Drones & UAVs News & Discussions

[raklian]

[weatheriscool]

Airbus' autonomous rotor drone aces flight trials in gale conditions
By David Szondy
May 22, 2023
https://newatlas.com/military/airbus-vs ... tor-drone/

Airbus' VSR700 robotic helicopter has successfully completed sea tests under operational conditions, including fully autonomous take-offs and landings in strong gale force wind conditions, from a civilian ship's helicopter deck.

UAV helicopters may look like strange toys, but they play a very serious and increasingly important military role, especially at sea. While many fixed-wing drones can be launched from aircraft carrier decks or from catapults, smaller ships in rough seas don't have this option, though decades of experience have proven how rotorcraft can be a real force multiplier for frigates and similar vessels.

[weatheriscool]

Hover Camera X1 drone can be used without an app or a remote
By Ben Coxworth
May 29, 2023
ZeroZero Robotics

Perhaps you like the idea of using a drone to take aerial selfies, but you don't want to buy a big, expensive, complex quadcopter. That's where ZeroZero Robotics' Hover Camera drone comes in, and the latest version – the X1 – is claimed to be easier than ever to use.

Like its predecessors, namely the original Hover Camera and the Hover 2, the X1 features a hinged body that allows it to be folded down to a 125-g (4.4-oz) package measuring 127 by 86 by 31 mm (5 by 3.38 by 1.22 in) when not in use. Additionally, thanks to protective caging around the propellers, it's able to take off from the user's hand without any risk of injury.

The X1 can be remotely controlled or set to preprogrammed flight modes via an accompanying iOS/Android app. Setting it apart from the previous models, however, is the fact that it can also be used without a smartphone or a remote. Instead, by pushing a button on the drone itself, users can select one of five flight modes.

https://newatlas.com/drones/hover-camera-x1-drone/

[wjfox]

[weatheriscool]

New Heat-Resistant Drone Can Enter Burning Buildings
FireDrone could someday help firefighters locate survivors or gather intel to aid an investigation.

By Adrianna Nine June 28, 2023

Emergency response agencies constantly seek ways to rescue survivors without putting more people in danger. To that end, we now use technology to help us find people under earthquake rubble and in deep water—why not in burning buildings? Engineers at Imperial College London and Empa (a materials science and technology research center in Switzerland) have developed a drone prototype that can withstand extreme heat, making it a potential life-saver for victims of structural fires.

The aptly-named FireDrone owes its heat resistance to two major components. The first is its insulation, part of which comes from the polyimide aerogel that makes up much of the drone’s body. Glass fiber studded with silica particles reinforces the aerogel, reducing any shrinkage that might occur in high temperatures. These two materials combine to create what’s referred to as a GFRPI (short for glass-fiber reinforced polyimide) protective shell, which houses the drone’s robotic bits. The arms contain an insulating foam, while an external aluminum coating helps reflect heat.

https://www.extremetech.com/science/new ... -buildings

[raklian]

[Vector]

I wonder when will appear autonomy reusable drones with AI which can overcome jam systems

[Vector]

I wonder when will appear autonomy reusable drones with AI which can overcome jam systems

As it turns out, they already exist.

[wjfox]

UK's first drone mail service begins in Orkney

2 days ago

Orkney has become the first location in the UK to have mail delivered by drone.

The Orkney I-Port operation has been launched by Royal Mail and drone firm Skyports to distribute letters and parcels between the islands.

[...]

While the service will initially operate for three months, it could be continued on a permanent basis under existing regulatory frameworks due to Orkney's unique landscape and the proximity of the islands to one another.

The drone service is expected to significantly improve service levels and delivery times to Graemsay and Hoy, as weather and geography can cause disruption to delivery services.

The use of electric drones for inter-island delivery will also bring significant safety improvements by ensuring postal workers can deliver between ports without risk.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland- ... d-66340600

[wjfox]

[raklian]

Drone vs. Tank
1 - 0

[raklian]

Future of drone warfare is already here.

[weatheriscool]

US Air Force Transformation With Superdrone Wingmen First Then Next Gen Bombers and Fighters
August 28, 2023 by Brian Wang

The US Air Force will undergo a major transformation over the next ten years by adding new superdrone wingmen with existing fighters and bombers and then the introduction of the next generation B21 stealth bomber and then the new NGAD fighter.

