Pre-text:
At the beginning of the video we hear from Yvette and Adam, who are presenting the video from the T4L teams innovation headquarters. They are behind a makerspace trolley surrounded by drones and robots. We then move to hear from the Army Drone Racing Team. In this section footage of the speakers is intertwined with drones being fixed, taking off, racing through drone racing challenges and more. There is also some footage of students using drones and other edtech equipment such as virtual reality glasses in the classroom. The main transitions are referenced in the transcript within brackets/parenthesis.
Yvette:
Hi everyone, it's Yvette here from T4L.
Adam:
And I'm Adam from STEM T4L.
Yvette:
And today we're talking all things STEM and drones. What's happening in the drones world Adam?
Adam:
Look Yvette, I don't want to drone on about this technology for the rest of my life, but as a self-professed sci-fi nerd, I have been waiting for the day when one of these things would fly into my world and start to make big changes to the way I go about my life.
Yvette:
Well, once upon a time, drones were a futuristic thing, but right now they're really solving problems across industry and really disrupting the way things actually have been working in the past.
Adam:
Absolutely. We're seeing this right now today in industries like agriculture, industries like film and photography. We're looking at aerial surveys now happening with drones, a super efficient way to use the technology. And wedding photos now coming out with drones now, that look great.
Yvette:
Yeah, there's so much potential there. One of the main things about getting out and exploring drones is playing with drones. Is that how you got to really appreciate them?
Adam:
All I ever do is play, Yvette, and that is the only way that I learn. And so, that's where it tends to start for a lot of kids, it's all about that play. But it's certainly a great way to springboard into stuff like mathematics, engineering and science when you look at the way that this technology works and how we can use it to solve problems.
Yvette:
We're going to look at a team now that have taken the play element to the max. We're going to join the ADF team of drone racing experts and watch them as they explore the usage of drones and really push the limits.
Adam:
Looking forward to it.
Jake Dell-O'Sullivan:
So, I'm an electrical engineer in the Royal Australian Air Force working for the C-27J platform.
On screen text:
Jake Dell-O’Sullivan, Flying Officer, Department of Defence
Mackenzie Togo:
Hi, I'm private Mackenzie Togo, reservist posted to Army headquarters, and I'm also the Australian Army Drone Racing Team Captain.
On screen text:
Mackenzie Togo, Private, Department of Defence
Lewis Day:
Hi, I'm gunner, Lewis Day, and I'm an unmanned Aerial Systems Operator from the 20th regiment, Royal Australian artillery, located in Brisbane Queensland.
On screen text:
Lewis Day, Gunner, Department of Defence
Keirin Joyce:
My name is Lieutenant Colonel Keirin Joyce. I'm the Deputy Director of remote piloted aircraft systems within Air Force headquarters and I'm also the president of the Army Drone Racing Association.
On screen text:
Kieran Joyce, Lieutenant Colonel, Department of Defence
Kieran Joyce:
The army has a drone racing team for the same reason it has every other sporting team. We want to support our soldiers and officers in pursuing their hobbies and interests after hours. It's not just the sport (drones being flown) and supporting the soldiers in that sport, drone racing has added benefits. Number one, informal modernization (drones being repaired). So this is technology that is sometimes ahead of military technology and by taking that commercial technology off the shelf and allowing our soldiers to experiment with it, to innovate with it, it gives us the framework to do that exciting stuff. It also has the ability to engage with the STEM population that's out there. Lots of young kids out in Australia are already racing drones (students controlling and flying drones). They're already interested in the STEM skills that drone racing uses. There is a difference between commercial drones and drone racing drones (drone race in action). Drone racing is built for speed and agility and to be rebuilt when you smash them up.
