drones – Page 12 – Impact Lab

Aviation, drones, Record Breaker, Science & Technology News

Jet-powered VTOL drone is like a quadcopter on steroids

December 13, 2019

The current AB5 JetQuad prototype has a claimed top speed of 250 mph (402 km/h)FusionFlight

While propeller planes certainly do have their place, sometimes the extra speed and thrust of a jet engine is what’s really needed. Dallas, Texas-based FusionFlight has applied that sort of thinking to quadcopter-style drones, resulting in the AB5 JetQuad.

According to the company, the AB5 is “the world’s smallest and most powerful jet-powered drone with vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] capabilities.”

Instead of the usual four electric motors and propellers, the current prototype has four diesel-powered microturbine jet engines which produce a combined 200 horsepower (149 kW) at full throttle. Thanks to a proprietary vectoring system known as the H-Configuration, the thrust from these engines can be directed either to move the drone vertically when taking off and landing, or horizontally while in flight.

Continue reading… “Jet-powered VTOL drone is like a quadcopter on steroids”

drones, Law Enforcement, Military, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

7 Anti-drone weapons used by the military and law enforcement around the world

December 7, 2019

Drones can be used for some very nefarious activities. For this reason, armies and law enforcement need some effective means of countering them.

Drones are, frankly, awesome. But there are some bad actors who could use them for nefarious activities.

For these reasons, many companies around the world, including engineering-giants like Boeing and Lockheed Martin, are producing anti-drone weapons to counter the potential threats drones can offer.

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Aviation, China, drones, Science & Technology News

Amazing ‘Ghost plane’ created by 800 drones at air show

November 27, 2019

Eight hundred drones came together to create a ‘ghost plane’ in the sky, in a display reminiscent of Gandalf’s fireworks in the Shire.

Visitors to the 2019 Nanchang Flight Convention were treated to a majestic skyscape of glowing drones, creating what appears to be a propeller plane, an airliner, and a fighter jet.

The spectacular choreography was just one part of the convention, an industry event designed to show off China’s latest developments in aviation, space travel and drone technology.

Continue reading… “Amazing ‘Ghost plane’ created by 800 drones at air show”

Automation, China, drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

China is selling autonomous killer drones to the Middle East

November 16, 2019

Chinese military contractors have already started to sell dangerous, autonomous killer robots to customers in the Middle East.

For instance, a Chinese company called Ziyan is actively marketing its Blowfish A3 — an autonomous helicopter-like drone armed with a machine gun — to international buyers, according to Defense One. While several countries have been working towards this tech for years, this news means we’re finally, and unfortunately, living in the era of killer robots.

Continue reading… “China is selling autonomous killer drones to the Middle East”

drones, Environment, new technology, Science & Technology News

How cheap robots are transforming ocean exploration

November 16, 2019

Backed by billionaire philanthropists and Silicon Valley venture capitalists, a wave of entrepreneurs are developing high-tech, low-cost technologies to probe the watery realms we still barely understand. Are the oceans finally getting their moon-shot moment?

The robot was born out of a treasure hunt.

It all started in 2010, when Eric Stackpole was a promising young engineer designing satellite technology as an intern at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California. He was simultaneously working toward a master’s degree at nearby Santa Clara University and was prone to procrastinating. Lately, he’d become taken with the idea of building his own underwater robot.

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2020 Predictions, drones, Science & Technology News, Shopping

Drone II : The drone delivery market map

November 15, 2019

As part of DRONELIFE’s participation in the FAA’s Drone Safety Awareness Week, DRONELIFE will feature stories according to the themes outlined. Today, we focus on drone delivery.

As high-profile drone delivery companies like Wing, UPS Flight Forward, and Zipline have made headline after headline this year, the hype around drone deliveries has become bigger than ever. But is it really all hype, or are we on the brink of major change in the way that goods are transported? Over the past two months DRONEII has conducted thorough research into the drone delivery market to bring you the latest market updates and answer all your burning questions. Here’s just a small snippet of the content that we’ve compiled into our latest Drone Delivery Report.

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Aviation, drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

The drone wars are already here

November 10, 2019

A Bayraktar TB-2 unmanned aerial vehicle.

The skies of Syria, Yemen, and Libya swarm with armed and dangerous unmanned aerial vehicles. And the technology is spreading farther and farther afield.

The Kurdish fighters emerged from a tunnel and were spotted by a Turkish reconnaissance drone. As they were loading ammunition onto a truck in a parched Syrian landscape, the drone fed their coordinates to an F-16. It attacked seconds later, sending a huge ball of flames into the air. When the smoke cleared, there was nothing left but a crater—a success, Turkey’s defense ministry declared, as it released a video of the strike.

