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aircraft. The first was to carry cameras for
aerial photography and movie making.
GPS navigation, their gimbal camera
stabilizing device, and communication
data links enabled high-definition video
to be shot and streamed from the robot
flying 200 meters in the air to a tablet
computer.
Far-reaching Autonomous Systems
HKUST is now a global leader in UAV
technology. Building on this success,
Autonomous Systems and Robotics is
among the University’s five strategic areas
for development. Prof Michael Wang,
Director of the new HKUST Robotics
Institute, explained that the field involves
many aspects of technologies from dif-
ferent disciplines. The Institute seeks to
facilitate University-wide activity embrac-
ing electronic, mechanical, aerospace
engineering, computer science, business
and education. For UAVs, the Institute’s
focus will be further enhancement of the
technologies involved to extend business
and civil uses.
Prof Shaojie Shen, Department of
Electronic and Computer Engineering,
is among those leading such advances.
He returned to his alma mater in 2014
after completing doctoral studies at the
University of Pennsylvania because of
HKUST’s strong connections with indus-
try, including DJI, Texas Instruments and
cell phone chip company QUALCOM,
among others. The particular challenge
that Prof Shen is interested in is how to
free UAVs from GPS control, so they can
sense and evaluate the environment, and
respond intelligently to situations they
find while on their flight missions. Drones
currently on the market still depend on
people to ensure their safety in the air.
Indoor Flights
The solutions now being tested, for which
patent applications are already filed, will
give UAVs the sensitivity to fly indoors in
HKUST pioneered autonomous navigation technology, which
enables the flying robot to operate in complex environments
without human piloting.
PROF SHAOJIE SHEN
Assistant Professor of Electronic
and Computer Engineering
In two to three years, the flying robot
will have the mobility to dive into
forests and send medicines to people.
This is not science fiction.
It will happen
