You know we have gone mainstream when Coke and Pepsi are using quadcopters/multirotors in their commercials.
Just a few examples:
Audi A6
Bud Light Lime
Neymar, Jr for Panasonic
Pepsi Drone Football
And of course Coca Cola
CNET en Espanol
Wrong on so many levels…puppies
Head and Shoulders…seriously?
Netflix
Sgt. Jacob Hoffpauir, of the Thibodaux Police Department, flies a quadcopter today.
Outside of the Thibodaux Police station on Friday, Sgt. Jacob Hoffpauir fiddled with an iPad Mini as he watched a white quadcopter swoop through the air, four propellers spinning.
The unmanned aerial system soared up to 400 feet high, with the officer directing its every move, at one point landing on top of a police car.
Hoffpauir is one of five pilots who can operate the quadcopter for the department, which joins the Lafourche Parish Government, South Lafourche Levee District and Lockport Volunteer Fire Department in making use of the technology.
“Imagine a packed crowd like the Firemen’s Fair, with so many people around,” said Thibodaux Police spokesman David Melancon. “If someone comes to us and says ‘I can’t find my little girl’ or ‘I can’t find my brother,’ we can say, ‘What are they wearing?’ put it up in the sky and start monitoring.”
Capt. Kyle Cressione, special operations commander and interim police chief, said retiring Police Chief Scott Silverii wanted the department to buy a quadcopter for purposes such as documenting crime scenes and assisting in search-and-rescue missions.
The DJI Phantom III cost $1,600 and includes a pivoted support to allow the camera to rotate.
“It’s not only the quadcopter we were interested in, it’s the camera,” Cressione said. “This particular camera is in HD. It’s in real-time, it can take pictures, and it’s on a gimbal. No matter what I do, it’s going to stay on the target.”
http://www.houmatoday.com/article/20150821/ARTICLES/150829912
By Wayne Lowrie, Gananoque Reporter
Bird’s eye view of township building from the drone. Note the solar panels on the roof of the TLTI building on Thursday, August 20, 2015 in Leeds and the Thousand Islands, Ont.
When it comes to high-tech equipment, things are looking up in the Township of Leeds and the Thousand Islands. Or, rather, looking down.
The township has purchased a drone.
The DJI Phantom 3 was bought last spring for $1,400 and is at work videoing and taking pictures of the township from as high as 400 feet (it can go up to 1,700 feet but federal regulations impose limits).
Public Works Director Michael Touw, keeper of the drone, said the hubcap-sized flying machine has already earned its keep by photographing drainage problems and recording township events.
Last spring it was used to take pictures of Wiltse Creek in response to flooding complaints. The aerial photographs showed the creek was running clear, with no blockages.
Touw said the flying camera will be useful in other drainage issues, allowing the township to spot beaver dams and see areas that would take too long to reach on foot.
The drone has also been used at such township events as the recent fire department training in Seeley’s Bay and to take promotional photos at an event at Haskins Point. The drone has also recorded the installation of solar panels on the roof of the township building.
Touw said the drone could be used to survey township-owned property, in planning applications and to help the fire department to determine the size of grass fires or in the search for missing persons.
And while the drone could be used to spy on township residents who illegally improve their property without permits, Touw said that is definitely not the plan because of privacy concerns. He said the drone is limited to surveying municipally owned property.
The drone, which is carried in a case the size of a carry-on bag, resembles a miniature Star Wars ship. It is operated by a hand-held controller that can be linked to a smart phone or a tablet. The smart phone screen allows the operator to see what the drone sees, in real time, and to take still pictures.
It has a GPS that tracks the drone’s location and the machine can stay in the air for 25 minutes. When the battery is low, the drone will start back to home base on its own.
wayne.lowrie@sunmedia.ca
http://www.thewhig.com/2015/08/21/township-of-leeds-and-the-thousand-islands-purchases-a-drone
China’s enormous Divine Eagle UAV is larger than the U.S. Air Force’s Global Hawk, recently released satellite imagery suggests.
While China’s UAVs are getting better, if not bigger, little is known about one of its latest models.
Photos of China’s mysterious UAV appeared in May and June while a concept of operations along with payload specs was released earlier in February.
The Divine Eagle (or Shen Diao) is built by the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation’s 601 Institute and will operate as a high altitude long endurance surveillance drone helping defend China’s airspace against would-be adversaries.
China’s concept of operations suggests the drone will provide early warning against enemy aircraft and support the battle management mission directing friendly targeting of enemy carrier groups.
