The specially designed, unmanned vehicles are upgrades to existing spray drones and can cover unwanted graffiti in hard-to-reach places such as high walls, bridges and walkways.
Bridges, dilapidated buildings, all the way to train cars and bus stops. Instead of paintbrushes, aspiring artists arm themselves with spray cans, brushes, and ladders, and showcase their talent against the backdrop of the gray urban landscape—a sight that is, unfortunately for us, a sad one.
The result? It’s subjective. But what happens when graffiti turns into unsightly “tags,” scribbles, offensive images, or sports team and political slogans? Vandalism in public spaces is now an issue affecting many major cities. And one of them has decided to deploy a swarm of drones to solve the problem.
These unmanned aerial vehicles will be modified versions of existing drones that include a spraying capability, and can cover up unwanted graffiti even in hard-to-reach places; thus, Washington State in the United States and the Department of Transportation (WSDOT) recently launched a building cleanup program.
The idea came about when the relevant department of the Ministry was called upon for the second time in a week to remove graffiti containing offensive images that were distracting drivers. This particular job required special trucks equipped with lifts, but the fleet is insufficient because these vehicles are needed for many other projects taking place in the city.
During the same period, the head of the department participated in a task force that used drones to inspect bridges. Equipped with high-resolution cameras, the drones were able to reach areas that would have been difficult for employees to access, and they completed the inspections quickly, without putting anyone at risk and saving the municipality resources.
It didn’t take long for the “epiphany” to strike: If drones were capable of conducting inspections, why not also of conducting reviews?
In collaboration with a drone manufacturer, the Ministry’s department designed a prototype unmanned aerial vehicle equipped with a spray nozzle and connected to a paint supply on the ground.
From there, the operator can direct it anywhere within the supply hose’s range to address acts of vandalism on high walls, bridges, and overpasses. The pilot program is already in the testing phase with positive results, particularly in terms of safety and the man-hours of the cleaning crews, as well as the municipality’s related resources. And if it proves successful, it could serve as a best practice for other major cities to emulate,
