Research

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NASA Develops Pod to Help Autonomous Aircraft Operators

For self-flying aircraft to take to the skies, they need to learn about their environments to avoid hazards. NASA aeronautics researchers recently developed a camera pod with sensors to help with this challenge by advancing computer vision for autonomous aviation. This pod is called the Airborne Instrumentation for Real-world Video of Urban Environments (AIRVUE). It […]

Drones will Revolutionize the Inspection of Remote Runways in Canada

With weather, limited flights and long distances, gravel runways at remote airports — particularly in Northern Canada — are difficult to get to, let alone to inspect for safety. So Northeastern University researcher Michal Aibin and his team have developed a more thorough, safer and faster way to inspect such runways using drones, computer vision and artificial […]

Kinematics of Kestrel Wing and Tail Morphing During Hovering Flights

A new joint study by RMIT and the University of Bristol has revealed secrets to the remarkably steady flight of kestrels and could inform future drone designs and flight control strategies. The study, “Steady as they hover: kinematics of kestrel wing and tail morphing during hovering flights,” was published in the Journal of Experimental Biology. […]

An Improved Wireless Power Transmission System for Micro Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

A team of Chinese researchers from the School of Information and Communication Engineering, Hainan University, Haikou, China, has just published a paper on how to improve wireless power transmission system for micro unmanned aerial vehicles. Abstract Due to its limited load capacity, the piggybacking of wireless charging systems for micro unmanned aerial vehicles has become […]

Tiny Solar-Powered Drones Could Stay Aloft Forever

An aerial robot weighing 4 grams is powered by tiny solar panels that produce extremely high voltages – an approach that could enable drones to fly indefinitely A drone weighing just 4 grams is the smallest solar-powered aerial vehicle to fly yet, thanks to its unusual electrostatic motor and tiny solar panels that produce extremely […]

Crash-Perching on Vertical Poles with a Hugging-Wing Robot

Perching with winged Unmanned Aerial Vehicles has often been solved by means of complex control or intricate appendages.  Mohammad Askari, Michele Benciolini, Hoang-Vu Phan, William Stewart & Dario Floreano, researchers at the Laboratory of Intelligent Systems, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland, present a method that relies on passive wing morphing for crash-landing on trees and other types […]

SPH Engineering Releases Drone Show Market Analysis

Latvia’s SPH Engineering, a developer of drone show technology, has released the “Drone Show Market Analysis” in collaboration with Duamentes Global Alliance. The study focuses on industry trends, market evaluation, and specifics in the eight most active regions, employed a 3-level methodology including desk research, in-depth expert interviews, and Herfindahl-Hirschman Index*, revealing the dynamic growth […]

AeroVironment Gets $14M US Navy Contract to Develop Video Using Soft Biometrics

AeroVironment Inc., Simi Valley, California, is awarded a $13,691,731 cost-plus-fixed-fee order (N6833524F0079) against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N6833519G0059). This order provides for the development of automated entity classification in video using soft biometrics, in support of advanced image and video analytics capabilities for unmanned system technologies, including the optimization of system design through […]

Researcher Charges Ahead with New Tech to Power Drones Wirelessly

Dr. Ifana Mahbub, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at The University of Texas at Dallas, has been awarded the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Director’s Fellowship to continue her research to develop wireless technology to recharge unmanned aerial vehicles in flight. DARPA awards the fellowships to its Young Faculty Award recipients who demonstrate […]