Though small multi-rotor copters and fixed-winged drones are the most popular forms of unmanned aircraft systems, there are new highly maneuverable, energy efficient platforms emerging that take their design inspiration from the most experienced flyers in history—birds.
Renee Knight
UAS Learn to Navigate Forest Trails in Switzerland
Researchers from the University of Zurich, Università della Svizzera italiana and the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland want to use drones to find lost hikers in forest and mountain areas.
UAS Used to Study Gray Seal Pup Populations
NOAA Fisheries worked with Duke University to compare the benefits of flying UAS to survey the gray seal pup populations vs. the manned aircraft that traditionally collects this imagery.
Robotic Falcon Could Keep Birds Away from Airplanes
Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are working to develop a robotic falcon that would herd dangerous flocks of birds away from flying aircraft.
Making UAS More Mobile
FlyMotion Unmanned Systems recently launched TRIDENT, a mobile UAS command and control vehicle. Here’s a look at this first-of-its-kind product and how it can benefit the industry.
Amimon Launches CONNEX Mini
The zero-latency wireless compact HD video transmission solution is designed for smaller UAS.
Data & Images from UAS Improve Bridge Design, Prevent Flooding
The University of Vermont’s Spatial Analysis Lab is using the Sensefly eBee to provide the town of Plainfield and engineers with the information they need to get a problematic brook under control.
Lockheed Martin Demos UTM Capabilities
The Stalker XE UAS and the K-MAX cargo helicopter worked together to extinguish a fire while the UTM tracked UAS operations and communicated with Air Traffic Control.
Sensefly’s eBee aids in train derailment investigation
A UAS team from the University of Vermont’s Spatial Analysis Lab flew the eBee to gather data for investigators.
EPRI Holds First UAS Conference
The two-day conference brought UAS vendors and members of the utilities industry together to talk about the benefits of unmanned systems, and to collaborate on ways to move this application forward.
Students work together to control UAS 8,000 miles apart
Through the Aerial International Robotic Racing of Unmanned Systems (AIRUS) competition, students from Texas A&M University and the University of Sydney in Australia demonstrated how to control a drone from the other side of the world by communicating over the Internet.
PrecisionHawk Forms Partnership with Indiana State University
The collaboration will focus on safety, education, training and algorithm development for PrecisionHawk’s DataMapper aerial data software.
UAS Fighting Wildfires
Unmanned aerial systems could prove to be an important tool in the fight against wildfires. Recent demonstrations show just how useful UAS can be as firefighters battle these complex, dangerous fires.
Developing Operating Systems for Driverless Cars
As driver-assist and driverless technologies emerge experts predict that car companies will incorporate multiple operating systems to keep sofware up-to-date and their customers safe.
Insitu ScanEagle completes successful BNSF Railway inspection
This marks the first commercial beyond visual line of sight operation with a UAS in the contiguous 48 states.
UAS Making its Mark in Oil and Gas
More oil and gas companies are exploring the ways unmanned aircraft can support safe development and operation at onshore and offshore facilities.
Olin College Works with Partners to Develop UAS for Use in Wildfires
Olin, MIT and Scientific Systems Company are developing a system of drones that communicate and provide firefighters with real-time situational awareness.
