Technology Report pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
Bird’s-Eye View of Sampling Sites: Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles To Make Chemistry Fieldwork Videos Fun Man Fung*,†,‡ and Simon Francis Watts†,§ †
Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, 117543 Singapore Institute for Application of Learning Science and Educational Technology (ALSET), University Hall, Lee Kong Chian Wing UHL #05-01D, 21 Lower Kent Ridge Road, 119077 Singapore § National University of Singapore, Environmental Research Institute (NERI), 5A Engineering Drive 1, 117411 Singapore ‡
S Supporting Information *
ABSTRACT: Drones, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), usually helicopters or airplanes, are commonly used for warfare, aerial surveillance, and recreation. In recent years, drones have become more accessible to the public as a platform for photography. In this report, we explore the use of drones as a new technological filming tool to enhance student learning in the field of analytical and environmental chemistry. In particular, chemistry students have difficulty in applying knowledge learned in the practical context, e.g., finding potential sites for soil sampling. Our effort was focused on improving the understanding of terrain and examining potential “good” sampling sites by providing instructor’s point of view (IPOV) videos filmed with a drone. Students responded positively to this innovative filming method in a perception survey. The merits and challenges of filming with drones will be discussed.
KEYWORDS: Upper-Division Undergraduate, Graduate Education/Research, Analytical Chemistry, Environmental Chemistry, Demonstrations, Laboratory Instruction, Safety/Hazards
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photography.13 In Singapore, drones were tested in 2016 for over 25 uses in the public sector.14 The trials included a fight against dengue transmission with drones that can monitor infected areas and deposit larvicide on hard-to-reach places like roof gutters,15 and marine authorities using drones in marine incidents, such as to support oil spill cleanups and search and rescue operations.14
TECHNOLOGY ENHANCED TEACHING AND LEARNING Modern students are tech savvy and have routine access to online videos and technology devices. Indeed, for most modern students, videos are essential to their learning journey, and it seems that their minds are triggered to efficiently gather information from them, maybe more so than traditional books.1−3 Videos, including instructional videos, are a part of their lives, and students cannot do away with them.4−6 However, with rapid technology advances in filming methods and platforms, one method of filming has not been explored by educators: the use of flying drones.
Using the Drone To Film Procedures for Fieldwork
One of the main challenges environmental scientists/chemists face is the difficulty associated in locating suitable sites for their sampling and research. The preliminary work is to zoom in on areas considered most ideal on the basis of maps or other information, and then the next step is to go to the actual sites to do the “ground-truth” check on whether the sites are, after all, suitable. These steps are essential but can represent wasted effort as the environment is not static; maps (and sampling sites) can be made obsolete by single rainstorms.16,17 Even modern digital maps can suffer the same shortcomings, because they are often not updated regularly. Use of the drone saves time and provides a bird’s eye view of the recent developments at the potential sites in real time (Figure 1).
Increased Accessibility to Drones by the Public
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones, are essentially flying robots that are piloted by a person on the ground.7 UAVs have been used to facilitate activities in several key areas: provide ordnance fall-of-shot reporting and battle field intelligence, deliver cargoes in the logistics industry, create aerial photography in agriculture and leisure, and collect data in surveillance.8−10 Drones were first introduced to capture aerial images during military combats in 1967.11 They have played a growing part in America’s military arsenal over the past decade.12 In recent years, nonmilitary usage of drones has spiked, with approximately 325,000 civilian drones registered with the United States Federal Aviation Administration.10 These drones are capable of taking aerial video and © XXXX American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc.
Received: December 18, 2016 Revised: July 7, 2017
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DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.6b00985 J. Chem. Educ. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX
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Figure 1. Unobscured aerial overview of potential soil sampling sites within NUS campus, field of view ca. 3 ha.
Figure 2. Screenshot of the video illustrating the identification of a suitable soil sampling site: demonstrator (center) and the pilot (bottom right).
