Innehållsförteckning för April - May 2021 från RotorDrone Pro

DRONES FOR GOOD Often, drones get in the news for all the wrong reasons (see “When Drones Go Bad” on page 60 for prime examples). So I hope you’ll find the drone operators and technology featured in “A Higher Purpose” as refreshing as we did. From preventing poaching to detecting landmines, there are some incredibly innovative and creative ways that uncrewed aircraft are making our world a better place. If you know of—or are using—a drone in an unusual way to positively impact our planet, I hope you’ll share your story with us at RotorDrone@airage.com. I hope you enjoy this April May/March issue. If you have a story idea you’d like to see addressed in a future issue, please email us at RotorDrone@airage.com. Your feedback helps us continue to make…

Equipped with SparkCognition’s DeepArmor cybersecurity product, SkyGrid is the first airspace management system to enable drone protection powered by AI. This approach provides more advanced airspace security than traditional anti-malware reliant on signatures of known threats. “In the near future, we’ll essentially have a network of flying computers in the sky, and just like the computers we use today, drones can be hacked if not secured properly,” said Amir Husain, CEO and founder of SparkCognition and SkyGrid. “In this emerging environment, traditional anti-malware technology won’t be adequate to detect these never-before-seen attacks. SkyGrid is taking a new, intelligent approach by using AI to more accurately detect and prevent cyberattacks from impacting a drone, a payload, or a ground station.” The DeepArmor product suite leverages SparkCognition’s patented machine learning technology combined…

This new cinematography drone is the smallest vehicle that can carry a Sony Alpha 7S III camera, a full-frame, interchangeable-lens model that can shoot 4K video. The Japanese electronics giant says that the Airpeak is capable of “precise, stable flight, and aims to contribute to the world of entertainment while also pursuing new possibilities for creative expression.” Sony notes that the Airpeak is its first drone project in the area of AI robotics, so we can’t wait to see what’s next. The Airpeak will be available in spring 2021 (pricing not available at press time). sony.net…

PILOT REPORT Even among the diverse missions I’ve flown over the past several years, this one would be unique. The uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) that I would be flying was itself the subject of my efforts, rather than the means of achieving them. As a commercial operator, this likely isn’t a common mission profile for you, unless you write for a UAS magazine—and do your own photography. If you do, then you spend a lot of time thinking about how to capture interesting pictures of drones. In this case, I was struggling to come up with a photo to illustrate an article about night flying for Model Aviation, the membership publication of the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA). I was looking for an image that captured the idea of flying…

One of the few dissenting voices across the entire UAS industry to moving forward with Broadcast ID came from Project Wing, Google’s foray into the drone delivery business. In a statement, the company argued: “Unlike traditional aircraft flying between known airports, commercial drones fly closer to communities and between businesses and homes …. While an observer tracking an airplane can’t infer much about the individuals or cargo onboard, an observer tracking a drone can infer sensitive information about specific users, including where they visit, spend time, and live and where customers receive packages from and when. American communities would not accept this type of surveillance of their deliveries or taxi trips on the road. They should not accept it in the sky.” The FAA acknowledges these concerns in its posting…

When I first started taking top-down aerial photos, I realized that learning the art didn’t just improve my confidence and all-round ability in photographic composition; it also provided me with some amazing aerial photos that genuinely intrigued and mesmerized viewers in ways I’d never imagined. When you view a typical aerial photo that looks into the horizon (not top down), it typically consists of two elements: the land and the sky. This naturally allows the viewer to mentally decipher the image and make sense of its perspective. It’s usually after that when they judge the image for its content or artistic merit. When shooting top down, however, we don’t have that luxury as we generally have only one element to work with: the land or the sea. A powerful way…

Sourced and built in the U.S., this new military-grade, 690-gram drone exceeds the specifications of the most elite federal security leaders. Vesper is a complete aerial reconnaissance system that can withstand temperatures of-4F to 113 F and operate reliably and effectively in heavy rain and high winds. It is GPS-denied capable with visual inertial odometry (VIO) for flight indoors or in adverse radio-frequency conditions. Vesper has dual night-vision 4K color cameras, an industrial-grade thermal camera, and 4K electro-optical camera with F1.0 optics and high-sensitivity large pixels. Its impressive 50-minute flight time with speeds up to 45mph (a total flight range of 25 miles) ensure it can complete any mission.…

