The Federal Office of Civil Aviation visits EPFL
© 2016 EPFL
Federal institutions come together to discuss key issues related to the safe usage of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in Switzerland.
A delegation of 16 staff from FOCA’s section Safety Division Aircraft Design and Production (STEH) visited EPFL on November 21st to learn about the latest EPFL research related to Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). The event was organised by EPFL’s Space Engineering Center (eSpace) and the Laboratory of Intelligent Systems (LIS), at the request of FOCA. Several laboratories, spanning three EPFL faculties (IC, ENAC, STI) were represented, showcasing topics which included optical collision avoidance, advanced bio-inspired aerial platforms and reliability in GPS-denied environments. FOCA and EPFL participants experienced demonstrations of state-of-the-art installations used for the immersive control of UAVs and their validation in extreme environments.
The safe and ethical usage of UAVs, increasingly used as innovative tools to augment human activities, is a vital consideration for both entities, who committed to continue working in close synergy. Technology is key to improving public safety and both institutions will collaborate to provide guidelines and tools to allow young Swiss businesses to thrive in this growing field while ensuring an adequate level of safety for the other airspace users and third parties on the ground.
The organisers would like to thank all participants from FOCA and EPFL, as well as the guests from the company WindShape and the Global UTM Association.
