University of Michigan launches outdoor lab for autonomous drones

The University of Michigan's autonomous vehicle testing grounds are no longer limited to earthbound machines. It just opened M-Air, a 9,600 square foot, four-story facility designed for testing autonomous aircraft outdoors. The complex lets researchers test drones in realistic lighting and wind conditions, but includes netting that prevents wayward drones from smacking into people or other aircraft. The addition enables the kind of experiments that would previously have required permission to fly outside. Researchers already have a few examples of what they can do.