Life-Saving Drones in Your Neighborhood?

The day is coming when drones may be medical first-responders.

When a heart attack strikes, every moment kept waiting for treatment can threaten survival. Yet ambulances aren't always just around the corner. For this reason, Dutch engineer Alec Momont has created a flying defibrillator, called the Ambulance Drone, for use in emergency situations.

While the drone is still in the prototype stage, the hope is to have a network of drones stationed around a city. The fast response system can get a defibrillator to a patient in one minute within a seven-mile range. When the drone arrives, those onsite are guided on how to operate the defibrillator through a webcam and speakers that link to remote physicians or other trained personnel.

While leveraging drones to save lives seems like a perfect use of technology, the hitch here is that unmanned aircraft require an operator—they can’t fly completely autonomously around town. But who knows what the future holds for these airborne emergency robots.