On November 2, 2023, at an event hosted by the Swiss Association of Aeronautical Sciences at ETH, Prof. Davide Scaramuzza presented a comprehensive overview of our latest advancements in autonomous drone technology aimed at achieving human-level performance. Autonomous drones hold immense potential in fields like inspection, agriculture, and search-and-rescue operations, offering prospects for enhanced productivity. However, the current capabilities of these drones lag behind human pilots in terms of speed, adaptability, and reliability. The key question addressed in this talk is: How can autonomous drones outperform human pilots? The presentation delves into the complexities of autonomous, agile navigation in environments without GPS, highlighting the challenges in perception, learning, planning, and control in robotics research. Prof. Scaramuzza illustrates how the integration of deep learning techniques with fast-response sensors, such as event cameras, enables drones to attain remarkable levels of speed and resilience, relying exclusively on onboard computational resources. This advancement is a significant stride toward elevating the efficiency and safety of fu
Affiliation:
Robotics and Perception Group, University of Zurich, Switzerland: https://rpg.ifi.uzh.ch/
