The DelFly Explorer, developed by the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, is the first flapping wing MAV that can perform autonomous flight. It carries a stereo vision system with processing onboard which is used to avoid obstacles. Continue reading
Author Archives: The Editor
North American Aerospace Defense Command Prepares to Track Santa
In 1958, the governments of Canada and the United States created a bi-national air defence command for North America called the North American Aerospace Defense Command, also known as NORAD, which then took on the tradition of tracking Santa. Continue reading
Idaho Farmer Pioneers UAS for Smart Agriculture
Idaho farmer Robert Blair isn’t waiting around for federal aviation officials to work out rules for UAS. He and a friend built their own, outfitting it with cameras and using it to monitor his 1,500 acres. Continue reading
Laser-Equipped UAS to Scan Paths Through Finnish Forests
Finnish startup Sharper Shape was originally created with a year’s collaboration between major Finnish utility companies and a devoted group of engineers and had a very specific problem it set out to solve from the very beginning. Continue reading
UAS Technology Aids Wildlife Conservation
As biodiversity diminishes around the world, scientists and conservationists are spending more money to document and understand the changes that are taking place. Conservation ecologist Lian Pin Koh argues that UAS technology can be used as a much cheaper way to survey landscapes and document ecological change. Continue reading
UAS Surveillance of Sochi Winter Olympic Games in Russia
If there is suspicious movement at Russia’s Sochi Winter Olympic Games next year, unmanned surveillance aircraft positioned over stadiums, roads and railroads will be there transmitting the images live to Russian security services. Continue reading
UAS Footage of Bangkok Protests
This video filmed from a small UAS flying over the street riots in Bangkok was posted recently on YouTube. Continue reading
Sikorsky Innovations Gets $15M DARPA Contract for Phase 1 VTOL-X Plane Design
Sikorsky Innovations, the technology development organization of Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., has announced it has won a contract for Phase 1 of the Vertical Take-Off and Landing Experimental Aircraft (VTOL X-Plane) programme by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Continue reading