NRL is merging two separate research areas — unmanned undersea vehicles (UUVs) and unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) — to significantly improve tactical availability of UUVs in time critical situations. Common across the services, autonomous vehicles are being seen as an effective projection of force, both above and below the water’s surface. Unlike an air-deployed Sonobuoy, ongoing research into novel bio-inspired UUV finned propulsion has potential benefits for autonomous motion beyond the insertion point. This combination of an airplane mode for UUV insertion is the thrust of the Flimmer program. Continue reading
Category Archives: Research
South Korea Downs Drones With Sound
Researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) in Daejon, South Korea, analyzed the effects of resonance on a crucial component of a drone, its gyroscope.Their paper will be presented next week at the 24th USENIX Security Symposium in Washington, D.C. Continue reading
NASA Grant for KU Student’s Drone Radar System
Kansas University student Lei Shi, an electrical engineering doctoral candidate, is developing tiny on-board radar systems to help keep small commercial drones from crashing into things — one of the biggest safety concerns keeping such unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, mostly grounded by FAA regulations.
Alaska Researchers Use Drones to Study Otters
Scientists wanting to know what sea otters eat while floating far from shore have turned to the sky. During an April mission in Kachemak Bay, researchers tested unmanned drones to see if they could be used for future sea otter surveys. The project also used drones to study the prevalence of sea grass in intertidal flats.
Using drones for the intertidal flats mission was mostly to streamline the process, allowing a larger area to be surveyed in a shorter amount of time.
When it comes to otters, scientists want to know what the predators regularly eat to better understand how it may affect fisheries management. Current observation techniques are restricted to watching sea otters with high-powered spotting scopes. The practice is only viable on land, as swells and turbulent boats make scopes unfeasible.
DJI’s Flying Test Bed with Collision Avoidance System
DJI has just made its UAV platform a lot more developer-friendly with a new test drone and collision avoidance system, along with an SDK for its current DJI Inspire 1 and Phantom 3 models. The Matrice 100 (M100) is a new quadcopter made specifically for developers to help them test new sensors, processors and other tech.
Boeing Gets Patent to Charge Drones Midair
Boeing was recently warded a patent to charge a drone midair. The patent describes the use of drones equipped with tethers that can connect with ground-based power supplies while they’re still airborne, to recharge their batteries on the go. Continue reading
First Weather Observing Mission for a NOAA UAS within the Continental United States
The NOAA Air Resources Laboratory’s Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division (ATDD) has received Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification to fly its DJI S-1000 small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) at the Knox County Radio Control Society’s model flying field near Knoxville, TN.
Fold-up Quadrotor
Thanks to the power of its rotors, this fold-up quadrotor extends its articulated arms and takes off in a fraction of a second. This prototype will be viewed by specialists on May 25 at the International Conference on Robotics and Automation in Seattle. Continue reading