Google's Project Loon balloons will 'flock' to maintain constant coverage

Google's Project Loon balloons will 'flock' to maintain constant coverage
Not so Loon-y after all?

Google has explained a little more about how its Project Loon concept will be able to defy the elements and allow for consistent internet coverage to be delivered to those below.

The pie-in-the-sky initiative, which involves suspending armies of Wi-Fi-enabled balloons high above the ground, aims to provide connectivity for those in remote areas.

However, as there are no plans for the balloons to be tethered to each other, what's to stop them just floating away on the breeze? Well, Google has a plan.

The company has performed simulations showing how balloon will be able to sense its proximity to the balloons around it and move with it to ensure the group remains equidistant from each other.

Kind of like a flock of birds....

Spread out nicely

"They [the balloons] look at their near-neighbors and tried to spread each other out nicely," says a member of the Rapid Evaluation team at Google called 'Dan' in a YouTube video posted by the company.

"But as we move forward, we may use methods that take into account everything. So every balloon essentially will have information about what every other balloon is doing. In future, it will probably be a much more sophisticated simulation."

So far Google has tested its theory in New Zealand, which it says proved 'Loon' was "a feasible project not just some crazy science project."

Check out the Google video below to take a look at the company's latest simulations.

Via The Next Web

Chris Smith

A technology journalist, writer and videographer of many magazines and websites including T3, Gadget Magazine and TechRadar.com. He specializes in applications for smartphones, tablets and handheld devices, with bylines also at The Guardian, WIRED, Trusted Reviews and Wareable. Chris is also the podcast host for The Liverpool Way. As well as tech and football, Chris is a pop-punk fan and enjoys the art of wrasslin'.