Japanese security firm Secom is preparing to launch a new service that will let home and small business owners rent a quadcopter drone that the company claims will launch automatically in the event of a burglary, taking pictures of the burglars and even capturing live video of them as the crime is in progress. Sounds pretty awesome if you want the latest in home security.
When a breach is detected by motion detectors or other security methods, the quadcopter activates and is dispatched to the precise location of the break-in to get a firsthand, eye-in-the-sky look at things.
If it really works like they say it will, this could catch more criminals and keep your home extra safe. The company is also touting the drones as a cost-effective way to monitor large areas like warehouses and industrial parks without having to mount video cameras everywhere. You can check out a video demo of the (incredibly noisy) drone prototype in action here (skip to 1:54, unless you speak Japanese.)
Secom hopes to launch this new rent-a-drone business in Japanese markets in early 2014 for about ¥5000 (~$58 USD).
[via Japan Daily Press via Geekosystem]