The sky’s the limit for Boisean’s new mini chopper technology

September 27, 2003

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When a sniper was terrorizing Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., last October, shooting down victims in parking lots and gas stations, Boisean Leo Geis was put on a shortlist of people who might be able to help.

Julie Howard The Idaho Statesman

The idea was this: Geis, owner of Idaho Airships, could deploy his high-tech remote-controlled helicopters to pinpoint the shooter´s location.

Using a series of acoustic sensors dangling from several helicopters that would hover over the area, law enforcement officials would be able to triangulate from the sound of a gunshot the location of the sniper.

Geis didn´t get called in, primarily because the snipers roamed the area widely, not sticking to a particular neighborhood. Safety concerns about flying over populated areas with a powerful remote-controlled aircraft, with blades spinning at maximum force, also were factored into the decision.

But Idaho Airships, the Boise company Geis started in 1997, has been stealthily capturing interest from diverse areas for its developing technology.

Geis has talked to the Boise Police Department about using his new helicopters to deliver a cell phone or provide discreet surveillance in a hostage situation.

The U.S. Department of Energy is exploring how the helicopters can be used to track poisonous gases in the event of a terrorist attack or chemical spill.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is discussing the use of Idaho Airships to conduct research on stream contaminants.

All the while, Geis has been flying his other remote-controlled aircraft — blimps equipped with remotely operated cameras — to take pictures of such events as the Super Bowl, the Salt Lake City Olympics and Boise State football.

“You talk to this guy and it´s like he´s a genius,” said Brad Larrondo, BSU´s assistant athletic director for marketing and promotion. “He´s a fascinating person.”

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The Leo Anthony Geis file

Age: 45

Family: Wife, Meichele; three children, ages 5 to 8

Home: Boise

Interesting facts: Worked as an air traffic controller for 14 years in Europe, Denver, Tucson and Salt Lake City. Played professional racquetball one year and won the Arizona Cup. Idaho Airships was named a top 100 finalist as most entrepreneurial company in America in 1998.

Helicopter facts:

* 7 1/2 feet long

* About 19 pounds

* Two onboard computers

* Price: about $22,000

* Noise level is approximately that of a lawnmower

* Top speed: about 75 mph

* Uses about 1/2 gallon of fuel per hour

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Certainly, his credentials sound impressive for a guy who flies remote-controlled aircraft for a living.

Geis has a bachelor´s degree in aviation management from Southern Illinois University, is working on an MBA from the University of Phoenix and is starting on a doctorate in law. His specialty is technical photography and his bread-and-butter work is forensic photography.

Increasingly, however, his work and life are being taken over by remote-controlled helicopters.

“This is a robot,” says Geis, launching one of his 7 1/2 -foot-long helicopters from a Boise field. “The technology is there so that it could be programmed to fly to certain coordinates, hover and then fly back.”

The technology is there, but perhaps not the logistics. The blades of one of Geis´ $22,000 mini-helicopters revolve at 250 miles per hour and safety is an issue. Flying over people, he says, isn´t recommended.

But the technology has drawn significant scientific interest.

The USDA has used remote-controlled blimps mounted with color-infrared cameras to take pictures of streams to study water quality.

“This technology allows us to look over large areas with remote sensing,” said Pat Clark, a range scientist with the department´s Northwest Watershed Research Center based in Boise. “There´s currently a problem with the way streams are sampled in that there´s just not enough manpower to get on the ground and sample an entire stream system.”

Clark´s project is looking at water temperatures and stream shading in the Owyhees, and figuring out how to separate out naturally occurring temperature changes from those coming from human disturbance.

Blimps, however, are at the mercy of the wind, and Clark looks forward to using Geis´ new helicopters that provide more stability in breezy conditions.

“They´re less disturbed by wind so this is definitely an advancement,” said Clark.

Geis isn´t the only one experimenting with remote-controlled helicopters for scientific research. Over the past five years, numerous individuals and governmental agencies have explored developing the devices.

At the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory in Idaho Falls, the robotics lab is doing just that.

“We talked to Leo about using his blimp and then started looking at alternative methods such as remote helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft,” said Mark McKay, advisory engineer at INEEL´s robotics lab.

INEEL is interested in ways to capture samples of smoke during a fire to determine whether harmful contaminants are being burned. But it would be dangerous, and expensive, to have a pilot fly through the smoke.

Discussions with Geis led to INEEL developing its own remote-controlled helicopter, and then researchers advised Geis on developing his aircraft, trading information and expertise.

McKay is fascinated by the variety of uses the helicopters could have in the future.

“It can range from photography to surveillance — there are guys making a lot of money in the movie industry doing this,” said McKay. “Our research is focused on taking the skill out of it and having a computer do most of the flying. The real issue behind these things is it takes a very skilled radio-control pilot to run these things. And there are just a few individuals who have gone through the training and have the talent to do this.”

Making the equipment easier would in turn make the technology proliferate, said McKay, allowing agencies such as law enforcement to adopt the helicopters for a variety of uses.

“Remember the O.J. Simpson car chase?” he said. “You could use one of these helicopters and have it lock onto and track a vehicle. That´s where we´re headed, but we´re not there yet.”

Boise State University is interested in the aerial photography that Idaho Airships can provide, so far using only the blimp.

“We have aerial photographs taken of the stadium for posters and promotional items, but also took some that we can look at for traffic analysis,” said BSU´s Larrondo. “We kicked around the idea of having one of his helicopters bringing in the game ball, but there´s a risk-management concern. If there´s people around, there´s an issue.”

At home, Geis´ garage, office and living room is filled with pieces of his business that he gleefully shows off. A set of goggles is inset with a mini monitor about the size of a postage stamp— the idea being that a camera-equipped helicopter could be launched and the controller wearing the goggles could have a bird´s-eye view of the helicopter´s travels. Computer software, specially adapted, acts as a training system for flying the remote-controlled aircraft, but also can be used as a game by his children. Miniature cameras, robotic pieces, and other hardware are scattered on tables.

It´s all about what one would expect from the company that was named one of the country´s most entrepreneurial companies.

The technology is intriguing, but Geis is staying grounded.

“Shooting pictures of dirt, trees and streams — that´s where the money is right now,” he said. “I mean, I´ve shot stuff as mundane as a stop sign. The rest of this stuff is the future.”

To offer story ideas or comments, contact Julie Howard jhoward@idahostatesman.com or 373-6618

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