Tag Archives: Ukraine

427 Drone Safety Day 2023

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Drone Safety Day is April 29, a drone that changes shape, jump-starting your car with a drone, Florida bans DJI from government agencies, decision-making for small UAVs, drones that work together without colliding, adding VTOL to a fixed-wing drone, agave farmers saving water, land a drone in Red Square.

UAV News

Drone Safety Day

Drone Safety Day is Saturday, April 29, 2023. The annual campaign is dedicated to educating the drone community on the importance of flying safely. You can download the 2023 Drone Safety Day Playbook and 2023 Drone Safety Day Flyer. You can also visit the Drone@Home page to find ideas to participate at home. Register your event.

Crazy shapeshifting drone inspired by dragons forces itself around objects

University of Tokyo graduate students created drone prototypes that can rearrange into different structural shapes midair. The drones have individual segments with multi-axis gimbal systems. Each segment has its own propulsion unit, that can thrust in any direction. The drones can change their configuration to hold or move objects. They’ve also developed the SPIDAR quadruped robot that has joints in each leg and can fly.

Could Drones Come Jump Start Your Car When You’re Stranded? Ford’s New Patent

This patent contemplates drones that assist motorists stranded with a dead battery. The Ford vehicle would transmit a “dead battery” signal and its location then a drone would fly to the vehicle, open the hood, connect to the battery, and jump-start the vehicle.

Despite police outcry, DeSantis administration bans Chinese drones

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is forbidding government agencies from using drones manufactured by DJI. Only drones made by a small number of “approved manufacturers” can be purchased. Agencies have until January 1, 2023, to stop using drones not on the list. Many departments have already grounded their fleets. They told lawmakers that the Florida-approved drones are far more expensive and much less capable.

Sen. Tom Wright, R-New Smyrna Beach said, I’m not going to let one officer risk his life or her life because somebody thinks that these things talk to China. I cannot imagine what China would really want to see when we pull over a DUI, when we stop a speeding car, when we arrest somebody for an outstanding warrant.”

Making the skies safer with smarter drones

University of Notre Dame computer scientists and engineers are developing an automated decision-making system for small drones under a $5.3 million 3-year NASA grant. Notre Dame will enhance NASA’s current drone traffic management system and develop decision-making software that permits or denies flight requests by evaluating a drone’s safety track record, equipment readiness, operator preparedness, and maintenance procedures.

MIT researchers create algorithm to stop drones from colliding midair

The Robust MADER system lets drones work together without collisions. Each drone calculates its own trajectory and checks with nearby drones to be sure it won’t collide with any of them. The system is an asynchronous, decentralized, multiagent trajectory planner. By broadcasting both the newly optimized trajectory and the committed trajectory, and by performing a delay check step, RMADER is able to guarantee safety even with communication delays. The new system has been validated through simulation and hardware flight experiments. A 100% success rate of collision-free trajectory generation was achieved.

FLARES system gives non-VTOL drones a VTOL boost

The Flying Launch and Recovery System (or FLARES) turns a fixed-wing drone into a VTOL. The FLARES aircraft is a multicopter drone with four propeller arms. A mechanism on the underside clasps onto the body of a fixed-wing drone. The pair then rise vertically. At altitude, FLARES releases the fixed-wing drone. FLARES is manufactured by Hood Tech and was primarily designed for use on ship decks.

Boeing’s Insitu subsidiary offers a package that includes its Integrator fixed-wing drone and Hood’s FLARES system. Integrator flight time is reportedly up to 16 hours with a maximum payload of 40 lb (18 kg). Insitu says that payload capacity would be lower if Integrator had its own integrated VTOL system.

Video: Integrator VTOL joins Insitu’s best-in-class products & technology

Diageo Drones Improve Efficiency of Tequila Farming in Mexico

Tequila producer Diageo started using drones in 2022 to identify agave plants that need pesticides, fertilizer, and water. The 2022 pilot developed the flying skills of the agave planters and introduced more efficient farming practices with environmental benefits.

The drones work in pairs: One identifies plants that need attention and collects agave growth data while the other dispenses a water, fertilizer, and pesticide mix. Water use is dropping by two-thirds.

