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It may not look nearly as good as Pamela Anderson in a bikini on Baywatch, but a new type of drone could save your life if you get into trouble in the water.

Ryptide is a lifeguard drone that can carry an inflatable life ring to a swimmer in under a minute, according to the developers.

The system uses a specially adapted carrying device that can rush a life ring out over the water and drop it close to a swimmer in distress.

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The Ryptide drone (above) delivers a life ring that automatically inflates in the water to help swimmers in trouble. The device is being built by students at a school in Stamford, Connecticut

The rings are designed to automatically inflate as soon as they hit the water, helping swimmers to stay afloat until rescuers arrive.

The engineers behind the project, who are based in Stamford, Connecticut, say the drone would be particularly useful for helping swimmers who stray into rip tide currents.

Lifeguards rescue more than 10,000 swimmers from rip tide currents - strong currents of water that can drag swimmers out to sea.

However they often carry a great deal of danger for the lifeguards themselves and account for 80 per cent of rescues they perform.

Bill Piedra, a teacher at King Low Heywood Thomas school in Stamford and founder of Flying Robots LLC, began developing the Ryptide system with students in 2014.

He said: 'Ryptide is a life saving drone accessory that can carry an automatically inflating life ring to a swimmer in distress in less than 30 seconds.

'The system can be attached to any drone capable of carrying a GoPro camera and brushless gimbal.'

Mr Piedra and his team already have a working prototype of their system and are now running a crowdfunding campaign in an attempt to build commercial products.

They say the final model of Ryptide will be able to carry up to four inflatable rings that can be dropped one at a time at the press of a button.

It would allow life-guards to get help out to swimmers in trouble almost immediately while waiting for rescue boats or other vehicles to arrive.

While it may not carry the glamour of a beachwear clad lifeguard running across the sand like in the popular TV series, it could mean response times are quicker.

The system (shown in action above) can be attached to any drone capable of carrying a GoPro camera and brushless gimba

The drone is able to fly over a swimmer in distress and drop an inflatable life ring to help keep them afloat

Pamela Anderson (right) in Baywatch only had a boyancy aid and the odd speed boat to help rescue swimmers

Nick Smith, one of the students involved in the project, said: 'Currently the only solution to this problem is another human being risking their life to venture into the rip tide to save the swimmer in crisis.

'We plan to use drone technology to add to the arsenal of the lifeguard.' 

A ring can be attached to the drone assembly using vinyl loops which then release when hovering over the swimmer in distress.

It is the latest in a number of drones being developed to help save people's lives in emergency situations.

Students at Delft University of Technology in Holland have developed an Ambulance Drone to deliver a defibrillator to the scene of a heart attack.

Mr Piedra and the Ryptide team have already tested their system in swimming pools, on the beach, lakes and even in a frozen river.

They insist, however, they are not looking to replace lifeguards.

They said: 'We're not proposing that this product could ever replace a trained lifeguard or take the place of other safety equipment.

'We're just hoping that our simple device can augment the water safety tools that are in use today.'

They said as drones become more popular, the Ryptide system could also be installed along beaches so that drone users can quickly attach them to their machines in the event of an emergency.