Coca-Cola introduced its newest creation, Coca-Cola With Coffee, via drone! The soft drink giant teamed up with Walmart and DroneUp, a nationwide drone services provider, to deliver the new drink to the “buzzworthy” community of Coffee County, Georgia. On January 25, 2021, select consumers who live in a single-family residence within a 1-mile radius of the Walmart Supercenter in Coffee County could opt-in to have Coca-Cola with Coffee and Coca-Cola with Coffee Zero Sugar delivered safely via drone delivery.…

In the first approval of its kind, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is allowing American Robotics to operated automated drones without human operators on site. The company’s Scout System features advanced acoustic Detect-and-Avoid technology that enables its drones to maintain a safe distance from other aircraft at all times. By developing a layered, redundant system of safety that includes proprietary technical and operational risk mitigations, American Robotics has proven that its drone-based aerial intelligence platform operates safely in the National Airspace System, even when it conducts flights Beyond-Visual-Line-of-Sight (BVLOS) of the operator. This approval represents a pivotal inflection point in the commercial drone industry. Prior waivers and certifications awarded by the FAA required visual observers (VOs) stationed along the flight path to keep eyes on the airspace at all times…

Across the globe, conservationists, researchers, and entrepreneurs are using drones to help the planet. From increasing crop production to rescuing people in dangerous situations, uncrewed aerial systems are proving their worth. But have you heard about the bubble-blowing pollination drone, or the one that detects landmines? Here, we look at 12 innovative ways drones are making our world a better place. STOPPING POACHERS Across Africa, an elephant is killed every 14 minutes, and a rhino is slaughtered every 10 hours. At this rate, elephants and rhinos will be extinct within 10 years, but not if Air Shepherd has anything to say about it. _ is pioneering group combines advanced surveillance drone technology with ranger teams on the ground to stop poachers in their tracks. After police partners or the government…

If you’re shooting for Instagram or if you know the end result will be cropped in portrait mode, you might want to consider using the vertical panorama technique. Even if you don’t use portrait mode today, I would recommend considering it for your drone photos. Most of the time it gives the photo more depth, especially if you are using some leading lines! And using portrait mode forces you to think about your composition in a tighter way. IT’S ALL ABOUT THE PIXELS Because of the sensor size, when you take a photo with your drone it will be 4:3 landscape oriented, which is great for wide landscape photos. However, if you regularly post on Instagram (which is mobile, so portrait oriented) or if your composition is just stronger in…

Like it or not, we all live in the same reality: all of us exist under the effects of Earth’s gravitational field, atmospheric chemistry, diurnal cycle and our own innate biology. The world rolls on, and will until the heat death of our sun in about five billion years, in full compliance with the laws of physics. None of us can change that — however, we can change the way it looks. Here are some options: AUGMENTED REALITY (AR) By superimposing visual information between us and the real world, AR allows us to simultaneously perceive the world around us, augmented with relevant content displayed by a computer system. The first practical, widespread use of AR took the form of Heads-Up Displays (HUDs) in military aircraft, which display the aircraft’s weapons…

Wingcopter, the German developer, manufacturer and operator of unmanned delivery drones for commercial and humanitarian applications, has secured $22 million in Series A funding. Wingcopter will use the funds to strengthen its leadership in drone-based logistics, with a special focus on healthcare-related applications, including the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. The current model, the Wingcopter 178 Heavy Lift, provides both one- and two-way delivery, covering distances of up to 74 miles. It can accurately lower a package through a winch mechanism, or land at the point of destination and return to its origin with new payload. To further expand its market reach, Wingcopter is already accepting pre-orders for the next generation of its aircraft. In addition to selling drones, Wingcopter will rapidly expand its drone-delivery-as-a-service off erings. These services give customers…