CM3292 Advanced Experiments in Analytical and Physical Chemistry
and are assessed on the basis of the content of laboratory/field notebooks and presentation and/or writeup. The soil exercise is used as the example here. Ultimately, students are assessed on the realism and relevance of their research questions, their quantitative assessment of the reliability, and robustness of their results. The title of this practical is “Bioavailability of Metals in Soils”, but in reality, it is a real world analytical chemistry exercise. The NUS Kent Ridge campus occupies 150 ha, and this is the context for these sampling exercises. Without drones, if a student wants to know what sites are available for sampling, the best he or she can do is explore on foot. He or she may need to take multiple trips to different sites on campus, record the journey and take photographs of the sites, and report to the lecturer in the class. None of these students will have encountered environmental sampling in their chemistry programs prior to this module,
Year III Chemistry undergraduates at the National University of Singapore (NUS) are required to attend a 13 week laboratory course across the areas of analytical and physical chemistry, with each weekly session lasting 6 h. The students work in pairs, and as a cohort, the preparation for each session (before the students come to the lab) is a series of prerecorded videos on the equipment and fundamentals underlying the exercises, including videos employing IPOV.18,19 The exercises themselves are not covered in the videos, and their experimental scripts/instructions tell students what needs to be done, but not how. In the course of the module, among their practical assignments, students have to conduct one of three project practicals all of which involve environmental sampling of soils, waters, or air. These exercises extend over a number of weeks B
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.6b00985 J. Chem. Educ. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX
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Figure 3. Left: Anatomy of DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus, the drone used to film aerial footage for soil sampling. Right: Command unit of the drone, the wifi-enabled remote controller (included in the drone purchase) and smartphone (excluded in the purchase).
Table 1. Learners’ Perceptions of the Drone Sampling Video Experience Responses by Score,a N Survey Statements for Student Response Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 Q6 Q7 Q8 Q9
The sampling video increased my interest in the subject. The sampling videos were effective in making connections between theory and practice. The use of the drone has enabled me to see from other angles which I would not have seen, e.g., aerial view, which is essential to soil sampling. The use of the drone has enabled me to see potential sampling sites so that I understand better what is a good place to conduct soil sampling. I have gained further insights to sampling technique by watching the video. The use of the drone has enriched my learning experience in soil sampling. The use of drones in the sampling video did not disrupt my concentration. Overall, the use of drone in the video was effective. I will recommend the continued use of drone in sampling video in classroom teaching.
5
4
3
2
1
Mean Scoreb
Standard Deviationc
39 48
15 5
2 3
0 0
0 0
4.67 4.80
0.55 0.52
51
3
2
0
0
4.88
0.43
49
7
0
0
0
4.86
0.34
48 47 27 48 38
8 4 14 8 18
0 5 10 0 0
0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 0
4.88 4.75 4.39 4.86 4.68
0.34 0.62 0.78 0.36 0.47
The scores from 5 to 1 represent the following agreement levels: “strongly agree”, “agree”, “neutral”, “disagree”, and “strongly disagree”, respectively. The total numbers of responses for each level of agreement are tabulated. bThe mean of all the scores for each question. cA measure of the range of variability. It measures the extent to which the statement’s Average Score differs from all the scores in the given evaluation. The smaller the standard deviation is, the greater the robustness of the number given as average. N = 56. a
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which means that, under time pressure, they have to think very clearly about their research questions and which sites are most useful to them. Unrepresentative or poorly chosen sites are unhelpful, and can produce results that do not enable developed research questions to be addressed. Only Socratic questioning is available to guide students into asking appropriate questions about their proposed sites (staff will intervene if there is an unrecognized or unmitigated safety issue). Typically, there is no time to conduct reconnaissance (recce) on each of the proposed sites. In this scenario drones are employed to check potential sites to confirm suitability, accessibility, and safety, allowing the sampling to occur in a timely manner. A thorough risk assessment (RA) is conducted prior to the start of the experiment. Although not graded, students are not authorized to commence their sampling until staff has approved the RA. We and others are using footage of things like soil and water sampling in other videos not necessarily related to this module, modeling the approach to selecting sites, as well as providing an additional “birds eye” view of the technique being demonstrated (Figure 2).
METHODOLOGY: FILMING VIDEOS USING THE DRONE
The drone was operated solely by the instructors throughout the course and not by the students. Before attending the lab sessions, students watched the footage captured by the instructors. Then, on the actual lab day, they chose their sampling sites and wrote the RA. Once approved, students proceeded with the outfield sampling. The drone employed in this project was the DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus, a quadcopter with in-built gimbal-stabilized 14 megapixel camera (Figure 3, left). The gimbal is a pivoted support that allows the rotation of this camera about a single axis. This device records videos at 1080p30 and 720p. The whole entity of this drone with battery and propellers weighs 1242 g. Its maximum flight speed is 15 m/s and has a maximum tiltable angle of 35°. It is able to record multiple angled shots from as high as 700 m above the controller.20 The endurance of this drone is 25 min with a full charge, and it is maneuvered via a wifi connection to a smartphone and a made-in-factory controller (Figure 3, right). C
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.6b00985 J. Chem. Educ. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX
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Figure 4. This picture illustrates potential unsafe sampling sites due to the presence of nearby fast-moving vehicles and a canal. With the drone video, students have a full view of the whole surrounding. The students can then conduct risk assessment with more accurate information.
