, healthcare,

shelter, blankets, household goods and food. The UNHCR arrange transport and assistance

packages for people who return home, and who resettle. It also works hard to help millions of
AIRBORNE HELP: THE POTENTIAL POSITIVE EFFECTS OF DRONES IN SOCIETY 6

people all over the world rebuild broken lives. The Joint United Nations Programme

(UNAIDS) on HIV/AIDS is co-sponsored by ten UN system agencies: the UNHCR, the

UNICEF, the WFP, the UNDP, the UNFPA, the UNODC, the ILO, the UNESCO, the WHO,

and the World Bank. The World Food Programme (WFP) aims to eradicate hunger by feeding

almost 80 million people in 75 countries every year. The United Nations Relief and Works

Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) is an extension of the UN Refugee Agency

(UNHCR) and has contributed to the welfare and human development of four generations of

Palestine refugees. The UNRWA services encompass education, health care, relief services,

social services, camp infrastructure, improvement, and emergency assistance, including in

times of armed conflict. The World Health Organization (WHO) is the directing and

coordinating authority on international health within the United Nations system. The WHO

strives to give all people the highest possible level of health physically, mentally, and social

well-being in addition to the absence of disease. The Food and Agriculture Organization

(FAO) leads international efforts to fight hunger and a source of technical knowledge and

information to aid development.

Agencies in Charge of Transportation in the United Nations

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has created a shipping regulation

framework, addressing safety and environmental concerns, legal matters, technical

AIRBORNE HELP: THE POTENTIAL POSITIVE EFFECTS OF DRONES IN SOCIETY 7

cooperation, security, and efficiency. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

facilitates the free international exchange of meteorological data and information and its use in

aviation, shipping, security, and agriculture, among other things. The International Civilian

Aviation Organization (ICAO) sets international rules on air navigation, the investigation of

air accidents, and aerial border-crossing procedures. The International Telecommunication

Union (ITU) is the United Nations specialized agency for information and communication

technologies. It is committed to connecting all the world's people and protect and support

everyone's fundamental right to communicate. Since these agencies are in charge of

transportation and the like, they will be the ones who will regulate the use of drones to

Functions of a Quadcopter

The quadcopter has a motor on each of its four arms, hence the name. The quadcopter

has two computers, one that follows a programmable code using GPS to run a code in order to

fly to its destination and the other that works as a flight controller to make sure the quadcopter

does not crash. The reason these two separate computers are installed into the quadcopter is in

case the quadcopter acts unexpectedly or the code from the first computer does not work. The

quadcopter can adjust its position through feedback from the camera and sensors.

Scope and Limitations of Quadcopter

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There are multiple benefits as well as advantages a quadcopter has to an airplane. A

quadcopter take up less space than the Zipline drone, allowing the quadcopter to pass through

narrower areas. Compared to a plane, the quadcopter does not need a runway to land. It can

easily rise into the air vertically just like a helicopter due to its design. The quadcopter can also

transport supplies with less risk of breaking glass containers. This is because they do not

require the need to use a parachute to pass on supplies. The quadcopter can be programmed to

grab necessary supplies by itself to transport via GPS. Quadcopters consume more energy than

airplanes, reducing the distance they can travel. Many aerial vehicles, such as drones, are

prone to crashing into obstacles in their path. After the weather, trees are the biggest obstacles.

Since many tree branches are skinny and random, a drones sensors may not see the

branches and crash into it, which may result in dropping its cargo.

Personal Experience

For my project, I used the Intel Aero Platform for UAVs (Unmanned Aero Vehicles)

which uses the Intel Aero Ready to Fly Model (RTF) quadcopter drone. The model was

announced in the summer of 2016 and pre-ordered in September 2016. The quadcopter arrived

in February 2017. This quadcopter was relatively new, as such there was not much

documentation regarding its usage. The quadcopter uses the Robot Operating System (ROS),

as its operating system. ROS is a system used by undergraduates to postdoctoral in addition to

AIRBORNE HELP: THE POTENTIAL POSITIVE EFFECTS OF DRONES IN SOCIETY 9

being used in industrial designs. On the other hand, programs such as Python and c++ are

made for high school and middle school learners and users. As a result, the quadcopter could

not be programmed to move from one location to another using GPS.

Islamic Approach

Everyday many people die due to a shortage of supplies in food and medicine. Using a

quadcopter, some of this suffering can be alleviated by delivering these supplies to the desired

destinations via quadcopter. It is part of a Muslims responsibility to help the less fortunate

around the world. Allah helps those who help others, and lessens the burdens on the day of

judgment of one who lessened the burden of another. This is mentioned in several hadith and

ayat in the quran. For example, in surah Ma'idah Allah (SWT) instructs us, Help each

other to goodness and heedfulness. Do not help each other to wrongdoing and enmity. Heed

Allah. Allah (SWT) is severe in retribution (Yahya). He also tells us in Surah Insan, (The

righteous are those) who feed the poor, the orphan and the captive for the love of God

("Quran & Hadith on Feeding the Poor/Hungry", 2016).

Another thing to consider is Sadaqah Jariyah. Sadaqah Jariyah simply means a

continuous charity. A continuous charity is an action that someone does that remains active

and earns a person good deeds from Allah (SWT) even after the person is long dead. Sadaqah
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and Zakah both are translated into charity but the former is an optional charity while the latter

is an obligatory charity that must be given yearly (by the lunar calendar) given that one has

enough wealth to support himself and his family without any qualms. There are two main types

of Sadaqah Jariyah. The first is if one is to teach knowledge that is useful, and positive change

is brought because of that knowledge. The one who taught the original knowledge is rewarded

the act of teaching the concept in addition to getting a copy of good deeds from those who used

the knowledge for the greater good. The second type of Sadaqah Jariyah is where one

starts/builds something beneficial, such as a masjid, school, hospital, etc. These institutions

usually stay in place for generations and help many people over the years. The drone falls into

the second type of Sadaqah Jariyah because it starts a tradition that helps many people by

transporting necessary supplies from location to another whenever regular transportation routes

are unavailable. All of these deeds are rewarded, Allah (SWT) says in Surah Ash-Shura ayah

23, If anyone does a good action, We will increase the good of it for him. "Allah is

Ever-Forgiving, Ever-Thankful" (Yahya).

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