It's a new drone testing facility at the University of Texas at San Antonio — the first of its kind at a Texas university — and the largest of four such sites across the country. A team of UTSA professors see it raising the region's profile as a research hub for the fast-growing aviation technology.
The facility enables researchers to test drones in outdoor conditions without the constraints of Federal Aviation Administration regulations because they're confined to the big cage.
Built with about $150,000 in UTSA strategic investment funds, the site that opened in June 2023 is growing in popularity for research across several departments. Staffers see it as a place for collaboration and getting people of all ages interested in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
It's also an example of growing investment in the technology in the San Antonio area. Along with at least one drone manufacturer in the city, Port San Antonio's vision to become a hub for autonomous flying vehicles, the Air Force headquarters overseeing the military's remotely operated aircraft and a growing number of area primary schools launching drone programs, the region is primed to see even more growth in the drone industry.
"There's a lot of research happening around drones," said Chris Combs, a UTSA hypersonics professor who helps manage the new facility. "They're enablers for a lot of different things that we're still really even trying to figure out what exactly drones are capable of in some areas."
He sees the facility as a "unique capability that not many other people have," which will spur research and outreach for the emerging technology. It's also a "great engagement and outreach" venue for the university, he said.
"Drones are exciting. Kids like drones," Combs said. "So it's a great way to get kids connected and thinking about STEM careers, whether it's in aerospace or something else, by getting that kind of hands-on technology experience."
The effort also ties into city and local nonprofit programs to increase interest and investment in drone technologies.
"There's quite a bit of synergy there, and that's not a coincidence," Combs said.
Drones have already been adopted by a range of industries for uses including aerial photography and videography, surveillance, search and rescue, disaster management, infrastructure inspection, farming, surveying, environmental monitoring and even delivery.
Still, it's a developing technology, and UTSA's test site will help researchers learn more.
On Tuesday, Juan Cruz, a graduate mechanical engineering student at UTSA, flew a suitcase-size drone inside the facility. For 10 minutes, the $12,000 DJI quadcopter arced and swooped through the vast space.
Without the facility, he wouldn't be able to fly the craft outdoors. Cruz, a member of UTSA's Robotics and Automation society, doesn't have an FAA commercial drone operator license.
Ao Du, a UTSA civil engineering professor, said it was the first time the department had tested the drone since buying it three years ago. Before the facility, it had nowhere to operate the craft.
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Du and Jiannon Cai, a construction science and management professor, are working on a project to use drones in collaboration with ground robots to inspect transportation infrastructure.
"What we are trying to do is make a more automated system," Cai said. "Having the drone and robot survey the area more autonomously, instead of having humans to control it all the time."
Du said the technology, along with artificial intelligence, can speed inspections.
Combs said students may eventually be able to earn some type of certification or degree in drone technology; the school is "in the exploratory phase of that."
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