Drone delivers blood, stool samples from remote village

By Corin Kelly
Wednesday, 10 August, 2016


Only a few years ago flying drones were associated with dropping bombs. Now thanks to a company called Vayu, a drone designed to help bring medical care to remote places was successfully used to deliver clinical blood and stool samples from rural villages in Madagascar to a central laboratory for testing. There were numerous flights conducted to prove the viability of using the technology on a regular basis over hilly terrain.
The Vayu drone takes off vertically, but flies horizontally, having combined characteristics of a quadcopter and a fixed wing airplane. It requires no runway and is designed to be fully autonomous once its destination is entered, landing on parking lots, roofs, and any other flat surface. It is capable of hauling 4.5 lbs (2 Kg) for approximately 40 miles (60 Km) and there’s already work underway to extend the range closer to 60 miles (100 Km).
While it was used to send samples to the clinic, it can certainly bring back blood, drugs, and other light medical supplies on the way back.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-Z0x0ZekTQ[/embed]
This article was originally published by Medgadget.

Related Articles

Shifting the dial on obesity

In 2018, 8.4% of the total burden of disease in Australia was due to overweight and obesity,...

New guidelines for concussion and brain health released

The Australian Institute of Sport, in close collaboration with the Australian Physiotherapy...

Should disease management mirror dentistry?

After smoking and obesity, poor diet is the largest contributor to Australia's disease...


  • All content Copyright © 2024 Westwick-Farrow Pty Ltd