Why Elon Musk should build drones for commercial space and ocean exploration in VR.
After another amazing day of playing StarTrek BridgeCrew on Playstation VR, a multiplayer Virtual Reality game where you and your friends cooperatively operate a space ship while immersed in VR. I walked away with an awesome vision of how we will explore the universe in the very near future and why I think Elon Musk is the only person who could make this happen. (or would take it seriously)
SpaceX and Tesla are perfectly positioned to build space (and sea) going drones for commercial and private exploration and mapping, using virtual reality controls and 360 video cameras.Instead of controlling a game, shift crews could operate real life space/sea exploring drones.They would be small, electric, solar powered vehicles with advanced computer navigation that could occasionally be accessible for on-demand remote-control using virtual reality headsets and gaming controls.
360 cameras, VR operators and robotics
Technology has developed in multiple areas that can now be combined to make a Super Robot. When it is remotely…medium.com
Star trek bridge crew is the ultimate example of this style of exploration. During the next few years, thousands of people will start learning to work together online, as a crew, performing exploratory missions and simple ship maintenance operations. One day soon, they will ask; When can I make this more real? Where can I buy a remotely VR-operated vehicle. (or access to one) and pilot a ship of my own (virtually)
Elon is already Expanding into Brain-Computer interfaces.Tesla motors and SpaceX are ideally suited to collaborate with Neuralink and provide the next steps.
I think Elon’s next move is already being played. VR, he’s been getting interested in VR interfaces, and why shouldn’t he. What will you do in a Tesla car ride once you start trusting the AI driver? Talk to whomever is with you, look out the Augmented Reality window? No you’ll be strapping on a VR headset using the on-board Wifi and watching the exterior view on the roof in 360. Tesla is headed that direction anyway. Lidar scanning and 360 cameras are being mounted to vehicles, for better vehicle navigation anyway. It’s not a huge leap to integrate map/scanning the world with video/photo cameras to offer real time updates to Google earth/Apple maps etc.. and increase accuracy of the existing 3d models of the digital earth for safety. (Imagine google earth streetview refreshed every time a tesla car goes by)
Digitizing the planet. Capturing the world in 360° for VR navigation.
Google streetview used 360 cameras on cars to capture all streets, walkways trails and thousands of other locations…medium.com
There are already plans in the works to release hundreds (if not thousands) of micro satellites around our planet (for wifi), and we continually collect all types sensors throughout our oceans. There are also plans to develop settlements on mars, the moon and the sea floor. These are highly challenging and expensive areas to get to and work in. An ideal solution for new construction, and maintenance in these difficult to reach places is unmanned vehicles and robots, lots of them.
Who better to mass produce electric autonomous robot drones requiring batteries, solar panels, wifi and rockets to place them in orbit?
Now, thanks to the accessibility of at home VR devices, and with gamification attracting crowd-sourced explorers/workers. A few mass produced small robots capable of performing tasks would be the perfect step to help our civilization move outwards and underwater. Thousands of us out there, working together to explore, learn and build.
The drones will just float along, every 360 degree camera on it allowing for a position an online pilot can step into to be right in action, Alone in groups or working in shifts people could complete actual real life tasks from miles away; Cleaning up space (or ocean) debris, doing photo and video survey-mapping, creature identification and capture, alignment or upgrades on micro satellites or even targeted on-demand photography.
The drones would need charging and probably couldn’t be used every day, but the AI itself could perform self-maintenance; balancing power cleaning lenses. autonomously seeking out light when their battery is low, perform pre-programmed tasks such as Swarm behavior for larger projects or simply solo explorations for research StarTrek or SeaQuest style. We may eventually fully automate the drones and have human intervention called upon only when required.
This is the golden age for explorers right now.The average person will probably never get to go to real space or the deep ocean in anything other than a VR device. The sooner we have VR-remotely controlled exploratory sea and space drones…. the better.