Solar-powered drone Atlantik Solar has broken the world endurance record for unmanned aerial vehicles under 50kg — by flying continuously for 81 hours. It is also the second longest UAV flight ever, behind Airbus Space’s 53kg Zephyr 7. “We had to be extremely energy efficient, as we wanted to fly though the night, so we developed large and efficient batteries that supply that energy while flying in the darkness,” says Philipp Oettershagen, 28, one of the engineers behind AtlantikSolar. Continue reading
Augmented Reality App for Small UAS
Rapid Imaging Software has announced that SmartCam3D View is currently in flight testing. Tests to date have been successful and Dave Geisler, Vice President of Operations, will be at the NASA UTM 2015 Convention to discuss applications and partnerships for use of this technology with commercial unmanned systems.
NAAA Launches UAV Safety Campaign
The National Agricultural Aviation Association (NAAA) has launched a UAV safety campaign to raise awareness and prevent accidents between UAV operators and low-altitude manned aircraft. The first public outreach tool in the safety campaign is a UAV “safety stuffer” designed for aerial applicators to share with farmers and other agricultural stakeholders.
Russia’s New S-300M Stormbringer UAV
Several new advanced drones will soon enter service with the Russian armed forces with the state-of-the-art S300M UAV slated for mass production already next month.
Sinclair to get $750K UAS Lab
Sinclair Community College is installing a $750,000 simulation laboratory for unmanned aerial systems as part of its larger development efforts downtown.
ECA wants EASA to Prioritise Safety in UAV Regulations
The European Cockpit Association (ECA) has published a paper calling for regulations on unmanned air vehicles proposed by EASA to focus on the safety of people and manned aviation, and not the rights of recreational operators to fly such aircraft. Continue reading
Hobbico Partners with Ehang on Ghost Distribution
EHang’s GHOST Drone is controlled with a few taps on a smartphone or tablet – no hard-to-use joystick-like controller is required – and provides a rich feature set including the ability to plot a course simply by touching your device’s on-screen map, an auto-follow mode that lets the GHOST go wherever you go, and a GoPro-ready gimbal for taking aerial video. It’s also the first app-controlled camera-ready drone with an auto-follow mode – perfect for taking video selfies.
Prototype UAV Flight Restriction Map for UK
Aerial mapping company Bluesky has produced a prototype map of the UK showing where it may be unsafe or even illegal to fly Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Bluesky has combined an expertise in flight planning and 3D aerial mapping with various geographic datasets to come up with the concept of a UAV Flight Restriction Map.