Landing Drones on Steep Rooftops

Many operators have learned the hard way that landing drones on steep roofs is almost impossible. Now, researchers at the Université de Sherbrooke have developed landing gear that allows a quadcopter drone to land even on a steep surface – which could have major implications for the commercial drone industry.

The shock absorbing landing gear means that the quad can land safely without flipping over, damaging the legs, or sliding off.   Researchers point out that the gear allows homeowners to utilize drones for security and surveillance, or means that commercial drones could execute emergency landings on rooftops – a safer option than a ground landing in an urban or cluttered environment.

In a paper published in IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, July 2022 – J.Bass, I. Tunny and A.L. Desbiens, “Adaptive Friction Shock Absorbers and Reverse Thrust for Fast Multirotor Landing on Inclined Surfaces,”  researchers explain that lightweight friction shock…