An international team of researchers from Imperial College London and the Swiss Federal Laboratories of Materials Science and Technology have developed autonomous, bee-inspired 3D-printing drones. They would work in fleets, cooperatively building and repairing structures while flying. 

The drones, collectively, are known as Aerial Additive Manufacturing (Aerial-AM). The system consists of BuilDrones, which deposit materials during flight, and quality-controlling ScanDrones. While fully autonomous, human intervention is still required to keep an eye on the progress.

The researchers believe this technology can provide a safer approach for building or repairing structures in precarious situations. 

The research was led by Professor Mirko Kovac of Imperial’s Department of Aeronautics and the Swiss Federal Laboratories of Materials Science and Technology’s Materials and Technology Center of Robotics. 

"We've proved that drones can work autonomously and in tandem to construct and repair buildings, at least in the lab,” said Kovac. “Our solution is scalable and could help us to construct and repair buildings in difficult-to-reach areas in the future."

The researchers tested the concept by developing four cement-like mixtures for the drones to build with. 

The next step for the researchers is to apply the technology in real-world projects.