UAS VISION
an independent online news service for the Unmanned Aircraft Systems world
The U.S. Naval Air Systems Command (Navair) is seeking information from industry on radar and antenna solutions that could provide the MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft with a “sense and avoid” (SAA) capability it needs to fly in unrestricted airspace with other aircraft. Continue reading
AMP Electric Vehicles is working with students in the University of Cincinnati Department of Aerospace Engineering on a drone that would be mounted on the top of its electric-powered trucks to finish the last leg of many deliveries. Continue reading
China has successfully tested a homemade laser defence system specially targeting small-scale UAS flying at low attitude. The machine is able to shoot down various small aircraft within a two-kilometer radius and can do so in five seconds after locating its target, said a statement released Sunday by the China Academy of Engineering Physics, one of the system’s co-developers. Continue reading
Denmark’s Explicit has receive recognition and extra funding for its “sniffer” UAS, produced to monitor sulphur emissions from ships. The company was one of only ten finalists at the 2014 Ocean Exchange innovation contest in Savannah, Georgia. Continue reading
In 1927 George de Bothezat told Popular Science that helicopters were “exactly where the airplane stood after the first few flights of the Wright Brothers.” What he means is that helicopters had, indeed, flown. Bothezat himself had built one that lifted off the ground while carrying the weight of four people. They just hadn’t flown well. Continue reading
Graduate student Alec Momont of TU Delft has designed an unmanned, autonomously navigating mini aeroplane that can quickly deliver a defibrillator to where it is needed. A network of such drones could significantly increase the chance of survival following a cardiac arrest: from 8 % to 80 % ! Continue reading
FedEx is researching the delivery firm’s capabilities of using drones within its service but, even if it adopts the increasingly popular form of technology, it is unlikely to become a widespread element in the international courier industry. Continue reading
A startup called Airware is working with NASA on a project exploring how to manage the swarms of commercial drones expected to start appearing in U.S. skies. The four-year programme will create a series of prototype air traffic management systems and could shape how widely commercial drones can be used. Airware’s main business is selling control software and hardware to drone manufacturers and operators.