Lewis Day:
So the main difference between a commercial off the shelf drone, such as a DJI Phantom and a racing drone that we use in the Australian Drone Racing Team is the fact that those are ones you buy from a store, come ready to fly, and they're very easy to operate (drone hovering). They use GPS, altitude hold, return to home functions, et cetera, to make it very easy for the operator to fly. The ones we use drones that are simply put together with different parts and components, we choose different parts and components to suit the way we're going to fly in the application (drones taking off) we're going to use that drone for (drone joystick being operated). This serves two purposes. If we're putting together a drone or assembling it ourselves, it's very easy to then know which parts need repair if they do and also how to replace those parts when the inevitable crashes come (drones being repaired).
Jake Dell-O'Sullivan:
Drones purchased from retail outlets, usually are more for video. One, they're great, and really good at what they're designed for. They don't really have the agility that racing drones do. So purpose-built racing drones can be a lot more agile. There's a lot more top speed (drones racing through an obstacle course). And I can say from personal experience, they're a lot more fun.
Mackenzie Togo:
I got into drone racing through seeing it on YouTube. I started out as a freestyle pilot doing flips and tricks in my backyard (drones racing through a tunnel). Then I noticed that the Australian Army (drones taking off) was starting a drone racing team and that's when I started into racing.
Lewis Day:
The way I got into drone racing was, I'd always been interested in radio-controlled cars and planes and boats, et cetera, ever since I was a younger age (drones taking off). I think drones are just a progression of that. Drones have become so prominent in our modern society. Everyone's using them for photography, for training, for work, et cetera. So I think my interest stems from that (drones taking off) but also stems from the fact I've always been into radio controlled equipment ever since I was a young guy.
Jake Dell-O'Sullivan:
I saw drone racing becoming more popular around 2014 kicking off throughout Australia and I saw how my passion for engineering could also translate over into drone racing. So I picked up the sport around then and have been practicing ever since (drones racing).
Lewis Day:
I would say the coolest spot that I've flown is probably the Avalon International Air Show in Melbourne in 2019. We were racing inside a huge circus tent against the Australian Air Force, the Australian Navy and we also had the New Zealand Defence Force there as well. What made it so special was the fact there was an actual live air show happening at the same time. So as we were goggles down and flying and racing each other, there was obviously the F18's, F22s, et cetera, all flying around above us. It was pretty special.
Jake Dell-O'Sullivan:
So the most unusual place I have flown a drone was at Avalon Air Show as a part of a night display. It was an awesome opportunity where I had the chance to race and freestyle my drone in front of a massive crowd with another three people trailing behind me trying to keep up. It was a fantastic opportunity and I would love to do it again.
Mackenzie Togo:
The coolest place I've flown is Dallas, Texas. Myself and two other army drone racing team pilots went over and represented the Australian Army at the World Invitational Championship Event (drones taking off), racing X class drones. X class drones are about a meter wide and can get up to 290 kilometres per hour.
Keirin Joyce:
To be in the field of drones, you don't necessarily have to do any particular subjects, but STEM subjects really help. Understanding science, technology, engineering and maths will make you a much better drone racing pilot or a drone operator within the Australia Army (students using virtual reality and robotics technologies).
Jake Dell-O'Sullivan:
STEM subjects, science technology, engineering, and mathematics is a great way to get a good head start. However, just as strong, sense of dedication, passion, I guess that's all you need at the end of the day.
Lewis Day:
It's simply an interest or a hobby that can be taught and learned relatively quickly using online forums, such as YouTube, Facebook groups, local clubs, et cetera, to enjoy drone racing and get into the sport.
Keirin Joyce:
Drone race pilots crash a lot and bust up (drone crashing) their airplanes a lot, so knowing how to build it yourself, how to repair it yourself with science, technology, engineering and maths skills, coding, soldiering, mechanics, aerodynamics, data links and radios, they're all really important skills.
Lewis Day:
So, I would say skills that will assist you in enjoying the sport and getting into it would be hand eye coordination (operator controlling a drone with a remote control), due to the fact that we wear goggles that transmits a video signal to the drone. We very much have to be good with our hands in terms of being able to navigate and complete courses for the racing side of it. The other part is if you have exposure to gaming or virtual reality and other stuff like that, that really helps in assisting with getting into drone racing due to the fact that it's definitely an out of body experience when you're flying a drone, first person view.
