This Week in the Unmanned Systems and Robotics World

Police have always been the ones to issue traffic tickets to drivers on the road, but a new driverless motorbike, or superbike in this case, could soon handle those duties. The superbike, named the Interceptor, is a concept that would be capable of recording law breakers in real time, and issuing citations to those drivers via email, text message or traditional post. The vehicle was developed by Canadian mechanical engineer Charles Bombardier and his company, Imaginactive. (CNN)

Apple has become the latest company to fully throw its hat into the autonomous vehicle ring. The company wrote a letter to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), where it said it was “excited about the potential of automated systems in many areas, including transportation.” While Apple doesn’t plan on building its own driverless vehicles, it does hope to create the technologies that can power and guide these vehicles in the future. (Sky News)

NASA would like to use unmanned systems to search for life in the subsurface oceans of worlds in the Solar System. The hope of the researchers is that if the UAS are indeed sent to outer space, then they could plot their own journeys underwater after detecting what’s in their immediate environments. (Spaceflight Insider)

Insitu, a company under Boeing, has installed Microsoft’s HoloLens into its UAS to help fight forest fires and wildfires. Microsoft’s HoloLens create holographic tactical maps that help operators determine where direct resources are most needed. Adding in Insitu’s Inexa Control software, which allows the UAS to create 3D maps based off the software’s 2D maps, and operators of the UAS have full and optimal control of all aspects related to the task of fighting large fires safely and more efficiently. (Commercial UAV News)

The Massachusetts State police have become the latest law enforcement entity to add UAS to its operations. Currently, troopers are only using the UAS to scan car crashes from above. The hope is that the system, which was purchased by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation for $20,000, can eventually be upgraded and used for other tasks. (ABC 6 News)

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