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Submission + - Parrot unveil new AR Drone, the Bebop (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: Slated to come out in 2014 the Bebop is first to market with an interesting gimbleless camera stabilization process the camera is a f2.2 fish-eye lens with a 180-degree angle of view and a 14-megapixel sensor. A built in GoPro if you will.

It can capture video at 1080p full HD resolution; the AR.Drone 2.0 was limited to 720p. Video is recorded to the Bebop's 8GB of internal storage (there's no microSD or SD card slot) in MP4 format. The extra pixels allow users to digitally pan and zoom the picture. The camera is soft mounted to resist camera shake physically aiding image stabilization.

Submission + - Coke drones, Happiness from the Skies (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: Coca-Cola Singapore and Singapore Kindness have deployed multirotors to deliver messages of thanks and a coke to workers high above city streets. A very well made advert from the people at Coke. Video at the link.

Submission + - From the too ugly to fly department, military drone (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: Advanced Tactics Inc. announced that it has received government approval for and has released the Black Knight Transformer first driving and flying test video. Advanced Tactics is at the forefront of large scale multicopter design, production, and testing and the successful flights of the Black Knight Transformer open the door to a number of future aircraft designs that leverage Advanced

Submission + - Crashed drone rescue, Grand Canyon (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: In my opinion Christopher should have fessed up to his actions with the park authorities and they might have sent somebody roped up and suitably equipped to recover the Phantom from the tree.

It’s a great video, well made and interesting. Christopher, it’s not worth endangering the lives of others that might be involved in the recovery of an injured person in a compromised position or worse still a body.

Be careful out there people, your systems are just stuff. If you look through the video comments another YouTube user had the same experience at the Grand Canyon and his Phantom was stolen before he could get it recovered by a climber. Perhaps DJI should extend their no fly zones to include national parks.

Submission + - $250K police drone crashes into Lake Conroe (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: “Divers did go down to look for it. They are still looking. It went down in deep water where there is a rocky bottom. Visibility is also a problem because of sediment at the bottom of the lake,” Fitzgerald said.

The mini helicopter which weighs around 49 pounds and, in a military setting, could be fitted with a single- or multiple-shot 40mm grenade launcher, 25mm Grenade Launcher or 12 gauge shotgun, according to Vanguard Defense Industries.

Submission + - North Koreas drone, made in China. (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: Its no surprise that the UAS found in South Korea is of Chinese origin. The charmingly named Taiyuan Navigation Friend Aviation Technology is in Asian terms just up the road from Pyongyang being 1200kms away in the capital of Shanxi province, Taiyuan.

Submission + - Criminals use drones to find cannabis farms and then steal from growers (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: One such man, an unnamed 33-year-old, told the Halesowen News that after finding a property with a cannabis farm he and his crew either burgle or “tax” the victim.

“They are fair game,” he said. “It is not like I’m using my drone to see if people have nice televisions. I am just after drugs to steal and sell, if you break the law then you enter me and my drone’s world.

“Half the time we don’t even need to use violence to get the crop. Growing cannabis has gone mainstream and the people growing it are not gangsters, especially in places like Halesowen, Cradley Heath and Oldbury.”

Submission + - Google Buys Drone Maker Titan Aerospace (suasnews.com) 1

garymortimer writes: Google has acquired drone maker Titan Aerospace, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Titan is a New Mexico-based company that makes high-flying solar powered drones.

There’s no word on the price Google paid, but Facebook had been in talks to acquire the company earlier this year for a reported $60 million. Presumably, Google paid more than that to keep it away from Facebook.

Submission + - Worlds largest multirotor makes successful maiden flight (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: The patented AT Transformer technology combines the capabilities of a helicopter, such as the ability to take off and land anywhere, with the capabilities of an off-road automobile. The AT Black Knight Transformer completed driving tests in December 2013 and completed its first flight tests in March 2014. The Black Knight Transformer is the world’s largest multicopter that is controlled and stabilized with propeller speed. The aircraft has a maximum takeoff weight of 4,400 lb.

Submission + - FBI: Drone-like toy planes in bomb plot (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: BRIDGEPORT — A Moroccan national who allegedly plotted to turn a radio-controlled model airplane into a drone-like flying bomb and crash it into a school and a Connecticut federal building was arrested Monday by FBI agents.

Wires and tools were found in the High Ridge Drive apartment where El Mehdi Semlali Fahti, 27, had been living since January with an individual he met while incarcerated in Virginia, according to the FBI. It was not known if any explosives were found.

Fahti told an undercover agent in five recorded conversations that he studied the bomb attack operation for months, and had made a chemical bomb while in high school in Morocco, court documents charge. The recordings additionally claim he could obtain whatever else he needed for his plans in “Southern California on the border.”

Submission + - Unfortunate event as Triathlete sustains head injuries from drone (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: A competitor in today’s Endure Batavia Triathlon has been taken to hospital after an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) otherwise known as a drone, fell from the sky hitting her on the head.

The competitor, Raija Ogden was heading into her second lap of the run leg of the race on the Foreshore when the incident occurred.

The remote-controlled copter struck her head and she fell to the ground.

Raija is the wife of defending champ Courtney Ogden who came in second place in today’s race shortly after the incident occurred.

Submission + - Drone-assisted hunting to be illegal in Alaska after game board decision (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: A drone system allowing a hunter or helper to locate game now costs only about $1,000, said Capt. Bernard Chastain, operations commander for the Wildlife Troopers. Because of advances in the technology and cheaper prices, it is inevitable hunters seeking an advantage would, for example, try to use a drone to fly above trees or other obstacles and look for a moose or bear to shoot, he said.

“Under hunting regulations, unless it specifically says that it’s illegal, you’re allowed to do it,” Chastain said. “What happens a lot of times is technology gets way ahead of regulations, and the hunting regulations don’t get a chance to catch up for quite a while.

Submission + - World Bank flies drones in Albania (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: A team from the World Bank used small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) to pioneer a scalable, cost-effective approach to produce spatial data, thereby allowing local and national government, the private sector and international development projects to use the up-to-date and accurate data for multiple purposes. The initial field campaign was conducted in Albania in December, 2013

Submission + - China to test new smog-busting drone to help clear polluted skies (suasnews.com)

garymortimer writes: The vehicle will spray chemicals that freeze pollutants, allowing them to fall to the ground.

The tests would be led by the China Meteorological Administration and carried out later this month at airports and ports, Xinhua said.

The drone has been developed by the Aviation Industry Corporation of China and has a paragliding wing, which allows it to carry three times more weight than the fixed-wing version, making it more efficient and cost-effective.

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