Out on the open sea, when someone goes overboard for whatever reason, getting to them quickly is incredibly important to prevent drowning. This concept from Iran’s RTS Lab consists of a drone that would quickly fly to a person flailing in the water and drop a life preserver, keeping them afloat until human help can arrive.

The flying robot is called Pars. It would be a ship-based quadcopter that would be launched into action immediately upon being notified of a potential drowning person in the area. Equipped with heat sensors, Pars would scan the water for the victim, fly over to the person and then drop the floating ring. Currently, the robot can only carry one life preserver at a time, but future generations will carry many for large-scale incidents.

Although RTS Lab is developing a ship-based launching platform, they are also planning for a sea-based platform. The sea platform will always be in the water, and when a marine incident occurs the flying bots can be immediately notified and sent to the location of the incident. This platform will also serve as a charging station that will charge the quadcopters via solar power, ensuring that they are always ready when needed.