Could Robots Protect Us in the Surf?

Imagine there's a flock of aerial robots searching for a lost hiker. They have to cover a large area of remote bush and a central commander won't work because they're so spread out. So, instead, the robots work cooperatively to calculate the best way to cover and search this large area accurately and speedily.
This scenario is less Black Mirror than it sounds, and more about focusing on practical solutions for jobs that are difficult for humans to do says Dr. Arlie Chapman from the Melbourne School of Engineering. Describing the focus of her research in mechatronic engineering, Dr. Chapman says it centers on multi-vehicle robotics, or many robots working together to achieve a common goal.