A recent space snapshot acquired by DigitalGlobe shows the twin-fuselage, single-engine drone parked on the south end of Shenyang’s runway, possibly indicative of pre-post flight activity.
Although, the activity could also suggest taxi trials, it was rumored that the aircraft’s first test flight occurred sometime in December, according to Chinese internet sources.
Imagery also confirmed details about the drone’s specific characteristics. Measurements taken in Google Earth would indicate a wingspan and length of approximately 40 and 15 meters, respectively.
With its large size and aft-mounted high aspect ratio wings, it’s suspected to have a take off weight over 15 tons, which would be larger than the Global Hawk, just over 14.5 tons.
Though little else can be confirmed, payload specs released in February of a similar variant appeared to suggest a variety of surveillance and targeting capabilities.
The graphic identified at least 5 radars integrated into the airframe including a 160 degree forward-looking X/UHF AMTI AESA radar, two 120 degree side-looking X/UHF AMTI/SAR/GMTI AESA and two rear-looking X/UHF AMTI AESA covering 152 degrees.
In other words, the drone’s radars provide 360-degree coverage, identifying targets regardless of weather conditions and stealth characteristics.
Assuming the specs are correct, the Divine Eagle would represent a serious step forward for Chinese unmanned capabilities potentially bolstering China’s A2/D2 strategy.
It’s this type of platform that would not only extend the reach of the country’s situation awareness but also help collect targeting information beyond the first island chain. Similarly in 2013, China began using UAVs to watch over the East China Sea with a previously renovated airfield.
Given China’s recent runway construction in the disputed Spratleys, it’s possible this drone may one day be deployed to watch over activity in the South China Sea.
https://www.bellingcat.com/news/rest-of-world/2015/08/23/satellite-imagery-captures-chinas-divine-eagle-uav/
Business Standard Editorial Comment | New Delhi August 22, 2015 Last Updated at 21:40 IST
One of the challenges of wedding photography is videotaping the procession as it starts its journey from the groom’s house. However, of late an increasingly common solution has been the deployment of a camera-drone. It allows for unusual and interesting angles of coverage. Drones are also covering fashion shows, political rallies and concerts. And there is much talk of using them to deliver pizza. Clearly, drones, or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), are now well and truly part of everyday life. The cost of owning and operating one is roughly equivalent to a mobile phone. Many UAV models are available off the shelf, with prices between Rs 3,000 and Rs 1.5 lakh. Of course, the military and security uses are well-known. The Indian security establishment is said to deploy more types of drones – at least 50 different models – than any nation other than the USA. The police use UAVs for monitoring religious processions and gatherings such as those during Ganesh Chaturthi, Ramzan, the Kumbh Mela and so on. The deployment of UAVs which can spray tear gas on rioters is also under consideration.
But UAVs can also perform a very wide range of civilian tasks. They are used for mapping and surveying, and gathering meteorological, environmental and oceanographic data. Spraying of crops with pesticides and fertilisers was pioneered by Japanese farmers. UAVs are also deployed for monitoring activity in forests, and in disaster relief. They can be used to deliver food and medicine across difficult terrain, or to provide Internet connectivity. Given increasingly sophisticated technology and human ingenuity, the sky is literally the limit when it comes to figuring out new usages for drones. There is a domestic industry with at least 25 local UAV manufacturers, and many start-ups offering software and associated technological products and services. There is even a lobby: the Unmanned Systems Association of India.
Obviously, there are concerns about safety, security and privacy. Accidents could happen, or UAVs could be used deliberately to cause harm in many ways, or to spy on people. But blanket bans would be impossible to enforce, apart from being retrogressive in spirit. What is needed are modern regulations; but there are no regulations governing the use of UAVs, either by government agencies, or by private citizens and companies. As of now, the civilian UAV sector operates under the constraint of almost absurd regulations, which were released in October 2014. In theory, every civilian user is supposed to seek permission for every UAV flight from both the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and the Ministry of Home Affairs. In practice, these regulations are unsurprisingly, often ignored. It is easier to “request” local police to look the other way. The security implications are terrifying.
