By C1 Staff
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Department of Corrections will begin testing ‘blimp drones’ after Warren County prisons this week.
Biz Journals reports that the DOC will test an aerostat, or a tethered balloon equipped with attached sensors, over the Lebanon and Warren Correctional Institutions in the next week.
The aerostat is permanently tethered to the ground for a ground-based power supply and thus can carry higher-powered sensors and stay in the air longer. Officials say it can detect a person’s movement from several kilometers away.
Testing comes in advance of an operational assessment that will begin in October.
The drone will be tested at random times from Oct. 1 to Oct. 7 to see how the equipment functions. It will be able to detect movement around the prisons day and night, assisting in preventing escapes or smuggling of contraband.
In November, the prisons will collaborate with the Ohio/Indiana UAS Center to assess the technology over a six-month period to see how it fares in day-to-day operations. They will also see if it is a cost-effective increase to security.