Tag Archives: insurance

UAV205 Smith College Drone Class

Max and @dronemama visit Smith College and talk to the summer drone class, 3DR and DJI join resources, drones assist with invasive snakes, Farmers Insurance expands the use of UAS, and a drone privacy spat on Twitter.

Max speaks with students at the Smith College Drone Class.

Max speaks with students at the Smith College Drone Class.

Drone Class at Smith College

Jon Caris and Max Flight

Jon Caris, Director at Smith College Spatial Analysis Lab (L) and Max.

Max spoke to the SSEP Drone Class at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. The class is part of the College’s Summer Science and Engineering Program (SSEP), a four-week residential program for exceptional young women with strong interests in science, engineering, and medicine. High school students from across the United States and abroad do hands-on research with Smith faculty in the life and physical sciences and in engineering.


The young women are building quadcopters in the Smith College Spatial Analysis Lab where they learn about drone laws and regulations, applications of the technology, flight mechanics and piloting skills, photogrammetry and image processing, and of course drone safety. The students are highly engaged, and this program is a wonderful opportunity for them.

Drone class students at Smith College

Smith College drone class students.

UAV News

America’s top drone company couldn’t beat China’s DJI, so now they’re partners

3D Robotics announced that they are entering into a partnership with DJI and will integrate their Site Scan software with DJI drones. This is an enterprise solution for industries like construction, insurance, surveying & mapping, utilities, and telecom. Sales at 3DR were not up to expectations and the company consumed $100M in venture capital trying to compete. Now, 3DR will focus on software instead of hardware.

3DR Site Scan data capture technology can use 3DR (with Sony R10C) or DJI (Phantom 4 Pro) vehicles and operate in four autonomous flight modes for data capture. Data is uploaded to the cloud and can be processed by Pix4D and Autodesk ReCap. The service includes complimentary drone replacement for accidents and malfunctions.

VolAero Drones Starts Python Tracking Project In Everglades Using Thermal Technology

The population of non-native Burmese pythons in the Florida Everglades has exploded to the point where they are a threat to the small mammal population. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the South Florida Water Management District are now looking to professional drone services company VolAero Drones and drone imaging technologies to help manage the situation.

Farmers Insurance launches drone program with Kespry

Farmers Insurance is expanding their use of UAS for residential property damage assessments. The company is looking for faster inspection times with fewer safety risks for field adjusters. Drones from Kespry will “gather rooftop imagery and data, generate analytic reports, supplement ladder assist capabilities, and resolve more claims with greater efficiency and accuracy.” The FAA-licensed drone operators will be Farmers’ own claims professionals.

Kentucky governor says news station drone invaded privacy

Gov. Matt Bevin tweeted: “The drone that was just flying over my home & filming my children was personally flown by @WDRBNews Director.” WDRB news director Barry Fulmer followed with his own tweet: “.@GovMattBevin WDRB was flying a drone in accordance to the FAA rules to cover news happening at your home. There is NO video of children.”

UAV Video of the Week

Drone captures mesmerizing footage of hundreds of fish on pink salmon run

Video captured by Danny Sanford in Hartney Bay in Cordova, Alaska.

UAV189 The LightningStrike XV-24A VTOL UAS

XV-24A VTOL UAS subscale vehicle demonstrator

XV-24A subscale vehicle demonstrator. (Courtesy Aurora Flight Sciences.)

A successful test flight program for a VTOL UAS, an autonomous drone system gets an authorization to fly, the insurance industry advances drone use for structure inspections, UK drone reports increase, and drone weaponization for law enforcement.

UAV News

Aurora’s massive LightningStrike VTOL UAV just got one step closer to reality

The Aurora Flight Sciences LightningStrike XV-24A subscale vehicle demonstrator (SVD) aircraft test flight program was successfully completed at a U.S. military facility. The SVD aircraft is a 325 pound, Lithium battery-powered scale model of the full-size XV-24A. That flight test program is scheduled to begin in late 2018.

The XV-24A is a tilt-wing UAV using the same Rolls-Royce AE 1107C turboshaft engine used on the V-22 Osprey, to drive three Honeywell generators. The generators power 24 variable-pitch ducted fans on the wing and canard.

Press release: LightningStrike XV-24A Demonstrator Successfully Completes Subscale Flight Test Program [PDF]

Airobotics becomes first company granted authorization to fly UAS without a pilot

Tel Aviv-based Airobotics has operated a BVLOS system at Israel Chemicals (ICL) and Intel in Israel, accumulating more than 10,000 flight hours and automated flight cycles. The success of the system led the Civil Aviation Authority of Israel (CAAI) to grant authorization to fly the UAS without a pilot. The Airobotics system consists of the Optimus drone, an Airbase automated base station, and software that lets users control and manage missions.