The DGCA is said to be formulating draft regulations for civilians, based on the regulations of the American Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The FAA licenses civilian use of UAVs weighing less than 25 kg, which can be flown at heights of up to 150 metres (or 492 feet) and at speeds of up to 160 kilometres an hour. Flights are restricted to line-of-sight. Commercial operators may apply for renewable permits. No-fly zones are also defined. But even the FAA regulations have been criticised as constricting. UAVs can fly much higher, at far greater speeds, and safely out of line-of-sight. But if the DGCA does release a draft, the details could be thrashed out via the usual consultation process. The regulations would have to be subject to review as technology improves. It also behoves the government to set transparent, clearly defined limits on the use of UAVs by its own agencies, given the privacy implications. UAVs provide classic examples of technology which can be both disruptive and enabling. There are enormous potential benefits but there are also obvious dangers. Regulation is absolutely necessary but it must be flexible and guided by common sense.
http://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/the-drones-of-tomorrow-115082200821_1.html
Thomson ReutersAn Aeronavics drone sits in a paddock near the town of Raglan, New Zealand
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – As concerns rise about a security menace posed by rogue drone flights, U.S. government agencies are working with state and local police forces to develop high-tech systems to protect vulnerable sites, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Although the research aimed at tracking and disabling drones is at an early stage, there has been at least one field test.
Last New Year’s Eve, New York police used a microwave-based system to try to track a commercially available drone at a packed Times Square and send it back to its operator, according to one source involved in the test.
The previously unreported test, which ran into difficulty because of interference from nearby media broadcasts, was part of the nationwide development effort that includes the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Aviation Administration and the Defense Department, the source said.
The sources were not authorized to speak about the effort and declined to be identified.
Asked about the development of counter-drone-technology, the Department of Homeland Security said it “works side-by-side with our interagency partners” to develop solutions to address the unlawful use of drones. Officials with the Defense Department, FAA and New York Police Department declined to comment.
But the sources acknowledged that efforts to combat rogue drones have gained new urgency due to the sharp rise in drone use and a series of alarming incidents.
The number of unauthorized drone flights has surged over the past year, raising concerns that one could hit a commercial aircraft during landing or take-off, or be used as a weapon in a deliberate attack, the sources said.
Drones have flown perilously close to airliners, interfered with firefighting operations, been used to transport illegal drugs into the United States from Mexico, and sparked a security scare at the White House, among other incidents.
Ng Han Guan/AP Images
But U.S. authorities have limited tools for identifying drone operators, many of them hobbyists, who violate federal rules that drones fly no higher than 400 feet (120 meters) and no closer than 5 miles (8 km) to airports. One reason for the enforcement gap is that Congress in 2012 barred the FAA from regulating recreational drones.
A system capable of disabling a drone and identifying its operator would give law enforcement officials practical powers to block the flights.
At crowded venues such as Times Square or the Super Bowl, police want to be able to take control of a drone, steer it safely away from the public and guide it back to the operators, who can then be identified, the sources said.
A Reuters analysis of FAA data shows that authorities identified operators in only one in 10 unauthorized drone sightings reported in 2014, while only 2 percent of the cases led to enforcement actions.
“We can’t shoot it out of the sky. We have to come up with something that’s kind of basic technology so that if something happens, the drone or device will just go right back to the operators. It won’t crash,” one of the sources said.
To do that, experts say that a drone needs to be tracked and identified with a receiver and then targeted with an electromagnetic signal strong enough to overwhelm its radio controls.
“You need enough power to override the transmitter. If I just jam it so it can’t receive signals, it’s probably going to crash. But if I know the transmission codes the drone is using, I can control that object,” said retired U.S. Marine Lieutenant Colonel Muddy Watters, an electronic warfare expert.
Laws governing the use of drones have lagged their dramatic rise in areas spanning agriculture, filming and recreational use. Recreational drone operators are not required to register their machines, obtain training or put identifying features on the aircraft, making it extremely difficult for police to track down rogue operators.
MapBoxWhere drones are banned.
U.S. pilots have reported more than 650 drone sightings this year, as of Aug. 9, well over double the 238 total for all of 2014, the FAA said last week.
More than 1 million drones of all kinds are expected to be sold in the United States this year, compared to 430,000 in 2014 and 120,000 in 2013, according to the Consumer Electronics Association.
In California, errant drones forced firefighters to suspend air drops of water and fire retardant on wild fires this summer.
In January, a “quadcopter” drone landed on the White House lawn after its operator lost control of the device in downtown Washington. Federal officials decided not to bring criminal charges.
Police say their greatest fear is weaponization, as the advance of drone technology enables the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to travel farther and faster and carry larger payloads.
Guns can be fixed to drones and fired with relative ease, as demonstrated in a popular video posted to YouTube by a Connecticut teenager in July. The 15-second video, entitled “Flying Gun”, shows a quadcopter hovering just above the ground in a wooded area and jerking backward with each of four shots.