Video: Society 2030 | Introducing drones to drive efficient tequila farming | Diageo

Ukraine launches competition to land a drone on Red Square during Russian military parade

May 9, 2023, marks Victory Day in Russia and parades celebrate the Soviet victory in World War II. To help “celebrate,” a competition with a cash prize was launched for landing a UAV in Red Square that day. A bank co-founder who is also the developer of the Dovbush drone said, “I am officially awarding a prize to a Ukrainian UAV manufacturer, whose aircraft, with the help of the military, of course, will fly and land on Red Square in Moscow on May 9”. The prize fund is currently £440,000 and there is an open invitation for those who would like to contribute to the fund.

417 UAV Tether in Heavy Seas

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A UAV tether for choppy seas, four advanced (and expensive) drones, drones changing the way buildings are designed, a drone (and rover) for simulated Martian missions, the Army’s short-range reconnaissance program with Skydio, an Apple patent for pairing UAVs and controllers, kites that take down drones, Ukraine drones that take down Russian drones.

UAV News

Navy engineers test new slack tether for launching quadcopter from boats

The Naval Information Warfare Center in San Diego designed a smart winch tether system with an autonomous winch that keeps proper slack in the tether. A UAV can hover at a specific altitude while the ship pitches and rolls with the waves. The winch autonomously adjusts the spool motor by measuring the tether-departure angle. Adding a tethered quadcopter to the uncrewed Seahawk ship would allow it to elevate cameras and expand the line of sight.

4 of the most advanced drones and copters coming to our skies

The Aerwins Xturismo is a flying motorbike with a maximum range of 40km that can carry up to 100kg. The Airborne Drones’ Vanguard is a long-range surveillance drone with a 94-minute flight time and 4K video. The Lockheed Martin Indago 3 is rugged and “whisper quiet,” taking only two minutes to get airborne. The Volocopter 2X is a personal helicopter targeted to prospective air taxi operators.

Five ways drones will change the way buildings are designed

1. Creating 3D digital models of buildings with accuracy to within a centimeter. 2. Heritage simulations where drones help planners to visualize the final impact of restoration or construction work on a damaged or partially finished building. 3. Drone delivery including roof-top landing pads and recharging stations. 4. Drones mounted with 3D printers that could construct emergency shelters or repair buildings. 5. Agile surveillance with drone systems like biometric indicators and “face recognition.”

Skypersonic Delivers Drones, Rover, and Piloting Platform to NASA’s Simulated Mars Missions

The Skypersonic rover and drone system will be used by crew members to remotely explore Martian-like terrain. NASA’s Simulated Mars Missions will run for a year and operate from a 1,700-square-foot simulated Martian habitat at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. The rover and drone will be controlled by the crew in the Habitat, but they’ll actually be exploring Martian-like terrain remotely on Earth.

Army Fields Its New RQ-28A Quadcopter Recon Drone

The Skydio RQ-28A is a short-range reconnaissance quadcopter UAS. It’s the Army’s first program-of-record quadcopter drone. Fielding of the RQ-28A was completed in early November 2022 by the Army’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Project Office with the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment at Fort Benning in Georgia. The Army’s short-range reconnaissance (SRR) program seeks to develop an inexpensive, rucksack-portable, vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) small unmanned aircraft that provide rapidly deployable intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities.

Apple has Won a Patent for a Possible Future Drone Device that was originally filed in Singapore

Apple has been granted a patent for “a system and method for pairing/unpairing UAVs to/from UAV controllers.” Based on a triggering condition, a UAV or a controller may initiate a paring or unpairing of the UAV to or from a host controller and receive a configuration update from a network to confirm the paring or unpairing.

Apple initially filed the patent in Singapore in May 2020 (10202004252X). In November 2021, Apple filed the same patent in the U.S. and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office granted Apple that patent on December 6, 2022. (US 11523323 B2, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle And Controller Association.)

Army trains kites to take down drones

Here, a “kite” refers to a bird of prey in the hawk family. The Indian and US Armies conducted an exercise to publicly demonstrate how birds of prey are being trained to attack drones. The program started in 2020 and training is continuing

Unmanned dogfight: Two drones have allegedly engaged in midair combat over Ukraine

Aerial footage from a Ukrainian drone shows what appears to be that drown taking down a Russian DJI Mavic. The video doesn’t show this with certainty, but it looks like the Ukrainian rammed the Russian Mavic, causing it to veer away suddenly. A few months ago, a video surfaced that shows a similar battle between Russian and Ukrainian quadcopters.

