Tag Archives: 3D printing

413 Community-Based Drone Organizations

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FAA issues guidelines for community-based drone organizations, large Navy drone swarms, Iranian drone components, the 2023 FAA reauthorization bill, a large Chinese cargo drone, the Bell Autonomous Pod Transport, Russians with drones in Norway, plant specimen sampling with drones, a Wing drone comes to a fiery end, and Collaborative Combat Aircraft.

UAV News

FAA Updates Recreational Drone Flying Guidance

FAA logo

Recreational drone flyers are required to follow the safety guidelines of FAA-recognized community-based drone organizations. These organizations develop safety guidelines in coordination with the FAA. The FAA has issued guidance on how to become an FAA-recognized community-based organization for recreational drone flying. The FAA Advisory Circular 91-57C Exception for Limited Recreational Operations of Unmanned Aircraft provides a list of recommended safety guidelines. Applications for community-based drone organizations can be made through the FAA’s DroneZone website.

The US Navy wants swarms of thousands of small drones

According to budget documents, the US Navy wants to use thousands of small drones that flock together and overwhelm anti-aircraft defenses. Israel became the first nation to use swarming drones in combat in 2021. Other nations are working on swarms, including China, Russia, India, the UK, and Turkey.

Austrian engines, South Korean and Malaysian microchips, US parts found in Iranian Mohajer-6 drones

The examination of drones that have been shot down shows the international components they contain. The Iranian Mohajer-6 reconnaissance drone was powered by a Rotax engine. Rotax is investigating and said the company “have not authorized and has not given any authorization to its distributors to supply military UAV manufacturers in Iran or Russia.” Previously, microprocessors from South Korea and Malaysia, bought in violation of sanctions, were found in the Shahed-136 kamikaze drone. Both drones are used by the Russian military in Ukraine.

Drones and air taxis will be big part of FAA bill

Hearings for the 2023 FAA reauthorization bill are underway and the Senate Commerce Aviation Subcommittee is looking at “new entrants” into the airspace. eVTOL aircraft (Advanced Air Mobility – or AAM) will likely get a lot of attention this time.

China Flies Large Twin-Tailed Scorpion D Cargo UAS

The Twin-Tailed Scorpion D is claimed to be the world’s first large-scale, four-engined uncrewed aircraft system. The 18-minute test flight was deemed to be “trouble-free.” The Scorpion D is 10.5 m (34.4 ft.) long with a 20 m wingspan and a height of 3.1 m. The maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) is 4.35 tons. The Scorpion D will be exhibited at Zhuhai Airshow 2022, which begins November 8, 2022.

Bell Brings Autonomous Cargo UAV To Air Medical Show

Bell brought its Autonomous Pod Transport (APT) eVTOL to the 2022 Air Medical Transport Conference in Tampa, Florida. The APT has been flying for several years and Bell hopes for a production version that will deliver 100 pounds, 100 miles, at 100 knots per hour.

Autonomous Pod Transport (APT). Courtesy Bell.
Autonomous Pod Transport (APT). Courtesy Bell.

Russian man arrested for flying drone over Norwegian airport

The 51-year-old man was arrested after flying over the Tromso Airport in northern Norway. Police seized a “large” amount of photography equipment, including the drone and memory cards. Police also found photos of the airport in Kirkenes, near the Russian border and of a Norwegian military helicopter. In February 2022, Norway’s Civil Aviation Authority banned Russians from flying or operating aircraft (including drones) in Norway. 

Drones Sample Rare Specimens from Cliffs and Other Dangerous Places

Drones are being used in Hawaii to capture specimens of rare and endangered plants in places that would be dangerous for humans. Historically, botanists would rappel down sheer rock faces to collect samples. A commercially available drone carries a second robotic machine named Mamba. The Mamba remote-controlled robotic arm was custom-built from scratch. It’s suspended from the hovering drone and picks the plant samples.

A Food Delivery Drone Hit Power Lines, Caught Fire, and Left Thousands Without Electricity

Subtitle: An Alphabet-owned Wing drone “incinerated itself” after it became entangled in power lines in Brisbane, Australia. On the bright side, the food stayed hot.

Danny Donald, a spokesperson from utility provider Energex, said: “We didn’t actually have to get the drone off, as such, it actually caught fire and incinerated itself.”

GA-ASI’s Gambit Series: The Future of Collaborative Combat Aircraft

With adversary aircraft and air defense systems improving, many are predicting a future with a mix of manned and unmanned aircraft. A new type of aircraft is emerging: the Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA). General Atomics Aeronautical Systems is proposing the Gambit CCA family of aircraft built off a common Gambit Core.

Gambit concept. Courtesy General Atomics.
Gambit concept. Courtesy General Atomics.