The case is under investigation by the FAA to determine whether the drone violated aviation safety rules.
Safety and security concerns have prompted bipartisan discussions in Congress about options that include federal support for jamming drone systems and other potential technology solutions.
Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat, proposed this week that drone manufacturers be required to install technology capable of preventing the unmanned aircraft from straying near “no fly” areas such as airports.
Drone industry executives say that one possible solution is an industry-wide agreement to include so-called “geo-fencing” software in drones to prevent them from straying above the legal altitude or too close to sensitive sites.
Chinese drone maker SZ DJI Technology Co Ltd, whose drone was involved in the January crash on the White House grounds, has since released a software fix that will restrict flights around sensitive areas.
Federal authorities say they are also prepared to bring federal criminal charges against rogue drone operators who violate FAA restrictions.
(Additional reporting by David Alexander, Andrea Shalal and Doina Chiacu; Editing by Soyoung Kim and Stuart Grudgings)
By JOSH MOODY Hub Staff Writer
KEARNEY — Grounded — that’s where professors at the University of Nebraska at Kearney find their research into unmanned aerial vehicles.
“What we’re proposing is to create a system of drone use and drone training by emergency responders in Nebraska,” UNK biology professor Marc Albrecht said. Federal Aviation Association regulations are keeping UNK’s three drones on the ground.
Better known as drones, unmanned aerial vehicles, are being used in agriculture, construction, weather prediction, warfare and in other ways.
One way that Albrecht sees drones being used in the future is by first responders in emergency management situations. Albrecht said drones could be used to examine fires, floods and other dangerous situations.
The proposed training would take place at UNK’s Nebraska Safety Center, which offers training classes and certification courses for specialized licenses.
Albrecht said that the training would be a complete package, teaching the hardware, software and regulations guiding the use of drones.
“A private citizen may not be worried about flying a drone legally, especially if they’re on their land. But if you’re an emergency responder, you are going to be flying over other people’s property, potentially in dangerous situations, and there’s going to be people around probably, if not equipment and power lines. So, you actually have to be more aware of the regulations than just a hobbyist or even a rancher on his own land,” Albrecht said.
UNK’s drones — a DJI Phantom 3, a DJI Inspire and a 3DRobotics Solo — were purchased along with other support equipment with an $18,624 research grant.
“The FAA regulations are changing very rapidly. They’re changing as to where and when and how you can use drones all the time,” Albrecht said.
Terry Gibbs, director of UNK’s aviation systems management program, also is part of the research team and is lending his expertise on FAA regulations.
“What I’m doing primarily is helping individuals — faculty members and (the University of Nebraska) systemwide — navigate how to use this tool legally,” Gibbs said. He is working with the university to determine and mitigate risks in drone operations.
“I believe there is a tremendous amount of potential,” Gibbs said. “I don’t think it’s going to take away from manned aviation. I think it’s going to add another layer of aviation and just change the whole paradigm of how we do things. I’d like to be part of discovering that process.”
Though operating drones for university research is not permitted by the FAA, Albrecht said the research project will continue with the goal of establishing a training system for emergency responders. However, the researchers won’t have a chance to learn hands-on with the equipment.
“These are certainly interesting devices. They certainly open up new possibilities for research. They are being used today by agencies and by people, so it’s a little frustrating to physically have them and not be able to do that. But it doesn’t stop our effort. It doesn’t halt it,” Albrecht said.
Gibbs said the FAA’s primary concern about drones is to protect manned aircraft pilots from danger caused by drones.
He is concerned for the safety of pilots in the agricultural industry — an area in which drones are beginning to creep into.
“When people are putting these things up over their fields — I believe it’s a valid use, but remember, I want to caution them that where these things (drones) are flying is exactly where the ag pilots are flying,” Gibbs said.
Gibbs said while the collision between a drone and an airplane would likely cause minimal damage, a startled pilot could lose control in air.
“What will a 5-pound drone do to an airplane? Probably not a lot. But in the event of the ag person who’s flying along at 15-20 feet off the ground at 140 knots and he sees this thing all of a sudden pop up, what is his reaction going to be?”
Though barred from operating drones, the research into providing a training system for emergency personnel continues.
“It’s a little disappointing because I would like to work with them. They seem like an interesting tool. But these things happen. I guess that’s part of the price of trying the new tools and trying to keep up with the times. Sometimes, as a person who is working in an institution, you have to wait for legal frameworks and regulation to catch up,” Albrecht said.
