We've already seen floating fish finders that transmit readings from out on the water, plus we've also seen waterproof quadcopters ... so perhaps it shouldn't be surprising that someone has combined the two. Created by San Diego-based inventor Daniel Marion, the AguaDrone can first tell you where the fish are, and then fly your lure to that spot.
The AguaDrone (that's not a typo) is designed to be used with interchangeable bottom-mounted pods.
Users start by first attaching the sonar-enabled Fish Scout Pod, then flying the drone out to different spots where they suspect there might be fish. The pod is activated by exposure to water, and proceeds to scan the depths below down to 120 feet (37 m). As it does so, it uses its own Wi-Fi signal to transmit its findings up to 320 ft (98 m) back to an app on the user's iOS or Android mobile device.
Once fish have been located, the user hits the Return Home button on the included radio remote control unit, and the GPS-equipped drone automatically flies back to them.
They then swap in the Line Flier Pod, attach the lure at the end of their fishing line to that pod, release the bail on their reel, and fly the lure out to that same spot. Once it's there, they instruct the pod to release the lure ... and yes, just casting the lure out would be simpler, but the idea is that the drone could take it much farther than most users could cast.
From there, it's just a matter of reeling in and hoping that something bites.
A waterproof pan/tilt HD camera pod is also planned, for shooting both above and below the surface, along with a GoPro mount pod to accommodate existing actioncams.
If it sounds like your kinda thing, the AguaDrone is currently the subject of a Kickstarter campaign. A pledge of US$999 will get you a package that includes both the Fish Scout and Line Flier pods, assuming it reaches production.
Ed's note: According to the Kickstarter page, funding for this project was canceled by the project creator on July 7, 2015.
Sources: AguaDrone, Kickstarter