UAV Video of the Week

Video: How a hive of 3D-printing drones could change construction | Mashable

A team of researchers at Imperial College London and Empa have been developing collaborative aerial drones that can 3D print buildings from a single blueprint. The drones are fully autonomous once in flight and have so far successfully completed tests with lightweight cement mixtures.

UAV150 3D Printed Drone

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A 3D printed aerial imaging drone, new drone sightings data analysis, a hand gesture-based controller for the Parrot AR, bad practice lawsuits, control of airspace over private property, and an autonomous aerial taxi.

O'Qualia Captor UAS

O’Qualia Captor UAS

News

O’Qualia unveils Captor UAS, a fully 3D printed commercial aerial imaging drone

Singapore-based startup O’Qualia has created the Captor UAS, said to be a high-quality aerial imaging drone with a 3D printed body.

Updated analysis of FAA drone data shows decline in UAS sightings

The Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) has analyzed recent FAA drone sighting data and finds that UAS sightings peaked in August 2015, but have been declining month-by-month since then.

Hacked Nintendo Power Glove lets you control drones like a wizard

The Power Glove was released in 1989 as a controller accessory for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Only two games were available, and they did not sell well. Nolan Moore has now taken a Power Glove and turned it into a hand gesture-based controller for the Parrot AR Drone.

You can follow Moore’s the development on his project blog.

Man who built gun drone, flamethrower drone argues FAA can’t regulate him

Two lawsuits are underway for the Connecticut student who mounted a gun then a flamethrower on a quadcopter. One suit seeks to reinstate him at Central Connecticut State University, which expelled him. The other lawsuit concerns failure to comply with FAA administrative subpoenas for certain records.

Should you be allowed to keep drones from flying over your property?

This article presents the opposing views of two legal experts concerning the legal right to fly a UAV over private property. One contends that privacy and safety considerations dictate that flights unauthorized by the property owner should not be allowed.The other expert says drones are the next frontier in aviation and decisions about where drones they can fly should be made collectively.

Human-Carrying Drone Taxi to be Tested in Nevada

Ehang has received approval from the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems and the Governor’s Office of Economic Development to test the autonomous aerial taxi. A prototype of the Ehang 184 was shown at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year.

EHANG184, world’s first Autonomous Aerial Vehicle

http://youtu.be/IrPejpbz8RI

Drone videos endangered Bryde whale feeding in research first

Students from the Auckland University of Technology were looking at dolphins when they spotted the rare Bryde whale off the coast of New Zealand. The critically endangered whale was feeding her calf using a rarely seen process called “lunge feeding.” The students captured video using a Hex H2O waterproof drone.

Video of the Week

Drone Ballet: Watch a high-tech dance at Mount Fuji

“Sky Magic” was produced by Japanese advertising company MicroAd using twenty drones with LED lights. Traditional Japanese guitars called shamisens provide the background music.

http://youtu.be/5WWwvIgGbkg

 

 

 

 

 

UAV050 Manufacturing Drones with a 3D Printer

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BAE Transformer3D drone printers, continuously airborne UAVs, hacking drones, flying UAS over airports and sports events, a petition to the FAA, and mapping mud a landslide with a hexacopter.

The News

BAE Systems Unveils Concepts of On-Board Aircraft 3D Printers Able to Print Incredible UAVs During a Mission

The BAE Systems 25-year outlook includes technology for “on demand” UAV production, from inside an aircraft! In a possible scenario, the larger aircraft approaches an unknown situation, like a military conflict or a SAR event. It then manufactures a cloud of surveillance drones that go out, gather data, and return to the mother ship. Then, using the collected data, mission-specific UAV’s are manufactured to respond to the situation. (In the case of SAR, maybe a vehicle that could retrieve a person.) Another idea is a “transformer” made of multiple UAVs that could group and ungroup as needed.

New type of drones: Firm looks to create drones with unlimited flight time

A collaboration between Packet Digital LLC, the U.S. Department of Defense, and others hopes to create very long endurance UAV’s. First, to double the current flight time, but eventually unlimited endurance. By developing a “solar soaring power management system,” continuously airborne drones could be created with applications for the military, agriculture, search-and-rescue, and first responders. Flight testing will take place at the Northern Plains UAS Test Site in Grand Forks.

Exclusive: Civilian drones need costly fixes to avoid hacking, study indicates

GPS navigation is a key UAS technology, and we’ve seen examples that suggest that GPS has vulnerabilities. In 2012, the FAA initiated a study by the GNSS Intentional Interference and Spoofing Study Team (GIISST) to look at vulnerabilities in GPS navigation.

The report has not been released publicly, but FAA has given an overview at a conference, saying, “Inexpensive, and readily available, GNSS repeaters and GNSS simulation tools can transmit hazardously misleading information ‘spoofing’ GNSS use.”

In September 2013, the FAA released a Navigation Programs Update [PDF] that gives some information about the GNSS Intentional Interference and Spoofing Study Team.

