Seoul’s multifunctional smart poles will soon be able to charge drones

Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) is installing new ‘smart poles’ which act as streetlights, traffic lights, environmental sensors,  footfall counters, smartphone chargers, Wi-Fi access points, CCTV and more.

Twenty-six smart poles have already been installed in six areas of the city, with each pole’s functions customized to the needs of its location in the city.

SMG plans to continue rolling the poles out as well as piloting a version of the infrastructure which can also charge drones and electric vehicles, and detect parking violations.

The city plans to use drones to “monitor potential disasters and emergency rescue efforts”, and from later this year, drones will be able to recharge from the upper part of the poles while sending data back to SMG. A spokesperson for the city said the project is in the planning stage.