UAV Video of the Week

Drone: Snoqualmie Pass snow

Fly over a snow-covered Snoqualmie Pass, a mountain pass for Interstate 90 through the Cascade Range in Washington state.

416 European Drone Strategy 2.0

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European drone strategy 2.0, armed drones for Ukraine, drones used for poaching and other wildlife investigations, drone videos of three active volcanoes, dynamically assigning frequencies for UAS command and control, a survey of consumer attitudes on home drone delivery of goods and food, liquid hydrogen power, and the Dover AFB sUAS program.

UAV News

Drone Strategy 2.0: Creating a large-scale European drone market

The European Commission adopted the European Drone Strategy 2.0 which offers a vision for the further development of the European drone market. The Commission wants to ensure that society supports drones. By 2030, the Drone Strategy envisions a number of services, including emergency services, mapping, imaging, inspection and surveillance; the urgent delivery of small packages, such as biological samples or medicines; Air Mobility services, like air taxis that provide regular transport services for passengers, initially with a pilot on board, but ultimately fully automated operations.

The Commission’s strategy includes operational, technical, and financial actions:

Adopting common rules for airworthiness, and new training requirements
Funding the creation of an online platform to support local stakeholders and industry implementing sustainable Innovative Air Mobility.
Developing a Strategic Drone Technology Roadmap to identify priority areas for research and innovation, to reduce existing strategic dependencies and to avoid new ones arising.
Defining criteria for a voluntary cybersecurity-approved drone label.

See: A Drone Strategy 2.0 for a Smart and Sustainable Unmanned Aircraft Eco-System in Europe [PDF].

Senators urge Pentagon to send advanced Gray Eagle drones to Ukraine

After some reports that the Pentagon had decided to not send armed drones to Ukraine, sixteen Senate Republicans and Democrats sent a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin objecting. In the letter, the Senators say, “This particular [Unmanned Aerial System] will increase Ukraine’s unmanned capabilities in the near term and demands careful reconsideration. Most importantly, armed [Unmanned Aerial Systems] could find and attack Russian warships in the Black Sea, breaking its coercive blockade and alleviate dual pressures on the Ukrainian economy and global food prices.” The General Atomics MQ-1C Gray Eagle drones can hold up to four Hellfire Missiles.

Poachers beware—new drone team launched to assist in wildlife crime investigations

The five Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) drone law enforcement officers have been trained and have their FAA pilot licenses. The drones will assist officers in their investigations through increased documentation of crime scenes and locating evidence.

Drones capture video of three active volcanoes around the world

Watch videos of three active volcanoes: Mauna Loa in Hawaii, the Villarrica volcano in Chile, and Russia’s Shiveluch volcano.

uAvionix Awarded FAA contract to Implement and demonstrate C-Band Frequency Assignment Manager (FAM) with Multiple UAS Operations

uAvionix won a contract from the FAA for end-to-end demonstrations of a Frequency Assignment Manager (FAM) as a component of the uAvionix SkyLine™ Command and Control Communications Service Provider (C2CSP) management platform. The system will dynamically assign UAS C-Band Command and Non-Payload Control frequencies to UAS with CNPC radios. uAvionix teamed with the Northern Plains UAS Test Site to develop command and control concepts.

The contract demonstrations include:

Managing a pool of frequencies in a geographic area.
Allocating available frequencies to a specific CNPC radio for a specific mission.
Receiving assigned frequencies for the designated mission.
CNPC radios operating on the assigned frequencies.
Non-interference when multiple aircraft are operating in the area.

Do US Consumers Want Drone Delivery? Auterion’s 2022 Report

Auterion surveyed 1,000 Americans to get their perspective on drones. 94% view drones as having a potential positive purpose in the world. 67% view drones as more environmentally friendly than trucks. 57% think the adoption of small-quantity drone deliveries is a good thing for the environment. 47% said they would make a purchase from a specific retailer due to the option of a drone delivery program. 64% believe drones are becoming an option for home delivery now or will be in the near future. Press release: Drones set to make the future of holiday shipping greener. Download the report: Drone Delivery in the United States.

