Operational Study of Drone Spraying Application for the Disinfection of Surfaces against the COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the need to maximize the cleanliness of outside public services and the need to disinfect these areas to reduce the virus transmission. This work evaluates the possibilities of using unmanned aircraft systems for disinfection tasks in these aeras. The operational stud...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-03-01
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| Series: | Drones |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/5/1/18 |
| _version_ | 1797412746304684032 |
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| author | Higinio González Jorge Luis Miguel González de Santos Noelia Fariñas Álvarez Joaquin Martínez Sánchez Fermin Navarro Medina |
| author_facet | Higinio González Jorge Luis Miguel González de Santos Noelia Fariñas Álvarez Joaquin Martínez Sánchez Fermin Navarro Medina |
| author_sort | Higinio González Jorge |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the need to maximize the cleanliness of outside public services and the need to disinfect these areas to reduce the virus transmission. This work evaluates the possibilities of using unmanned aircraft systems for disinfection tasks in these aeras. The operational study focuses on evaluating the static and dynamic behavior, as well as the influence of the flying height, mission speed and flow of spraying. The most recommended height for correct spraying with the drone system under study is 3.0 m. The dynamic test shows that the lower height, 3.0 m, also provides the most adequate spraying footprint, achieving 2.2 m for a speed of 0.5 m/s. The operational behavior is evaluated on three different scenarios, a skatepark with an area around 882.7 m<sup>2</sup>, an outdoor gym with an area around 545.0 m<sup>2</sup> and a multisport court with an area around 2025.7 m<sup>2</sup>. The cleaning time evaluates the flying duration, battery change and tank refill and results in 41 min for the skatepark (5 tank refills and 2 battery changes), 28.6 min for the outdoor gym (3 tank refills and 2 battery changes) and 96.4 min for the multisport court (11 tank refills and 5 battery changes). Each battery change and each tank refill are estimated to take 4 min each, with a drone autonomy of 7 min. The technology appears competitive compared to other forms of cleaning based, for example, on human operators. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T05:07:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0f6d07b75b3d462bba13464d5f7a7071 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2504-446X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T05:07:43Z |
| publishDate | 2021-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Drones |
| spelling | doaj.art-0f6d07b75b3d462bba13464d5f7a70712023-12-03T12:52:47ZengMDPI AGDrones2504-446X2021-03-01511810.3390/drones5010018Operational Study of Drone Spraying Application for the Disinfection of Surfaces against the COVID-19 PandemicHiginio González Jorge0Luis Miguel González de Santos1Noelia Fariñas Álvarez2Joaquin Martínez Sánchez3Fermin Navarro Medina4Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Aerospace Engineering, University of Vigo, 32004 Ourense, SpainCINTECX, GeoTECH Group, Campus Universitario de Vigo, University of Vigo, As Lagoas, Marcosende, 36310 Vigo, SpainDepartment of Natural Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Aerospace Engineering, University of Vigo, 32004 Ourense, SpainCINTECX, GeoTECH Group, Campus Universitario de Vigo, University of Vigo, As Lagoas, Marcosende, 36310 Vigo, SpainDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, Thermal Machines and Motors, and Fluids, School of Aerospace Engineering, University of Vigo, 32004 Ourense, SpainThe COVID-19 pandemic has shown the need to maximize the cleanliness of outside public services and the need to disinfect these areas to reduce the virus transmission. This work evaluates the possibilities of using unmanned aircraft systems for disinfection tasks in these aeras. The operational study focuses on evaluating the static and dynamic behavior, as well as the influence of the flying height, mission speed and flow of spraying. The most recommended height for correct spraying with the drone system under study is 3.0 m. The dynamic test shows that the lower height, 3.0 m, also provides the most adequate spraying footprint, achieving 2.2 m for a speed of 0.5 m/s. The operational behavior is evaluated on three different scenarios, a skatepark with an area around 882.7 m<sup>2</sup>, an outdoor gym with an area around 545.0 m<sup>2</sup> and a multisport court with an area around 2025.7 m<sup>2</sup>. The cleaning time evaluates the flying duration, battery change and tank refill and results in 41 min for the skatepark (5 tank refills and 2 battery changes), 28.6 min for the outdoor gym (3 tank refills and 2 battery changes) and 96.4 min for the multisport court (11 tank refills and 5 battery changes). Each battery change and each tank refill are estimated to take 4 min each, with a drone autonomy of 7 min. The technology appears competitive compared to other forms of cleaning based, for example, on human operators.https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/5/1/18drone sprayingCOVID-19drone cleaningaerial works |
| spellingShingle | Higinio González Jorge Luis Miguel González de Santos Noelia Fariñas Álvarez Joaquin Martínez Sánchez Fermin Navarro Medina Operational Study of Drone Spraying Application for the Disinfection of Surfaces against the COVID-19 Pandemic Drones drone spraying COVID-19 drone cleaning aerial works |
| title | Operational Study of Drone Spraying Application for the Disinfection of Surfaces against the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_full | Operational Study of Drone Spraying Application for the Disinfection of Surfaces against the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_fullStr | Operational Study of Drone Spraying Application for the Disinfection of Surfaces against the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_full_unstemmed | Operational Study of Drone Spraying Application for the Disinfection of Surfaces against the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_short | Operational Study of Drone Spraying Application for the Disinfection of Surfaces against the COVID-19 Pandemic |
| title_sort | operational study of drone spraying application for the disinfection of surfaces against the covid 19 pandemic |
| topic | drone spraying COVID-19 drone cleaning aerial works |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/5/1/18 |
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