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FINDINGS
an aerial view of a terrain is to hire a private helicopter and have the instructor film using an ordinary hand-held video camera.22 • Safety aspects increased with drone prechecks of sampling sites to ensure accessibility. • There is close up accessibility of sites, and “no fly” zones not usually a problem; the drones can operate in areas where a manned craft might not venture. • There is good resolution of the images/video. • Drones can be flown in inclement weather. Terrains change from time to time; weather sculpts the landscape (sometimes overnight!), and new buildings are erected daily. Older videos recorded by the drone allow a general preview of the potential sites to avoid safety hazards (e.g., steep or crumbling banks), and property issues. Using drones gives real-time previews of the actual sites. This saves students time by eliminating unnecessary trips to the proposed sampling sites. In addition, the probability of accident occurrences can be minimized by not having to inspect the place in person. Disadvantages follow. • Once in the air, the drone has to be controlled carefully to overfly the fields without trespassing.10 • Drones have short battery lives (range and endurance). • Drones are prohibited from entering private properties, and takeoffs and landings need be conducted by a trained pilot.23 • Drones should be operated away from crowds and buildings.24
Student Perception of Sampling Videos Filmed by the Drone
This module runs every semester, so in Semester 1 56/86 students responded to an anonymous perception survey on sampling IPOV videos filmed by the drone (response rate: 65%).21 This voluntary survey was conducted at the end of the semester. A Likert scale of 1−5 was used to represent the agreement levels on the statements administered, with 1 being strongly disagree and 5 being strongly agree. In the responses, 96.4% (strongly agree and agree) found that the sampling video filmed by the drone increased their interest in this topic. The same proportion (96.4%) of the respondents also felt that the use of the drone has enabled them to view sampling techniques from different perspectives, something that cannot be done without a drone. All 56 survey participants agreed that the drone was able to provide new vistas of potential sampling sites, allowing them to eliminate poor, unsuitable sites and prepare them to discern the safe sites for sampling. All of them also agreed to have gained insights into soil sampling by watching the drone-made video. However, only 73.2% (strongly agree and agree) felt that the use of the drones did not distract them in the video. Some parts of the video did appear shaky. This could be due to the inexperienced piloting during the soil sampling video recording that resulted in abrupt rotation of the drone. The distraction could also be caused by drafts of strong wind that induced unwanted translational movement on the drone. Overall, all the respondents found the use of drone effective in making video and would recommend its continued use in the future (Table 1).
Tips in Using Drones for Filming
Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Drones for Filming
We suggest the pilot of the drone to undergo practice to gain flying experience. Our experience was 10 h from the moment we unwrapped the drone package. Before takeoff, he or she should ensure that the remote controller and aircraft batteries are fully charged, and that the propellers are in good condition and securely tightened with no obstruction in the motors. One
Advantages follow. • Time and money are saved; allowing drone site recces to rule out some sites is incredibly economical in both time and money. Traditionally, the only possible way to film D
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.6b00985 J. Chem. Educ. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX
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(2) Merkt, M.; Weigand, S.; Heier, A.; Schwan, S. Learning with videos vs. learning with print: The role of interactive features. Learn. Instr. 2011, 21 (6), 687−704. (3) Noyes, J.; Garland, K. Explaining Students’ Attitudes toward Books and Computers. Comput. Hum. Behav. 2006, 22 (3), 351−363. (4) Fung, F. M. Seeing through My Lenses: A GoPro Approach To Teach a Laboratory Module. Asian J. Scholarsh. Teach. Learn. 2016, 6 (1), 99−115. (5) Fung, F. M. Using first-person perspective filming techniques for a chemistry laboratory demonstration to facilitate a flipped pre-lab. J. Chem. Educ. 2015, 92 (9), 1518−1521. (6) Bell, L.; Bull, G. Digital Video and Teaching. Contemp. Issues Technol. Teach. Educ 2010, 10, 1−6. (7) Brooks, M. Welcome to the personal drone revolution. New Sci. 2012, 216 (2894), 42−45. (8) Barton, J. D. Fundamentals of Small Unmanned Aircraft Flight. Johns Hopkins Apl Technol. Dig. 2012, 31 (2), 132−149. (9) Matiteyahu, T. G. Drone Regulations and Fourth Amendment Rights: The Interaction of State Drone Statutes and the Reasonable Expectation of Privacy. Columbia J. Law Soc. Probl. 