Ethical Flying and Building of UAVs

 

Ethical Dilemmas in UAVs and Campus Policy

By John Lomax, Lead Avionics Engineer

Privacy

UAVs have the ability to intrude and violate the privacy of other students and those in the community. It is imperative that everyone flies their drone responsibly and, if equipped with a camera, who and what they will be videoing/photographing. Below are a few articles highlighting how UAVs have presented issue with campus security at universities:

American Colleges Wage a Quiet War on Campus Drones

Many universities have banned any use of drones, UC Berkeley has allowed and protected student projects and organizations to continue to use drones on campus, but this is a privilege, and everyone must act responsibly and ethically so that we can continue to have this privilege. Issues revolving around privacy stem from the ability of drones to remotely take video and photos while a pilot is far away.

Forbes on the Privacy Concerns of UAVs

While US FAA regulations do not directly prohibit flying over residential and populated areas, here at UAVs@Berkeley we advise that any pilot does not fly over residential areas unless they have received expression permission from the owners and occupants of a residence. Furthermore, UC Berkeley does not allow flights over university-owned lands and buildings without express permission from the university and university police.

Environmental Impacts

UAVs can have major impacts on environment and ecosystems they fly in. Birds and other fauna will often view a drone as a threat and attempt to “scare off” a drone, injuring themselves in the process. In light of this, we recommend pilots do not fly in areas with dense populations of wildlife or flora. This includes the area around the UC Berkeley Campanile which is the year-round home of the Cal Falcons. For the safety of the falcons, never fly in or around the Campanile airspace.

UC Berkeley Response to Drone Flights Around the Campanile

In addition to on-campus environmental spaces, flying drones is prohibited in national and state parks and monuments, as well as National Forests and Recreation Areas. Local and public parks as well as flying fields are common, legal flying locations for enthusiastic UAV pilots. Later in this page we highlight our favorite spots as well.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

The use of AI in drone technologies has been cause for concern in the public and should be recognized by drone builders and engineers for how it is designed in UAVs. While UAVs have created a fun hobby for pilots and builders alike, and a boon to search and rescue services and medical deliveries, the potential for algorithmic biases in object recognition or decision-making processes could lead to discriminatory outcomes, especially in law enforcement or military contexts. Additionally, the delegation of autonomous decision-making in life-critical situations, such as targeting in combat zones, raises profound moral questions about human oversight and accountability. To ensure ethical use, it is imperative to implement transparent AI development practices, establish robust regulatory frameworks, and engage diverse stakeholders in the decision-making process. The article below highlights the negative possibilities of AI in military drones and the steps being taken by nations.

A.I. Killer Drones Are Becoming Reality. Nations Disagree on Limits. – The New York Times

For drone builders in the community, the importance of this ethical dilemma is to ensure accountability among each other and of ourselves as to how we integrate AI. We must be careful in how we integrate it into critical decision-making processes. In the same way, we wouldn’t test AI before having it fly our drones to ensure we don’t crash, we must test and discuss the other ways we bring AI into UAV software and test it rigorously. This will ensure accountability in our field.

Policies

Flying a drone over campus requires that pilots abide by FAA guidelines and UC Berkeley drone policy. For more information about drone policy within the UC system, refer to the UC Office of the President’s UAS Safety site. In short, it is against UC Berkeley policy to fly a drone over campus property without written permission from UCOP UAS safety, UC Berkeley risk managment, and UCPD. To view UC Berkeley’s complete drone policy, click here.

 

UAVs@Berkeley and students working on senior projects or other course-/club-related drone projects have special permissions from campus administration to fly drones at designated sites following the rules outlined in the UC Berkeley drone policy. We can fly at three locations: Golden Bear Field (the Clark Kerr Track), La Loma Field, and the Richmond Field Station (RFS). Remember there are a few steps to flying on campus:

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All students flying a UAV, even for projects, must be insured by the AMA. See insurance options here

Students must call UCPD dispatch to notify them of the flight.‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎                                        ⠀

Students must fly within the geofence of the site and follow all other UC Berkeley regulations.

Flight Preparation Steps

If you are interested in flying a drone on campus properties, please see the following steps to ensure you are following UC School, UCPD, and UC Berkeley policies and flying ethically.

  1. Register your drone with the FAA and UC
  2. Get AMA flight insurance
  3. Get an FAA Drone License (or figure out if you’re exempt) and register yourself with the UC
  4. Find a place to fly – review airspace, safety guidelines and local regulations
  5. Submit a UC Flight Request or a UAS Flight Request Form with the University of California, Berkeley Police Department (UCPD) and Risk Services
  6. Contact UCPD to notify them of your intention to fly
  7. Fly Safely
  8. Submit a Post-Flight Report

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Am I allowed to fly on UC Berkeley Campus?
    1. The locations outlined below are the only UC Berkeley-owned areas where student flights are permitted. Please see guidelines and above steps for what forms and people you should contact before flying.
  2. Are there places I can fly off campus?
    1. Absolutely, feel free to fly at public parks around the Berkeley and Bay Area, such as Cesar Chavez Park and Indian Rock Park. However, flying UAVs in CA state parks and national parks, monuments, recreational areas, and other lands is unlawful and strictly prohibited.
  3. Can I fly around the Campanile when the Cal Falcons are not in nesting season?
    1. No, flying drones around the campanile is strictly prohibited year-round.
  4. Why should I care about drone ethics? Does it really affect me?
    1. How us pilots act and engage in the broader community deeply impacts the trust and report we have. If we respect regulations and behave ethically, the stigma surrounding drones invasive and dangerous nature will be lifted.
  5. I had a UC Berkeley faculty member or administrator ask me to land my drone even though I had UCPD approval and was in a designated area, what do I do?
    1. Please land your drone and cooperate with them. It happens to all of us, yes even our student organization when we are holding events. Not everyone is familiar with all the rules surrounding drones on campus and ignoring them won’t solve anything. Cooperation and conversing are the best ways to build a strong relationship between drone pilots and the UC Berkeley community.
  6. Where can I learn more?
    1. If you have further questions, please feel free to reach out to us.

Where do we fly?

Golden Bear Field.

Most UAVs@Berkeley flights take place here; the field is spacious and fenced in. The geofence is along the fence of the field and flights are limited to 300 feet in altitude.

Richmond Field Station.

All participants must be accompanied by a UAVs@Berkeley leadership member who has completed RFS training.

La Loma Field.

The geofence is along the fence of the field and limited to 15 feet, perfect for smaller aircraft. All participants must be accompanied by a member of UAVs@Berkeley leadership who is a signatory for the field.



If You Have More questions about how to be an ethical drone pilot, or how and where you can fly around campus. Reach out to us…

Email: officers@uav.studentorg.berkeley.edu

Click here to fill out our contact form.

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