This New Airplane Could Be The First to Fly on Carbon-Free Liquid Hydrogen

Since 2016, the German company H2Fly has been flying an airplane powered by a hydrogen gas fuel cell. The Hy4 is a four-seat aircraft and in April it set a record for the highest zero-emission flight, at 7,230 feet. H2Fly plans to switch from Hydrogen gas to liquid. That would double the range. Testing is scheduled for 2023. The company has entered into a partnership with Deutsche Aircraft to develop a fuel-cell-powered aircraft that will hold up to 40 passengers, with a range of 1,200 miles.

Video: Präsentation der sechsten Wasserstoff-Antriebsgeneration in der Hy4

Eye in the sky: SUAS program takes flight at Dover AFB

The 436th Airlift Wing Plans and Programs office at Dover AFB has an sUAS program jointly run with the Bedrock Dover AFB Innovation Lab. Recently, a Skydio X2D Small Unmanned Aerial System drone was tested during its first operational flight around a static aircraft at Dover on Nov. 4, 2022. The X2D was selected from other Department of Defense-approved systems due to its advanced obstacle avoidance system and other possible capabilities.

414 Operations Over People

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Operations Over People approval for AgEagle, transitioning to UAV-dominated air forces, women drone pilots in Ukraine, an autonomous Black Hawk helicopter, a drone facilitates a robbery, a BVLOS corridor in upstate New York, an autonomous firefighting helicopter, 500 drones celebrate a game anniversary, and how to increase lithium battery lifespan.

UAV News

AgEagle’s eBee X Series Drones Are the First and Only UAVs to be Approved by the FAA for Operations Over People (OOP) in the United States

AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc. announced that the eBee X series of UAS comply with Category 3 of the Operations Over People rules for sUAS. These are the first and only drones on the market to comply with the rules published in March 2021. eBee drone operators will no longer need an FAA waiver for OOP or Operations Over Moving Vehicles. Testing was conducted by the Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership (“MAAP”). The family of eBee fixed-wing UAS includes the eBee X, eBee GEO, and eBee TAC.

The eBee is currently approved for use by the U.S. Department Of Defense under the Blue sUAS 2.0 program, for BVLOS operations in Brazil, and Operations Over People and BVLOS operations in Canada. It is also the first drone to receive European Union Aviation Safety Agency (“EASA”) C2 certification and a Design Verification essential for these operations from EASA.

Transitioning from Human Pilots to Drones

This opinion piece argues that manned military aircraft have issues and unmanned aircraft, or drones, can address some of them. This is not to say that manned combat aircraft should be abandoned. Rather, supplementing manned with unmanned should be the focus and the military should plan to “transition toward UAV-dominated air forces.”

A new school in Kyiv is training women to pilot drones

The Female Pilots of Ukraine school opened recently to teach Ukrainian women to operate drones. Most Ukrainian drone pilots are men and this school focuses on training women – civilians and military student pilots.

Black Hawk Flies Missions Without Pilots

Pilot-less Black Hawk flies logistics and rescue missions

In a demonstration to the U.S. Army, Sikorsky and DARPA showed how an autonomous Black Hawk helicopter could perform internal and external cargo resupply missions, as well as a rescue operation. The demonstration shows that in the future, optionally piloted utility helicopters could fly complex missions safely.

How a DJI Mini drone enabled a $147,000 ATM robbery

The incident took place in broad daylight in France with security footage showing a drone flying into the air vent. The drone subsequently pushed a button that opened a door allowing the thieves to enter.

Governor Hochul Announces Major Progress Toward Boosting New York’s Uncrewed Aircraft Systems Industry

Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the New York Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site (NUAIR) received approval from the FAA to fly uncrewed aircraft systems BVLOS across the 50-mile airspace of New York’s Drone Corridor. NUAIR can fly civilian drones from Syracuse International Airport to Griffiss International Airport in Rome without the need for visual observers.

The Governor also announced that New York will be providing NUAIR with an additional $21 million in funding to cultivate the UAS industry hub along the corridor in Central New York.

Also, NUAIR has entered into an agreement with Quebec-based VPorts to develop an international Advanced Air Mobility Corridor between Syracuse International Airport and Quebec, Canada.

