Drones to prevent suicides from high-rise buildings

Shaikh Sultan bin Mohammed watching a child using building blocks at the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry stall - Photos by M Sajjad

Sharjah - Speaking to Khaleej Times, Lt. Omar Bu Khalifa, director of the legal applications and technical support, said the drone was launched for security purposes.

Afkar Ali Ahmed

Published: Mon 21 Nov 2016, 8:06 PM

Last updated: Mon 21 Nov 2016, 10:02 PM

As part of the innovation week organised at Expo Centre by the Sharjah Media Centre, the Sharjah Police displayed a drone called (sakhab) designed to prevent suicide from the high rise buildings.
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Lt. Omar Bu Khalifa, director of the legal applications and technical support, said the drone was launched for security purposes. This year alone, 23 suicide attempts have been reported from various parts of Sharjah, he said.
The drone functions at a speed of 45kmph and it can reach to very high levels. It is equipped with 4k cameras which helps detect the movement of the person who is attempting suicide. It thus gives the police the time to save him. The drones have speakers fitted with a SIM card to help the police communicate and negotiate with person trying to commit suicide.
The drone can also be used in cases of protests or rallies, in fire accidents and drownings. It can survey the sea and in case of fires, it can fly above high rises and notify residents to evacuate.
The cameras attached in the drone are linked to the operations room of the police. The battery of the drone lasts for 20 minutes, when it has to return to the base for recharging.
At a cost of Dh100,00, the police are planning to increase the number of Sakhab to make it available to all patrols.
His Highness Shaikh Sultan bin Mohammed bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Sharjah, who inaugurated the Innovation Week activities at the Sharjah Expo Centre hailed the role played by the UAE in promoting the spirit of innovation in the country by encouraging ideas and supporting innovators. This came during the launch of the UAE Innovation Week amid great fanfare. Hundreds of innovators, scientists, academics, experts and students came together to exchange and showcase brave new ideas.
More than 30 Sharjah government departments, universities and private sector entities are participating in the event.
afkarali@khaleejtimes.com

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> Recycling Vending Machines (RVMs) created by Bee'ah: The machine accepts plastic bottles and aluminum cans and rewards them accordingly. The RVMs, which are designed to help pro-mote and encourage recycling, will be placed in public locations including malls, educational institutes and many more areas across Sharjah and Dubai.
> WiFi supported bins: Bee'ah also presented their state-of-the-art, Wi-Fi supported, solar-pow-ered smart bins, equipped with intelligent sensors, which detect when the bin is full, communicat-ing this data to the control room of their collection service in Tan-deef. Sharjah is the first city in the Middle East to adopt innovative, smart bin technology with Wi-Fi hotspot, paralleling leading cities like London and New York. With an open Wi-Fi connection, these smart bins have been placed in prominent, public locations like Heart of Sharjah.
> Desert Cleaning Electric Vehicle: An electric vehicle developed by Polaris that is the first of its kind in the UAE, is the latest addition to its existing line of electric vehicles. The Polaris Ranger is an ultra-quiet machine that requires very little mainte-nance. The vehicle also features a strong 30 HP/48V AC electric motor that gives it off-road capa-bility. With a capacity to carry up to 225 KGs, towing up to 750 KGs, the vehicle's 4WD advantage when the vehicle needs more forward traction can revert back to 2WD when it does not.
afkarali@khaleejtimes.com

An officer explaining the new police patrol cycle at the Sharjah Police stall. — Photos by M Sajjad

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