Smart Firefighting Podcast

Episode 247: Enhancing Safety & Speed in Drone Operations with Liza Pierce

Published

Guests: Liza Pierce

Topics: Drones & Robotics

Episode notes

Hey first responders! These solutions are designed just for you:

Hello Smart Firefighting Community!

Welcome to another episode of covering real world innovations via interviews with fire service and technology industry experts that empower YOU to develop your very own Smart Firefighting strategy!

In this episode:

What is propulsion technology, and how is SpyDar leading the way?

How does an enclosed propeller system enhance safety and drone operations?

How to collaborate with first responders to design solutions that meet their specific operational needs

Hear from Liza Pierce - the Founder & CEO of SpyDar Sensors .

Liza talks about SpyDar’s groundbreaking propulsion technology designed for UAVs and their involvement in the NIST program.

SpyDar has developed a propulsion system featuring closed ducted fans, enabling vertical takeoff and swift transitions into forward flight. Compared to traditional quadcopters, SpyDar’s technology offers a higher thrust-to-weight ratio and faster speeds, making it an efficient tool for operations requiring heavy payloads.

Safety is a top priority, with the enclosed propeller system allowing for closer proximity to vehicles during operations. Liza also emphasizes SpyDar’s commitment to working closely with first responders to create tailored solutions that improve safety and efficiency.

So take a listen to hear what she has to share!

Head to www.smartfirefighting.com to discover how SFF accelerates innovation for emergency responders, to find out when our next event is, or review our curated resources!

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Chapters

  1. 0:00 Intro to the 5x5 miniseries with FirstNet and NIST
  2. 0:38 Liza Pierce of SpyDar Sensors joins
  3. 0:48 SpyDar's propulsion technology
  4. 1:13 Enclosed ducted fans and vertical takeoff
  5. 1:51 Thrust-to-weight ratio and payload
  6. 2:07 The NIST program and the Shark Tank pitch
  7. 3:04 How it raises the game for first responders
  8. 3:21 Safety with an enclosed propeller
  9. 3:49 What's next for SpyDar
  10. 4:35 What excites her most
  11. 5:19 How to connect
  12. 5:54 Wrap

Questions answered in this episode

What makes SpyDar's drone technology different from typical quadcopters?

Liza Pierce says SpyDar uses enclosed ducted fans with a patented propulsion system. The drones take off vertically very fast and transition into forward flight very quickly. They have a better thrust to weight ratio, meaning they can carry much heavier payloads than quadcopters and are much faster than what is usually available.

Hear it at 1:26

How does SpyDar address safety concerns with drones?

SpyDar uses an enclosed propeller system. Liza Pierce says one of their engineers was able to take a beverage off the drone and come back 12 inches from it safely. The design keeps both victims and first responders safe.

Hear it at 3:21

What is SpyDar's plan after the NIST program?

Liza Pierce says they will take feedback from the conference back to their lab, continue customer discovery, and collaborate with first responders to design what they need to save lives and do their jobs faster and more safely.

Hear it at 3:57

What specific missions is SpyDar focused on?

Liza Pierce says their mission sets and use case scenarios are pretty specific, focused on helping first responders with recon or rescue missions to save lives.

Hear it at 4:51

Transcript

Machine transcript of the published audio. Names may be misspelled and some sections are missing.

Ep 247 transcript

Enhancing Safety & Speed in Drone Operations with Liza Pierce

Speakers: Kevin Sofen, Liza Pierce

Source: Whisper medium.en machine transcription of the published Podbean audio (no original transcript found in Drive), lightly cleaned. Speakers were separated by voice clustering and then checked and assigned by hand at every speaker change. Gaps where the model returned no usable text are marked [inaudible m:ss].

[0:00] Kevin Sofen: Welcome to the Smart Firefighting Podcast. In this miniseries, hosted at the 5x5 Conference with FirstNet and NIST, we're diving into some of the most exciting new technologies supporting first responders. We'll talk about how tools like augmented reality, AI-powered drones, and advanced UAV systems are helping fire departments and emergency teams work smarter, faster, and safer. You're going to hear from people on the front lines of and innovation shaping real world stories about how these tools are making a difference. Stay tuned and enjoy. We are here at the 5x5 at the Fairmont alongside Liza Pierce from SpyDar. Liza, how you doing?

[0:43] Liza Pierce: I'm good, thank you.

[0:45] Kevin Sofen: How is your time in Chicago treating you?

[0:46] Liza Pierce: Oh, fantastic.

[0:48] Kevin Sofen: Tell me a little bit more about kind of SpyDar in terms of how you ultimately got here for the 5x5.