High-Altitude Drone Flight Prompts FAA Warning At Airport

A pilot flew his DJI Phantom on a video mission thousands of feet above the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Alabama. This triggered an automated warning from the FAA about unauthorized drones near a homing beacon.

DJI: The Spirit of Football Video Contest

A DJI soccer/football video contest is underway to showcase the spirit of football. Submit your YouTube or Vimeo videos in aerial and non-aerial categories through August 20th.

Maine man wants FAA to change UAV regulations

Edward Lyons, the CEO of FPV America, says the FAA ban on UAS has “shut down his business before it was really able to take off.” So he’s started a petition at change.org asking the FAA to “Rescind Your Latest Ruling On Model FPV Flying And The Personal & Commercial Use Of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles.”

From the petition: “We The People have a right to OUR airspace to practice and engage in our hobby. We have a right to commercial purposeful use of this airspace as well.”

UAV Mapping of a Landslide

Czech unmanned aerial vehicle and mapping company Upvision used a hexacopter to perform an aerial mapping of a landslide at a road construction project. The mapping and resulting geological survey will help engineers decide how to remove the debris from the landslide, which occurred at a road construction project.

A hexacopter was used to collect the data to create: an orthophoto map, a digital surface model using point clouds, and a 3D model for visualizing the entire area. All this from one aerial flight over the course of one hour.

Video of the Week

Man flies drone into West Palm Beach fireworks show

Many listeners sent the link to this rather impressive video. We understand the Phantom survived, but also that the FAA is Investigating Drone Flights Into Fireworks.

Feedback

Jon observed the shadow of a quadcopter in the video Road Test: 2014 Porsche 911 Turbo S, confirming how the video was made.

UAV034 Center of Excellence for UAS

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Block Island Rural Delivery Service

An FAA Center of Excellence for UAS, 3D printing a drone, the industry pressures FAA on UAS regs, drone privacy, a thought-controlled quadcopter, drones used for and against hunters, anti-drone legislation, Korean drones, and who needs drones when you have gulls?

The News:

Notice of Intent to Establish the FAA Center of Excellence (COE) for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)

Within the next year, the FAA intends to competitively select a Center of Excellence for UAS. The Center will conduct UAS related research, education, and training. It will also work with university partners on issues of mutual interest and concern.

Following the Notice of Intent, the FAA will issue a Draft Solicitation for public comment, hold a public meeting in May, and issue awards within “the next year.”

Engineers print a functioning 1.5m-wide prototype unmanned aerial vehicle

Additive manufacturing, popularly known as 3D printing, has been used by the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) at the University of Sheffield to build a UAV. The polymer UAV made of nine parts that snap together. It’s thought to be an example of a low cost craft that could be built “on demand.”

Aerospace, Consumer Tech Lobbies Join Forces to Push for Domestic Drone Regulations

The aerospace and the consumer electronics industries are teaming up to pressure the FAA into moving quickly to define the regulations governing UAS operations.

Mansfield woman says missing drone “freaked me out”

An 18-year old student with hopes of becoming a filmmaker was flying his DJI Phantom when some kind of failure occurred. It went down around some homes, but couldn’t be found after a 2-hour search. So he put fliers on doors, hoping someone would find the Phantom. One woman found the flier and contacted the police, the mayors office, and even State officials fearing she was being spied on.

UNG students test drones to be controlled by thoughts

In a project funded through the Center for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities, the University of North Georgia is using brain impulses to control a small quadcopter. Using an electroencephalogram-sensor headset, students are experimenting with control by thoughts without actually moving.

Alaska bans hunters from using drones

The Alaska Board of Game has wants to ban hunters from using drones to track animals. It’s already illegal there to use manned aircraft to spot game and kill them on the same day.

Colorado Bans the Use of Drones in Hunting

Alaska is not alone in this. The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission banned unmanned aircraft “from hunting, scouting, and any other pursuit involved in the taking of wildlife.”

States Mulling Legislation to Ban Drones

The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance is pushing states to take up legislation that protects “hunters, anglers and trappers from harassment by unmanned, aerial drones while exercising their legal right to pursue and take wildlife.”

Editorial: Bill imposes pre-emptive limits on promising technology

The Washington State Legislature has passed anti-drone House Bill 2789, which seeks to address privacy concerns. This “speculative lawmaking” looks at negative uses of drones, and not positive ones. The Bill does look for transparency and appropriate legal approval to collect personal information via drones.

South Korea investigates two suspected North Korean drones

As North and South Korea recently exchanged hostilities, some blue drones equipped with cameras crashed in South Korea.

Gull drones to assist island deliveries

Under the concept from Block Island called B.I.R.D.S. (Block Island Rural Delivery Service), restaurants and stores on the island will use gulls to deliver food and merchandise. Gull training is underway now.

Video of the Week:

Tooth Extraction by Drone?

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