Next time your roof gets hit by hail, a drone may inspect damage

Farmers Insurance conducted its first roof inspection with a DJI Phantom quadcopter. Inspection by drone is faster than a conventional inspection and eliminates potential damaging foot traffic on the roof.

Drones prompt ‘flood’ of complaints to police

Last year in the UK, police received 3,456 drone reports, while 1,237 reports were recorded in 2015. Reports include invasions of privacy, disputes between neighbours, aircraft near misses, prison smuggling, and burglars using drones to see if a house was occupied. The Department for Transport considering new measures, Including the creation of a criminal offence for drone misuse.

Weaponized Police Drones May Become Reality in Connecticut

After videos by a Connecticut teenager of his weaponized drones went viral, legislation was introduced in the Connecticut State Legislature to ban weaponized drones in the state. However, if enacted, the bill would carve out an exemption for law enforcement. No other state allows lethal drones. North Dakota permits law enforcement to use “less than lethal” weapons, like tear gas and stun guns.

Researchers test drones to spot invasive plants in Minnesota

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) and the University of Minnesota Extension are investigating the use of drones to find invasive plants that can be incredibly destructive. Tests are continuing to determine the best sensor to use, the impact of light conditions, and the best flying pattern.

UAV manufacturer senseFly joins April 20 webinar panel

The free UAVs: From Flying Drones to Doing Business webinar is scheduled for Thursday, April 20, 2017, at 1 p.m. EST / 10 a.m. PST / 7 p.m. CET. The webinar will cover a broad range of issues concerning sensor integration aboard a flying platform and in particular their use for commercial purposes. Webinar attendees will have the opportunity to ask direct questions of the speakers, both upon registration and during the live event.

UAV Videos of the Week

Nine Royals 2017 – Racing Drone Edit

This Team BlackSheep video covers the Nine Royals snowboarders and freeskiers event in Italy entirely with FPV racing drones. The video provides views that no spectator could ever experience.

Successful Flight of Hirth 4201 EFI Gasoline Engine in MartinUAV V-BAT UAV

Hirth 4201 engine powering the V-BAT VTOL UAS

Hirth 4201 engine

MartinUAV and Hirth Motors have been working together to power the V-BAT transitional VTOL UAS with a Hirth 4201 air-cooled 2-stroke boxer engine. The February 28 test demonstrated hover and the transitioned to horizontal flight.

The 183cc, gasoline-fueled 15hp Hirth 4201 engine communicates with the V-BAT flight computer and captures engine run parameters during flight for later analysis. A  starter/generator allows for remote start and air vehicle electrical power.

The fixed-wing V-BAT features autonomous vertical take-off and landing (VTOL), an 8+ hour flight duration, and a 5+ pound payload. It has a near zero footprint, and hover and stare capability during flight.

Video: V-Bat Long Endurance VTOL UAV

 

 

 

 

 

UAV068 A UAV Entrepreneur

DJI Inspire 1

Opportunities and challenges for entrepreneurs looking to develop a commercial UAV business.

This Episode

The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle industry is in its infancy and presents many business opportunities to entrepreneurs. Some opportunities are obvious, like agriculture, real estate, emergency response, and package delivery. Others have not yet been imagined.

In this episode, we look at issues for UAV startups, with someone who is immersed in that process.

Guest

Don Toporowski is an advisor to clients of both the MaRS Discovery District, Canada’s largest centre for innovation and business acceleration, and with startups coming out of the Queen’s Innovation Connector.

Don has focused on the CleanTech sector for most of his career, but he recently shifted his focus to the UAV market. He hopes to find a few entrepreneurs with very good ideas for businesses developing or using UAV technologies, and to help them build winning sales strategies, raise capital, and become successful in their endeavors.

Don describes some UAV startup success stories, and the current roadblocks faced by entrepreneurs: regulatory uncertainty, funding issues, availability of business insurance, and reliability of UAVs.

Contact Don at don.toporowski@gmail.com, +1 416 722-2007, on Skype at dontoporowski, or search for Don Toporowski on LinkedIn.

News

The DJI Inspire One is the coolest drone I’ve ever seen

DJI just released the Inspire 1 quadcopter, intended to offer more professional level features than the Phantom, yet still remain relatively easy to fly.

The Inspire 1 has legs that fold to allow an unobstructed view, a ground-facing camera for stabilization when there is no GPS signal, and a 4K video camera. Price is set at $2,800.

The video of the launch event DJI Inspire launch – November 12, 2014 shows the new quadcopter. [Fast forward to 14:30.]

Videos of the Week

Mexico City International Airport from Above shows the airport from a different perspective.

Drone tour of Tower of London poppies came to us from longtime listener Mark. It shows the armistice poppies around the Tower of London. Nearly 900,000 hand made ceramic poppies represent the fallen British soldiers from World War I. Each poppy has been sold to raise money for service charities.