Tag Archives: drones

The 911 drones of Montgomery County

Posted on October 11, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I’m kind of fascinated by this. Drones could soon take on a new role in The Woodlands, responding to 911 calls ahead of first responders. Leaders of the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office see the drone pilot program as a way … Continue reading →

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The drones of Pearland

Posted on March 24, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I mean, we’ll see. Certainly the Pearland Police Department will see lots of things. Pearland’s police department has become the nation’s first law enforcement agency to win Federal Aviation Administration approval to use a system in which drones controlled from … Continue reading →

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Drone racing

Posted on October 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Pretty cool, actually. Jessica Dunegan watched her high school students fly drones through a maze of hula-hoops, cardboard and chairs last year for an end-of-year assignment in robotics class. The San Antonio-area teacher was amazed by the teamwork, engagement and … Continue reading →

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Texas drone law ruled unconstitutional

Posted on April 4, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I love coming across a story like this and then realizing it’s an update to something I had blogged about a couple of years ago. A Texas law that limits the use of remotely piloted drones to capture images is … Continue reading →

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Mutant mosquito update

Posted on September 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Keeping you informed on the news you can really use. Four years ago, the Zika virus became an issue. More than 300 people were infected in Texas. Zika can cause birth defects and fetal neurodevelopmental abnormalities in pregnant women. The … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed against Texas drone law

Posted on October 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be interesting. A federal lawsuit filed Thursday in Austin seeks to strike down Texas laws that restrict what can legally be photographed by drones. Filed by two journalism organizations and a reporter, the lawsuit argues that a … Continue reading →

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Good luck avoiding mosquitoes

Posted on September 8, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

You can’t stop them, you can only hope to contain them. Living in an area with so many mosquitoes means local officials can’t just ignore them, right? Harris County tries to lower the number of bugs both by spraying and … Continue reading →

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Uber’s vision for the future

Posted on July 5, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I feel like this is more wishcasting than real planning. Still, some of it may happen, and if nothing else we should be aware of what it’s all about. When Uber envisions the future, it not only wants to put … Continue reading →

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Let’s use mutant mosquitoes to fight Zika

Posted on March 25, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

What could possibly go wrong? The Bayou City’s teeming mosquito population spawns in dark, wet nooks and carries a slew of deadly tropical diseases that could ravage the region. So Houston is pondering a sneak attack, something akin to a … Continue reading →

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Super Bowl security

Posted on December 30, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

There will be a lot. You may or may not get to hear about it. When an expected 1  million people descend on Houston for 10 days of Super Bowl concerts, contests and championship football, they will be protected – and … Continue reading →

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Building a better mosquito trap

Posted on July 8, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I love this story. Harris County officials are teaming up with tech-giant Microsoft to find and research mosquitoes that could carry the Zika virus or other mosquito-borne diseases, the county public health department said Tuesday. As part of “Project Premonition,” … Continue reading →

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Here come the drones

Posted on April 17, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Look! Up in the sky! Companies in Austin and Addison on Wednesday became the first two firms to become officially credentialed to operate unmanned aircraft systems under a new training and safety program that officials said promises to boost Texas’ … Continue reading →

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TxDOT to spur research on driverless cars

Posted on August 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Among other things. The state could fund research into self-driving cars, jet packs and hover cars if a new proposal by the Texas Department of Transportation is funded. In a presentation Thursday to the Texas Transportation Commission, TxDOT Deputy Executive … Continue reading →

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Texas EquuSearch wins one in court

Posted on July 21, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Texas EquuSearch will resume flying drones during their search-and-recovery missions after a federal appeals court ruled Friday that a government “cease and desist” order banning their use wasn’t valid. In February, a Federal Aviation Administration official sent the volunteer … Continue reading →

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EquuSearch sues over drones

Posted on April 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be interesting. Texas EquuSearch filed suit Monday against the federal government to overturn the grounding of its fleet of aerial drones used to search for missing people. Tim Miller, founder and director of EquuSearch, said the Feb. … Continue reading →

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Environmental drones

Posted on July 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! A plane! A drone! One year into a $260,000 two-year grant from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, [civil engineer Thom] Hardy and his crew of biologists, geographers and spatial analysts have … Continue reading →

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