Drones feel the squeeze of advanced technologies

Compact electronics are allowing UAVs to do more, even as they come in smaller and smaller packages.

The UAV market is growing at impressive rates as equally impressive advances in ruggedized electronics help unmanned aircraft do more tasks in smaller vehicles. Highly integrated boards are processing and transmitting large amounts of data, leveraging improved cooling techniques and enhanced communication schemes.

The Teal Group predicts that UAV spending will more than double from this year's $4.9 billion to $11.5 billion in 2020, totaling just over $80 billion during the decade. The U.S. will account for 76% of global development spending and about 58% of the procurement.