Video: New York UAS Corridor – Flying 50-Miles Beyond Visual Line of Sight

Rain Industries announces autonomous firefighting helicopter

Rain Industries says, “Every Wildfire Starts Small” and “The Rain System contains ignitions within 10 minutes to prevent catastrophic wildfires.” Rain announced their next-generation MK2 autonomous firefighting demonstrator aircraft, an uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) that carries about 30 gallons of payload.

Tweets by rainindustries

Backlash after 500 drones light up New York City sky to celebrate Candy Crush

A swarm of 500 drones performed to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Candy Crush game. Not everyone was happy.

Video: 500 Drones Take Over NYC Skies, Twitterverse Outraged “Shoot them down”

Chinese scientists’ new gel filling could triple lifespan of lithium batteries for EVs, drones

Beijing University of Chemical Technology researchers say a new technology could triple the lifespan of lithium batteries and decrease the risk of battery fires. They do this by replacing the liquid battery electrolytes with gel-polymer electrolytes.

UAV Video of the Week

Video: 10 Fastest Military Drones And Unmanned Vehicles In The World

399 BREEZE Drone for Venus

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The proposed BREEZE drone for Venus, a tethered drone for first responders, river rescue missions, taking out drones with Thor’s hammer, UAS over the Arctic, drone deliveries to offshore wind farms, and hobby drones in Ukraine.

UAV News

NASA considers bird-like drones to explore Venus’s atmosphere

NASA wants to study the use of drones that fly through the Venusian atmosphere and study the planet. BREEZE, or Bioinspired Ray for Extreme Environments and Zonal Exploration, will be funded for a two-year concept study. The BREEZE drones would be inflatable, fly at altitudes between 50-60 km, and ride zonal winds. This is one of 17 proposals under the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program.

Video: BREEZE | A Revolutionary Ray-inspired Airship Concept for Aerial Venus Exploration

NCDOT launches national first with tethered drones on IMAP Trucks

Three years ago, in episode 285, we covered the Fotokite tethered drone and their partnership with Pierce Manufacturing. Now we see that the North Carolina Department of Transportation is launching a pilot with Fotokite. Some IMAP (Incident Management Assistance Patrol) vehicles will be fitted with tethered drones to provide situational awareness to the NCDOT Operations and Traffic Management Centers and assist with overall traffic management of the incidents.

Iris Automation receives FAA waiver to test BVLOS drones in Nevada river rescue missions

The Iris Automation waiver allows them to fly BVLOS in a rural, unpopulated area south of Reno, Nevada using the company’s Casia X detect and avoid system. Iris is working with the City of Reno and the Reno Fire Department (RFD) which conducts about 40 rescues per year at the Truckee River.

Killing drones with Thor’s hammer: Air Force eyes counter-UAS ‘Mjölnir’ weapon

The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) has awarded a $26 million counter-UAS contract to Leidos. The company will build a prototype system that disables sUAS with high-power microwaves. Called Mjölnir, the name of Thor’s hammer, it builds on previous work under the Tactical High Power Operational Responder, or THOR, program. THOR is a counter-swarm electromagnetic weapon that uses non-kinetic energy to defeat multiple targets. In 2020, the Defense Department became so concerned it created the Joint Counter-Small Unmanned Aircraft Office, led by the Army.

Earth News: NASA is helping fly drones in the arctic — here’s what that means for sea ice and sea level change

NASA is leading a team to show that a fixed-winged drone could fly over the Arctic ocean for several days. The attritable UAS from Vanilla Unmanned is designed for multi-day surveillance and inspection operations. In this application, a drone with sensors can capture more accurate data than is the case with satellites.

Project Seeks to Build Drones to Supply Offshore Wind Farms

The drones would be customized to deliver supplies and other items to offshore wind farms in the Asia-Pacific region. Two Singapore-based companies signed an MOU to co-develop the drones: Marco Polo Marine Ltd., a regional integrated marine logistics company; and F-drones, developer of large autonomous delivery drones. The delivery drones are expected to reduce cost by 90 percent, be four times faster, and reduce carbon footprint.

Hobby drones at war: How do they help Ukraine?

In a February Facebook post, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense says it is looking for drones and for pilots: “Do you own a drone? Give it to experienced pilots to use!” and “Do you know how to drive a drone? Join the joint patrol with units 112 of the separate brigade of the city of Kyiv!”

UAV Video of the Week

The PGA Tour is using drones to follow golf shots like this one from Rory McIlroy and it’s so cool