[0:54] Liza Pierce: So SpyDar is a propulsion company. we have a unique patented technology where we have designed our, as you can see, here in our demo table, our unique vehicles that we have used our propulsion on these unique vehicles, these UAVs.

[1:13] Kevin Sofen: I'm looking at a couple of different 3D printed models as well as, you know, maybe they're not 3D printed, but I'm seeing kind of these unique impeller, propeller looking devices. Tell me more about what I'm looking at the table and, you know, what is the technology behind it?

[1:26] Liza Pierce: So we are enclosed ducted fans. We do have patents on it, so I can't really disclose that. But we take off vertically very fast and we transition into forward flight very quickly.

[1:40] Kevin Sofen: It reminds me, I know the Osprey, the big Marine Corps development.

[1:44] Liza Pierce: That's a huge program.

[1:45] Kevin Sofen: Yeah, so not quite the same, but I guess the same idea of being able to vertical takeoff and lift kind of concept.

[1:51] Liza Pierce: Yes, we vertically take off. And what's unique about our technology is the thrust to weight ratio, meaning we can carry a much heavier payload than a quadcopter, who are much faster than the usual what's out there.

[2:06] Kevin Sofen: Got it. And how has the participation in this NIST program been? I know it's been a couple months in the works, and then you were part of the Shark Tank. Tell me about the past couple months, and then ultimately your experience here at the 5x5.

[2:19] Liza Pierce: NIST did a wonderful training program for six cohorts this year, And we went through a three month rigorous program and they allowed us to present today, helped us prepare for the, of course, the Shark Tank hitch, and also to come here to the five by five challenge here in Chicago.

[2:39] Kevin Sofen: I probably should know this, but how much longer is the program and what's next in this whole initiative?

[2:43] Liza Pierce: Well, that's a very good question, Kevin. Today is our last day of the program. So in conclusion, this is the finale, but I understand that they're gonna monitor us, these six companies, including myself and SpyDar, and see how we progress in the next six to 12 months. So yeah, they're gonna keep a heart monitor on us.

[3:04] Kevin Sofen: Well, and part of this podcast is trying to keep the ball bouncing. And so again, I'm intrigued by what I'm looking at. I'm definitely gonna take some photos, but how does this elevate the game for first responders in terms of what's on the market now to where the market's going? I mean, what kind of other unique capability Does this bring public safety?

[3:21] Liza Pierce: So we know PSCR's real focus is safety, right? And so we're an enclosed propeller system. So we can get, I don't know if you read our page, but we can get very close to our vehicles. We had one of our engineers take a beverage off our drone and come back 12 inches from the drone. So safety is a big factor for us. It remains to be a factor for the remaining iterations of our vehicles.

[3:48] Kevin Sofen: That's great. And so what's next for SpyDar? Obviously, we're talking about the NIST program, but the next six, 12, 24 months, what's next for SpyDar?

[3:57] Liza Pierce: Well, we have been very fortunate to connect with a lot of people here at 5x5, and we had an incredible amount of feedback. And so we're going to take that back to our lab, kind of debrief. But I think we definitely want to collaborate with the first responders. We have a lot of contacts, and we're going to continue our customer discovery. and uniquely designs what they need to do to save lives, to do their jobs faster, more safer as well. We're not just talking about victims, we're talking about first responders as well. We want to keep them safe.

[4:35] Kevin Sofen: And you kind of mentioned this, but you talked about safety being such a priority within this and Michael Shea from FAA always talks about safety as the number one priority, but what excites you most about what SpyDar is going to bring into the drone world and what you see, SpyDar's, what excites you most about what you're working on?

[4:51] Liza Pierce: What excites me the most is technology helping us, helping everyone in the first responder space. We're not everything to everyone, we're kind of unique. So our mission sets, our use case scenarios are pretty specific. And if we can use those specific use cases and help the first responders in saving lives, if it's doing a recon or rescue missions, we're there.

[5:18] Kevin Sofen: It's awesome. And if people wanted to get involved, they want to learn more about SpyDar or Connect, what's the best way to do that?

[5:26] Liza Pierce: Well, they can contact us at www.spidar-dar.com, and there is a hello, there's a prompt, an email there that can just send us emails. They can look us up and it's on our website.

[5:39] Kevin Sofen: Cool. Well, all the handles will be in the show notes and really cool to see this tech. I'll take some photos and keep it a good work and best of luck with everything moving forward.

[5:47] Liza Pierce: Thank you so much, Kevin.

[5:49] Kevin Sofen: Of course. Thank you. Take care. Thanks for listening to this episode of the Smart Firefighting Podcast. I would love to know what you think. Send me a note, send me a DM, post something on Twitter. Let us know what you think. Thanks again and have a great day.