As drones become increasingly autonomous, researchers and engineers are finding new ways to let unmanned aerial vehicles manage menial tasks that are usually relegated to crews of workers and valuable time being lost in the process. For researchers at the University of Leeds and University College London, the focus is on slowly but surely kickstarting drone-infused smart-cities with UAVs that could repair roads efficiently, saving time, cost, and the efforts of manual labour. Continue reading
Category Archives: Research
Researchers Map the San Andres Fault with Drones
Scientific study of the evolution of the southern end of the San Andreas Fault is of vital importance given the earthquake-prone nature of southern California. Mapping fault zones and land surface changes that resulted from previous earthquakes can deepen the understanding of hazards posed by the fault, including the possibility of future temblors. Continue reading
MIT Chip Upgrade Helps Miniature Drones Navigate
Researchers at MIT, who last year designed a tiny computer chip tailored to help honeybee-sized drones navigate, have now shrunk their chip design even further, in both size and power consumption. Continue reading
100m Flying Height Best for Forest Analysis
Scientists with the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of New Hampshire recently analyzed effectiveness of Unmanned Aerial Systems – that’s drones, to you and me – to collect meaningful information about the health and status of forests. Continue reading
First NASA Large UAS Flight in Public Airspace without Chase Plane
A Detect and Avoid (DAA) avionics system developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI) was the key technology that enabled an unmanned aircraft flight through the National Airspace System (NAS) after taking off from southern California on Tuesday. Continue reading
Biomimicry of Bats to Help Drones Navigate in Dark, Dust or Smoke
To get drones to fly around complicated obstacles in the dark by themselves, University of Cincinnati researchers are turning to the pros. Bats have evolved to use sound and echolocation to navigate and find food. Their sonar is so keen, in fact, that nectar-loving bats can “spot” their favourite flowers in pitch darkness using only sound. Continue reading
Real-Time Drone Surveillance System (DSS) for Violent Individuals Identification
For a long time, surveillance has been known as an effective deterrent of crime. this notion has become ever more prevalent in an age with more and more cameras, weather they’re in our pockets, or in the air. Police and other governmental agencies have begun employing drones to be their eyes, searching the horizon for crime. Continue reading
RoboFly – A Laser-Powered Flying Robotic Insect
Insect-sized flying robots could help with time-consuming tasks like surveying crop growth on large farms or sniffing out gas leaks. These robots soar by fluttering tiny wings because they are too small to use propellers, like those seen on their larger drone cousins. Continue reading