Turkey’s use of drones in such operations is highlighting the changing face of war in one of the world’s most volatile regions. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) turned the tide in Ankara’s decades-old counterinsurgency against the separatist Kurdistan Workers’ Party in the country’s southeast, northern Iraq, and Syria. In addition, the deployment of drones has saved the lives of Turkish soldiers and money for the defense ministry. Now it’s using UAVs to gain the upper hand against the Kurdish party’s sister organization, the People’s Protection Units. After U.S. troops began withdrawing on Oct. 9, Turkish drones, in tandem with fighter jets, started pounding a strip of land along the border with Syria to clear the way for its troops. “In most cases, they reach the scene of the attack and confirm the enemy was totally destroyed,” says Nihat Ali Ozcan, a strategist at the Economic Policy Research Foundation in Ankara. Altogether, at least three different types of drones have been deployed: mini drones used for surveillance and photography, the much larger Anka-S surveillance drone, and the Bayraktar TB-2, Turkey’s only armed drone.
Continue reading… “The drone wars are already here”

drones, Food, Science & Technology News, Uber

Here’s what the Uber Eats delivery drone looks like

November 7, 2019

Uber has unveiled more details about its plans for Eats delivery via drones. If all goes according to Uber’s plan, it will start flying its first drone model before the end of the year.

Uber’s design, which it unveiled at the Forbes 30 under 30 Summit today, is made to carry up to one meal for two people. Featuring rotating wings with six rotors, the vehicle can vertically take-off and land, and travel a maximum of eight minutes, including loading and unloading. The total flight range is 18 miles, with a round-trip delivery range of 12 miles.

As Uber previously said, the plan is not to use the drones for full delivery, but rather a portion of it. Once a customer orders food, the restaurant will prepare the meal and then load it onto a drone. That drone will then take off, fly and land at a pre-determined drop-off location.

Behind the scenes, Uber’s Elevate Cloud Systems will track and guide the drone, as well as notify an Eats delivery driver when and where to pick up their food. Down the road, Uber envisions landing the drones on top of parked Uber vehicles located near the delivery locations. From there, the Eats delivery driver will complete the last mile to hand-deliver the food to the customer.

Beginning next summer, Uber wants to use this drone for meal deliveries in San Diego. That would come after Uber first tests deliveries in partnership with drone operators and manufacturers.

Via Techcrunch.com

Automation, drones, Science & Technology News, Shopping, UPS

UPS partners with CVS to develop drone delivery service for prescription drugs

October 31, 2019

A UPS autonomous drone carries medical supplies.

UPS announces an agreement with CVS to develop a drone delivery service for prescription drugs.

UPS gets the first FAA approval to operate a drone delivery service earlier this month.

FedEx completes its first residential drone delivery under a pilot program last week.

Continue reading… “UPS partners with CVS to develop drone delivery service for prescription drugs”

Automation, drones, Google, Science & Technology News, Shopping

Alphabet’s Wing begins making first commercial drone deliveries in the US

October 28, 2019

Alphabet -owned drone delivery spin-out Wing is starting to service U.S. customers, after becoming the first drone delivery company to get the federal go-ahead to do so earlier this year. Wing is working with FedEx Express and Walgreens on this pilot, and their first customers are Michael and Kelly Collver, who will get a “cough and cold pack,” which includes Tylenol, cough drops, facial tissues, Emergen-C and bottled water (do people who have colds need bottled water?).

The Collvers are receiving their package in Christianburg, Va., which is where Wing and Walgreens will run this inaugural pilot of the drone delivery service. Walgreens gets a noteworthy credit in the bargain, becoming the first U.S. retailer to do a store-to-customer doorstep delivery via drone, while FedEx will be the first logistics provider to deliver an e-commerce drone delivery with a separate shipment.

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communication, drones, Latest Trend, Science & Technology News

USPS eyeing drones for mail, package delivery

October 28, 2019

The United States Postal Service is considering drones as a new way to deliver mail.

This was disclosed in a request for information (RFI) from September, describing why it is examining this concept and how it might potentially work to help people and companies with their mail-related needs, according to Nextgov.

“The Postal Service recognizes that the ability of [unmanned aircraft systems] to supplement mail delivery and information collection can substantially benefit the country and further the development of other autonomous systems,” said Postal Service officials.

If the USPS mail-by-drones idea becomes a reality, it would be a pioneering plan of action. But, the agency is still reportedly very much in the research and analysis stages of looking at this concept. Nextgov revealed that the USPS has not yet hired any contractors for drone production and that it might engage multiple companies in an effort to “identify candidates for future solicitation”.

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Big Problems, drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

Shooting drones out of the sky with Phasers

October 26, 2019

Abqaiq has the world’s largest oil processing plant

When a mixed formation of cruise missiles and small drone aircraft rained explosive charges on the Saudi Arabian state oil group Aramco sites at Abqaiq and Khurais on 14 September they halved national oil output, cutting 5.7 million barrels of crude per day from the company’s production.

But they did more than economic damage. This attack has had a huge impact on how nations think about protecting their airspace.

Companies are now developing and deploying sophisticated new defences, from frying the electronic circuits with powerful beams of microwave radiation, to precise jamming systems.

While both the United States and Saudi Arabia have blamed Iran for the Abqaiq attack, it’s still not clear who was behind it.

But it would be a mistake to confuse the use of drones or UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) in this attack with other incidents where off-the-shelf drones have disrupted airports, football matches or political rallies, says Douglas Barrie, an air power fellow at think tank the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Continue reading… “Shooting drones out of the sky with Phasers”