The US Air Force has been testing some superdrones that can work as wingmen with existing bombers and fighters. They will have a competition to select the winning superdrones late this year. However, there will be multiple contracts and constantly upgrading superdrones over the next few years and beyond.

https://www.nextbigfuture.com/2023/08/u ... hters.html

[caltrek]

[raklian]

Hunter drones have arrived.

[wjfox]

Wingcopter drones deliver everyday goods in Germany

October 9, 2023

Wingcopter and the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences (Frankfurt UAS) has launched the ‘Drohnen-Lastenrad-Express-Belieferung’ (Drone-Cargo Bike Express Delivery) project in Germany.

The pilot project offers residents of remote districts in Michelstadt, Hesse, the opportunity to have groceries and consumer goods delivered to their homes quickly and emission-free by a Wingcopter delivery drone and cargo bike. The drone deliveries are intended to sustainably improve local supply in the region.

Initially the districts of Rehbach and Würzberg, well outside Michelstadt, will be served. Many local retailers have closed their stores in recent years, forcing residents to drive to Michelstadt or other towns to do their shopping – in some cases well over 10km each way.

Residents can order everyday goods online and have them delivered to their homes at a specified time. The orders are flown by Wingcopter to landing points just outside the villages, from where they are transported to the customers by electric cargo bike.

Frankfurt UAS is evaluating the service from an economic and ecological perspective and is also operating the cargo bikes. It has extensive expertise in the field of last-mile logistics with cargo bikes and small electric vehicles.

https://www.parcelandpostaltechnologyin ... rmany.html



Credit: Wingcopter

[weatheriscool]

Researchers design and fly world's largest quadcopter drone
https://techxplore.com/news/2023-10-fly ... drone.html
by University of Manchester

Engineers at The University of Manchester have built and flown the world's largest quadcopter drone. The drone, made from a cardboard-like material called foamboard, measures 6.4m (21 ft) corner to corner and weighs 24.5kg—0.5kg less than the weight limit set by the Civil Aviation Authority.

The innovative design of the drone, dubbed the Giant Foamboard Quadcopter (GFQ), means it is unlike any other in existence. The four arms are formed of a series of hollow box structures and can be easily removed for transportation. There is no record of a purpose-built uncrewed quadcopter (four rotors) of any weight class which is larger than the Manchester vehicle as of the time of writing.

The project started as a curiosity-driven venture to inspire students' creativity in design by utilizing a suitable alternative low-cost material for lightweight aerospace structures that is more environmentally friendly than the usual carbon fiber.

[raklian]

This wasn't on my bingo card at all.

[caltrek]

Could Drones One Day Speed Automated External Defibrillators Delivery to Cardiac Arrest Scenes Across the U.S.?
November 6, 2023

Introduction:

(Eurekalert) DALLAS, Nov. 6, 2023 — A research simulation suggests that a drone delivery system could improve access to automated external defibrillators (AEDs), a portable device that can shock the heart rhythm back to normal when a person is experiencing an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, according to preliminary research to be presented at the American Heart Association’s Resuscitation Science Symposium 2023. The meeting, Nov. 11-12, in Philadelphia, is a premier global exchange of the latest scientific advances related to treating cardiopulmonary arrest and life-threatening traumatic injury.

According to the American Heart Association, more than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of the hospital each year, with a survival rate of only about 10%. The initiation of bystander CPR, including the use of an AED if warranted, is critical in the initial response to an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and can more than double or triple a person’s chances of survival. However, the number of people who experience out-of-hospital cardiac arrest who have an AED applied by a bystander remains low, with timely access to an AED a major barrier, especially in rural areas.

For the study, researchers developed a simulation model that evaluated how quickly an AED could be delivered to the scene of a cardiac arrest in 19 counties in North Carolina. The model hypothesized that all local first responders, including EMS, fire fighters and police officers, would carry an AED and then optimized a network of AED-carrying drones. The simulation model compared the response time until an AED arrived on scene between this hypothetical intervention and the historical first responder/EMS response in each area.

Using the drones to maximize the total number of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests that could have an AED delivered within five minutes, the researchers found:

• 5-minute response time for AED arrival would improve from 24% to 77% for urban areas and 10% to 23% for rural areas.

• Estimated average response times would be reduced by 42% to 4 minutes in urban areas and by 24% to 7.1 minutes in rural areas. The historical median response time was 6.9 minutes in urban areas and 9.4 minutes in rural areas.

• All counties showed significant improvement in response time for urban and rural populations.

Read more here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1006511

[weatheriscool]