Skyward, A Verizon company, and UPS Flight Forward have announced collaborative eff orts to deliver retail products with drones connected to Verizon 4G LTE, as well as 5G testing and integration for delivery. The companies aim to deliver retail products via connected drones at The Villages in Florida. “We will need the ability to manage and support multiple drones, flying simultaneously, dispatched from a centralized location, operating in a secure and safe environment. To do this at scale, alongside Verizon and Skyward, we’ll need the power of 5G,” said Carol B. Tomé, CEO of UPS. “We’re just beginning to see how the power of 5G Ultra Wideband will transform the way businesses operate,” said Rima Qureshi, Chief Strategy Officer at Verizon. “By partnering with UPS and other innovative companies, we…

At Travis Air Force Base (AFB) in Fairfield, California, drones are taking on security duties. A collaboration between the 60th Air Mobility Wing, 60th Security Forces Squadron (SFS) and Easy Aerial, this is the first automated, drone-based monitor and perimeter security system for a U.S. Air Force installation. After two years of development, the Smart Air Force Monitoring System (SAFMS) drone and a tethered (SAFMS-T) version entered an Initial Operational Capability phase and have begun operations at Travis AFB. The systems provide autonomous scheduled and on-demand flights that transmit real-time HD and thermal data to protect airmen and assets against airborne, ground, and potentially water-based threats in all environments. “Easy Aerial’s unmanned aerial systems are a gamechanger,” said MSgt. Joshua Hicks, the unmanned aircraft system instructor for Travis AFB 60th…

On Saturday, September 16, 2023, the world of uncrewed aircraft systems will change forever as the Federal Aviation Administration’s rules on remote identification come into effect. As a remote pilot, it’s not too soon to be asking, “What does this mean for me?” A little more than a year ago, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) managed a feat that no one else has ever accomplished, before or since: it brought together the diverse factions of the small uncrewed aircraft system (sUAS) community. For one, glorious moment recreational pilots, commercial operators, aircraft manufacturers, industry advocates, educational institutions, first responders, trade associations and even crewed aviation groups were united in a common cause: criticizing the FAA. What had the agency done to earn this universal opprobrium? Merely released its long-awaited proposal for…

For years leading up to the FAA’s announcement of its draft and final RID rules, there was considerable speculation that rather than develop a new technological standard for UAS, it would instead employ ADS-B, a system that is nearly universal in crewed aviation. An acronym for Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast, ADS-B determines the location of an aircraft using a GPS receiver or other navigational systems and periodically transmits this information to other aircraft and air traffic control facilities in the vicinity. This creates a level of situational awareness that resembles radar, but without the need for an actual radar array. However, with the release of its final RID rule, the FAA specifically precludes UAS operators from employing ADS-B transmitters on their aircraft without special permission from the agency. UAS manufacturer DJI…

The next time you are out flying, ask yourself: what am I looking at? According to a study by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, there’s a pretty good chance that it isn’t your drone—but augmented reality has the potential to help you do a better job of focusing on your aircraft, which is really important, as this excerpt from Part 107 shows: 14 CFR § 107. 31: Visual line of sight aircraft operation. A. With vision that is unaided by any device other than corrective lenses, the remote pilot in command, the visual observer (if one is used), and the person manipulating the flight control of the small unmanned aircraft system must be able to see the unmanned aircraft throughout the entire flight in order to: As this regulatory excerpt makes abundantly…

THE GANG THAT COULDN’T FLY STRAIGHT Incident Type: Contraband smuggling Incident Location: I-26 Freeway in Columbia, South Carolina Aircraft Type: Autel Robotics EVO Incident Resolution: Aircraft Seized, pilot and accomplices arrested Something to consider: if you are planning to commit a serious felony, regardless of whether or not it involves drones: maybe don’t hugely exceed your state’s already generous 70mph speed limit on route to the scene of the crime—especially if your car is packed full of evidence. For whatever reason, this practical bit of wisdom eluded a group of four suspects en route to deliver contraband to a state prison in South Carolina late last year. A deputy from the Newberry County Sheriff’s Office noticed a 2005 Ford Focus traveling on the I-26 at 105mph at about 1 a.m.…