2015, 48 (2), 265− 307. (10) Rao, B.; Gopi, A. G.; Maione, R. The societal impact of commercial drones. Technol. Soc. 2016, 45, 83−90. (11) Keane, J. F.; Carr, S. S. A Brief History of Early Unmanned Aircraft. John Hopkins APL Technol. Dig. 2013, 32 (3), 558−571. (12) Zenko, M. Reforming U.S. Drone Strike Policies, Council Special Report No. 65; Council on Foreign Relations Press: New York, 2013; ISBN 978-0-87609-544-7. (13) Meng, X.; Wang, W.; Leong, B. SkyStitch: A Cooperative MultiUAV-Based Real-Time Video Surveillance System with Stitching. In Proceedings of the 23rd ACM international Conference on Multimedia; 2015; pp 261−270. (14) Ministry of Transport. Leveraging Unmanned Aircraft Systems to Improve Public Sector Operations; https://www.mot.gov.sg/NewsCentre/News/2016/Leveraging-Unmanned-Aircraft-Systems--toImprove-Public-Sector-Operations/ (accessed May 2017). (15) Garuda Robotics. Garuda DragonFly: UAV System for Mosquito Larvicide Delivery; https://garuda.io/news/ (accessed May 2017). (16) Razak, K. A.; Straatsma, M. W.; van Westen, C. J.; Malet, J. P.; de Jong, S. M. Airborne laser scanning of forested landslides characterization: Terrain model quality and visualization. Geomorphology 2011, 126 (1−2), 186−200. (17) Behrens, T.; Zhu, A. X.; Schmidt, K.; Scholten, T. Multi-scale digital terrain analysis and feature selection for digital soil mapping. Geoderma 2010, 155 (3−4), 175−185. (18) Watts, S. F.; Fung, F. M. Chem. Educ. Res. Pract. 2017, submitted. (19) Fung, F. M. Exploring Technology-Enhanced Learning Using Google Glass To Offer Students a Unique Instructor’s Point of View Live Laboratory Demonstration. J. Chem. Educ. 2016, 93 (12), 2117− 2122. (20) DJI. Phantom 2 Vision+Specs; http://www.dji.com/phantom-2vision-plus (accessed May 2017). (21) Fung, F. M. YouTube video: How to collect Soil Sample for Analysis; http://tinyurl.com/cm3292soilsampling (accessed May 2017). (22) Krajník, T.; Vonásek, V.; Fišer, D.; Faigl, J. In Communications in Computer and Information Science; 2011; CCIS; Vol. 161, pp 172−186. (23) Wald, M. L. New York Times 2013, 163 (56637), A14−A17. (24) DJI. Fly Safe with DJI8 Tips on How to Use Your New Drone; http://www.dji.com/newsroom/news/fly-safe-with-dji-8-tips-on-howto-use-your-new-drone (accessed May 2017).
must also make sure to check that the camera lens is clean. The Supporting Information includes a preflight checklist. Future Work: Instantaneous Preview of the Sampling Site and Drone Sampling
Staff or students who are experienced in flying drones can operate sorties immediately before or during sampling, allowing on-the-ground (to smart phones) real-time guidance for safety hazards and effectiveness of potential sites (Figure 4). The pilot has the privilege of a panoramic and close-up view of the sampling site prior to rubber-stamping the risk assessment to give the go-ahead to conduct sampling. This short and comprehensive recce using the drone will save precious time that can be better utilized for laboratory discussion in other aspects such as the after-action-review. Other work here is conducting trials for the use of drones to sample water bodies enabling access to sites that are currently inaccessible, and transporting the samples back to the lab.
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CONCLUSION The use of the drone to conduct land surveillance for outdoor teaching is a great recce tool. This teaching using drone-made videos allows students to see sites on campus. This is superior to the status quo of physical site examination only. The ability to “see the whole picture” increased safety and time performance. Extreme care must be taken when piloting the drone so as not to cause injuries or damage to infrastructure. The pilot should obtain prior approval for flying in the zone of interest and possess the sufficient sortie hours before using this flying device to explore potential sites for sampling.
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ASSOCIATED CONTENT
* Supporting Information S
The Supporting Information is available on the ACS Publications website at DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.6b00985. Suggestions for pilots who are new to unmanned aerial vehicle, details for how to choose a place to practice flying a drone, preflight checklist, and postflight activities (PDF, DOCX)
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AUTHOR INFORMATION
Corresponding Author
*E-mail:
[email protected]. ORCID
Fun Man Fung: 0000-0003-4106-3174 Notes
The authors declare no competing financial interest.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors would like to thank Richard Wong, Loh Kian Ping, and Lam Yulin of the Department of Chemistry for their support in IT enhanced teaching and learning and for approval of the drone purchase. The authors also register their gratitude to Chng Huang Hoon, Erle Lim, and Goh Say Song for their encouragement. The abstract graphic was created by Choo Wen Xin and used with permission.
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REFERENCES
(1) Rackaway, C. Video Killed the Textbook Star?: Use of Multimedia Supplements to Enhance Student Learning. J. Polit. Sci. Educ. 2012, 8, 189−200. E
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.6b00985 J. Chem. Educ. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX
