Sports Lead the Way on Developing Technology
June 26, 2017
New technology is often advanced in unusual ways. Let’s look at two new techs that are currently the cutting edge of Sports – electric powered cars and drones. For some new technology it takes real world development to advance the technology to make it more consumer friendly i.e. more affordable. Look at what the space program did for the computer chip and the personal computing revolution in the 60s and the 70s. Similar advancements are occurring today as witnessed in the electric car industry with its adoption in the highly competitive sport of auto racing. Drone technology is being advanced in a new sporting event that has recently been promoted by ESPN in a new series called the Drone Racing League.
The electric and hybrid cars are a fairly recent addition to our personal choice of traveling, but to say they have taken off is an understatement. Advancing technology is sometimes driven in odd places and presently it’s the car industry that is the leader. From energy to robotics, the car industry is hot. Car companies have used the racing world as the test grounds for developing and modifying new technologies for years. Companies like Porsche, Jaguar, BMW, Mercedes, and Audi have all made massive commitments of research dollars to develop hybrid and electric technology for the track. The old adage in the car industry has always been “win on the track on Sunday and sell in the show rooms on Monday”. The recent 24 hours of Le Mans was won by a hybrid powered Porsche. Another hybrid powered Toyota set the fastest lap ever driven at the historic Le Mans race. There has even been developed a “formula one” like racing series for 100% electric powered cars called Formula E. This is all occurring at what may be an inflection point in the US car industry. Currently about 17 million cars and trucks are sold annually in America with electric powered cars accounting for only a small component. It is currently estimated that by 2025 (a mere 8 years) that electric car sales will hit 1.2 million units, that is double the forecast from just last year and a staggering 10 fold increase from 2014. The transformation is global in nature as China is predicting that by 2025 they will see demand from their consumers for 3 million electric cars!
The Drone Racing League shown on ESPN spotlights the advancement of drones and the skill of the pilots that fly them. The DRL program created an amazing TV show that features highly modified drones capable of traveling speeds up to 80 mph that compete with one another, racing in and around incredibly tight confines. The show appears to be almost Star Wars-like in the ability and technical capacities that both the drone and pilot have in these races. It opened my mind to a new drone world and I can now see many more applications for drone technology after seeing this show. Electric cars and their effect on the demand for oil along with drones becoming more commonplace are two large transformational events stemming in the tech world. Watch a Drone Race League race – you will be amazed.
Carl Gambrell