According to Albrecht, the research will likely take one year of learning and preparation and another year for review and implementation.
Drones in the classroom
Another area off-limits to Albrecht is using drones in the classroom.
“I like technology. I think bringing something new to the classroom is engaging for students,” he said. “I had hoped to use drones in teaching, simply to keep up with the technology, interest students and introduce them to this new tool.”
As a biologist and ecologist, Albrecht sees the potential field use for drones.
That potential for drones has been recognized by the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Land Management and the United States Geological Service. All use drones for tasks such as mapping remote areas, land management and monitoring wildlife populations.
The Section 333 exemption
One option for researchers is to apply for a Section 333 exemption, which would allow them to operate drones with FAA permission.
The problem, Gibbs said, is that these exemptions are rare.
To date, the FAA has granted 1,008 Section 333 exemptions.
Those exemptions have largely gone to real estate agencies, insurance companies, and organizations conducting aerial photography and videography.
Entities granted exemptions include Amazon.com, BNSF Railway, CNN, Liberty Mutual Insurance, State Farm, Union Pacific Railroad and Yamaha Motor Co. Hobbyists are not required to obtain a Section 333 exemption.
“You as a private citizen, for your own hobbyist use, can go out and fly them around all you want to,” Gibbs said.
The rule-making process
In February, the FAA announced a proposed regulatory framework for drones less than 55 pounds. Rules for larger drones will be considered in the future.
Following the proposal, the FAA accepted public comments for 60 days. The comment period ended in April, and the review process continues.
Included in the proposed rules are a number of safety measures designed to keep drones from interfering with manned aircraft in shared airspace.
“This is a transformative technology,” Gibbs said. “The problem is, literally, that the technology is moving faster than the rules.”
Albrecht said it is important that the university be part of the discussion about drone regulations.
“It’s law lagging behind technology,” Albrecht said. “I hope that the FAA and insurance companies allow space for education to get into the mix.”
DJI, a market leader in the production of easy to fly drones, has built themselves up from a single small office to a global company with over 3,000 employees. In April, Shapeways issued a call to the creative community for the submission of unique 3D printed accessories that could further “pump up the cool” on DJI drones. This was an exciting moment for Shapeways and they explained the importance of this step for the greater maker community:
“Why is this so exciting? It’s the first time a major brand has supported the maker community this way. By acknowledging the unique creations Shapeways designers are making for their products, they are truly showing their support of the maker community and the innovation that is produced on a daily basis.”
Fast forward to today when Shapeways announced the winners of the challenge and you can imagine the excitement that DJI must have experienced when reviewing the submissions. This is some cool stuff. In order to really push the envelope, the winning designs were chosen based on creativity and design. After the top ten submissions were chosen, special guest judge Adam Savage (one half of the dynamic Mythbusters duo) decided which of those would be awarded the grand prize and which three would be named as runner’s up.
As the call for the challenge was the creation of accessories for either the DJI Inspire 1 or the DJI Phantom 3, it is only appropriate that the grand prize winner should receive her/his very own Phantom 3 and to sweeten the deal, Shapeways kicked in $1,000 in printing credit. For the three runner’s up, DJI provided a 50% discount on their Phantom 3 and Shapeways rewarded them with $500 in printing credit. With a regular price tag of $799 for thestandard drone and $1,259 for the professional, even a coupon goes a long way.
The grand prize was awarded to Fusion Imaging for their creation of an attachment to allow the drone to land on water. You have to admit this is a pretty cool idea: land the drone on the water’s surface and you have a view on a perspective not often captured. The Shapeways contest was clear that it was not required for the design to be demonstrated as fully functional just yet, so we’ll have to wait and see before I’d trust my expensive drone to the design (technically, I’d have to get an expensive drone, first), but it’s a fantastic idea.
Philadelphia will be a no-drone zone when Pope Francis is in town.
The FAA says Wednesday it’s banning the unmanned aircraft from city airspace during the Sept. 26-27 visit.
An agency advisory says model airplanes, gliders and hot air balloons are also being barred, along with planes towing advertising banners.
Don’t think about parachuting in or flying a crop duster, either.
Law enforcement, first responders and the news media are required to apply for airspace clearance at least a week before Francis arrives.
The Department of Homeland Security requested the restrictions.
The FAA says they’re designed to ensure safety while providing as much airspace access as possible.
The agency says the restrictions could change with little or no notice.