Lewis Day:
So for my job being an unmanned air systems operator, training wise, if we can't fly our live bird, which is behind me and we can't go to an actual military training area to fly, we within my regiment, we have a lot of simulators. Those simulators are used to replicate the ground control station that we would use in the field environment. It's a computer-based program that is used to replicate weather, enemy, mercy procedures, et cetera, all within the aircraft. That's how we stay current with our flying and that's how we train when we can't go fly live.
Keirin Joyce:
The piece of advice I would give to my younger self is never say no to the opportunity to work with new technology or new capabilities. If it goes bad, if it doesn't deliver as on time as you think it might, that's okay. You still learn a heck of a lot about that technology and you learn a lot about the processes and failing fast. If it does get up (drone talking off and navigating a course) and continue on to bigger and better things, you ride the wave through and that's really exciting on anything to do with new technology or new capability.
Jake Dell-O'Sullivan:
The piece of advice I would give to my younger self is just keep trying to achieve your goals because along the way, those failures are part of the experience.
Mackenzie Togo:
One piece of advice I'd give my younger self before starting drone racing is to join a club. You meet a lot of new people and you get a lot of advice from people who have been flying for a little while. There's lots of local clubs that may be in your area and just a simple Google search will find your most local club.
Lewis Day:
If I could give myself one piece of advice before I got into this sport, before I spent countless hours and stuff, racing and programming, et cetera, would be to have more patience (drones being repaired and built). This is due to the fact that it's not a hobby or an interest that anyone can pick up immediately. It's definitely something that requires a lot of hours learning and training, et cetera, to become decent at the sport, and also enjoy the sport.
Keirin Joyce:
To get started with drone racing, it's progressive (drone taking off and navigating a course). You can start for as little as downloading a simulator onto your phone or onto your PlayStation and with your phone or your PlayStation controller, you can learn how to fly a drone racing aircraft, just on a simulator.
Mackenzie Togo:
If you're a school student, and you're interested in getting involved in drones at your school, I would say, just ask one of your teachers. Ask if they are currently using drones anywhere in the school. And if not, then see if you can get a drone program started.
Lewis Day:
My advice for getting into the sport during school as a school student would be to approach the school and see if they have a drones program or want to start one up. When I was going through school, STEM wasn't a thing. It wasn't really an initiative. So I think nowadays, school is very much keen to take on a STEM project and I think drones as a STEM project would be a great initiative. But it's really good to learn air space, air regulations, et cetera, which can all be taught on that course. And I think that's the way school students should get into drone racing, but it also teaches them the regulations into how to operate drones safely before they go out and fly them in their own time.
Yvette:
That was so cool. I think I want to be a drone racing pilot, Adam.
Adam:
I always wanted to be a drone racing pilot, let's be honest.
Yvette:
I know. Well, the potential is there for you too in the classroom. What are some of the cool things you can do?
Adam:
Oh, look, we don't even need drones to get started with the idea of drones in the classroom and that conversation. If you've got Lego, you can create a Lego prototype of a drone rescue device with a mechanism that picks up a cargo load. You can create a drone racing course in your school. You could even create a film that tells a story about a drone rescue happening somewhere out in the ocean.
On screen text:
t4l.link/DLC
Yvette:
Yeah, there's so much potential. The other thing to remind you of is that there is new advice around drones usage in schools. So check that out. The link is on the screen for the latest update and on safety advice of using drones in schools.
On screen text:
t4l.link/DroneSafety
Adam:
Awesome. Time for you guys to start getting creative. Now don't forget as well, if you are getting creative with your students, we want to see your great stories about your experiences with drones. So make sure you use that hashtag T4L all-stars on social media and share those stories back with us. All right, Yvette.
Yvette:
All right.
Adam:
I'm out of here to have a playmate. (Drone taking off)
