https://youtube.com/watch?v=61EJLLyzaUk
For the future: After years of developing unmanned combat #robots, U.S. Marine Corps was finally able to test drive one… at last.
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Category: drones
https://youtube.com/watch?v=iD3MuG3zBIA
Half quad-copter and 1/2 missile.
The design of small UAVs usually falls into one of two categories: the cruciform quadcopter (with extra arms added as necessary) and the fixed-wing glider (such as early iterations of Google’s delivery drones). However, there’s still room for innovation in this market, as demonstrated by the QuadRKT: a quadcopter drone with a rocket-shaped fuselage that can hovers vertically, but also switch to a horizontal orientation when it needs to go really fast.
The QuadRKT’s basic design has been around for a few years, but its creators are now looking to raise funds on Kickstarter for further development. The team originally developed prototypes of the design (then known as the XQ-139 family of aircraft) for DARPA’s Experimental Vertical Takeoff and Landing program. The US agency reportedly declared the QuadRKT “too risky” to build, and the drone’s creators — a team of engineering and aerospace experts — are now trying to make their design a commercial reality by themselves.
There are a lot of big claims being made by QuadRKT, particularly that the design has the “lowest drag coefficient of any quadcopter out there” and that the smallest model has set unofficial speed records of 133 miles per hour. That’s certainly faster than some of the speediest custom-built quadcopters we’ve seen (these can reportedly reach speeds of around 86 mph), but it’s worth remembering that these claims are unverified. It’s also disappointing that QuadRKT’s videos never seem to show the craft in sustained horizontal flight, or its maneuverability — how it handles turns, loops, at high speed.
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Where is PETA when you need them.
When we think of drones, we still often think primarily of their military uses, despite the fact that they’re increasingly becoming a part of our everyday lives. Drones serve an impressive range of roles in the military, commercial, public, and civilian sectors. They’re also becoming more and more affordable and accessible. If you’ve been to an open-air event with a decent crowd lately, there was probably at least one person there flying their personal drone around, taking aerial footage to upload to social media.
As something becomes more common, we tend to find more creative purposes for it. And there are definitely some people out there getting creative with drones, for better or for worse.
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“The White House has asked whether Zipline’s drones, pioneered in Rwanda, could fly much-needed drugs and blood to Americans.”
World’s largest self-driving warship aces its first sea trials: US Navy’s 132ft-long ‘Sea Hunter’ drone will scour oceans for enemy subs
Posted in drones, military, robotics/AI | Leave a Comment on World’s largest self-driving warship aces its first sea trials: US Navy’s 132ft-long ‘Sea Hunter’ drone will scour oceans for enemy subs
Dubbed the ‘Sea Hunter’, the 132ft ship is designed to travel thousands of miles out at sea without a single crew member on board.
The self driving warship has now completed its first trials — and passed with flying colours.
Experts say the vessel has the potential to revolutionise not only the military’s maritime service but also commercial shipping.
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SAN FRANCISCO Facebook Inc (FB.O) said on Thursday it had completed a successful test flight of a solar-powered drone that it hopes will help it extend internet connectivity to every corner of the planet.
Aquila, Facebook’s lightweight, high-altitude aircraft, flew at a few thousand feet for 96 minutes in Yuma, Arizona, Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a post on his Facebook page. The company ultimately hopes to have a fleet of Aquilas that can fly for at least three months at a time at 60,000 feet (18,290 meters) and communicate with each other to deliver internet access.
Google parent Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) has also poured money into delivering internet access to under served areas through Project Loon, which aims to use a network of high-altitude balloons to made the internet available to remote parts of the world.
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US social networking giant Facebook announced on Thursday a successful test of its solar-powered Aquila drone, which will beam Internet to people in remote areas.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Facebook has been working on Aquila Project with leading experts in aerospace and communication technologies, from NASA’s jet propulsion lab to a small UK firm that created one of the world’s longest flying solar-powered drones.
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