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Wing receives the first FAA certification for drone deliveries
Today, Alphabet's Wing division became the first drone delivery company to receive its Air Carrier Certification from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The certification means Wing can begin a commercial drone delivery service, and the company hopes to launch its first delivery trial later this year. Over the next several months, Wing will work with the FAA's Unmanned Aircraft System Integration Pilot Program (UAS IPP) in Southwest Virginia. It will soon begin reaching out to residents and businesses in the Blacksburg and Christiansburg, Virginia, areas to demonstrate its technology and to gather feedback.
FAA will require drones to display registration numbers externally
Drone owners will soon need to display their device's registration numbers on the outside of the craft, the Federal Aviation Administration has declared. The agency, which last month proposed looser restrictions on drone night flights, posted the rule on a Federal Register preview site. The directive is set to take effect on February 23rd -- you'll need to mark the ID number on your drone's body by then.
Proposed FAA rules loosen restrictions on drone flights at night
Right on the heels of Canada introducing new, stricter regulations for drone operations, the US Department of Transportation proposed a new set of rules for drones that would allow the unmanned vehicles to fly over populated areas and operate at night. The proposal also includes a pilot program for drone traffic management that would help to integrate the aircraft into the nation's airspace.
CNN's news drones officially launch with their own acronym
We've known about CNN's drone aspirations for quite some time, but now the news network is officially launching its UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) program. The official title of the project is CNN AIR and just like CNN stands for Cable News Network, AIR is an acronym for Aerial Imagery and Reporting. As part of the UAS initiative to provide footage of news events from the sky, CNN has two full-time drone operators to capture visuals. That footage will be used by other Turner Broadcasting and Time Warner entities as well.
GE's robotic inspector dives in nuclear containment vessels
Normally when workers at the Edwin Irby Hatch Power Plant in Georgia want to inspect welds on the water-filled containment tank that houses the plant's nuclear fuel, they have stick pole-mounted inspection cameras in there while potentially exposing themselves to radiation. But now that the plant has acquired a swimming inspection-bot developed by GE and Hitachi, plant workers can check the vessel's integrity at any time while avoiding all that radiation.
Judge rules that flying commercial drones is legal, for now (update: FAA appeals decision)
The Federal Aviation Administration may want to go through some rigorous testing before it allows commercial drone flights on a broader basis, but the National Transportation Safety Board isn't willing to wait that long. One of the Board's judges has determined that the FAA currently has no authority to regulate drones; the move effectively makes drones legal, and it spares a pilot from a $10,000 fine for shooting a commercial with his unmanned aircraft. The Administration has no rules on the books for such vehicles, according to the judge, and the 2007 policy notice it has been using to ban drones isn't binding. There's still a possibility that the FAA will create enforceable rules down the line. For now, though, Amazon and UPS don't have to worry about legal threats to their delivery drone plans. Update: The FAA is appealing the judge's decision, and according to the press release this "has the effect of staying the decision until the Board rules." Basically, don't expect Netflix's Drone 2 Home deliveries to take off anytime soon.
FAA selects six sites for drone testing because flying robots are our future
One day, drones will be flying overhead... and it will be normal. But, right now, concern over the safety of allowing unmanned aircraft to roam freely in our airspace outweighs their groovy future potential. Which is why the FAA today, following a mandate by Congress, has selected six test sites around the US for the purpose of studying UAS (unmanned aircraft) and eventually integrating them safely into our heavily trafficked skies. Research on UAS will now be carried out at facilities operated by The University of Alaska, Texas A&M University, the state of Nevada (an obvious choice, really), North Dakota's Department of Commerce, New York's Griffiss International Airport and Virginia Tech -- all chosen for their geographical and climatic diversity. Each partner will carry out testing in key research areas highlighted by the FAA: sense and avoid, command and control, ground control station standards and human factors, airworthiness, lost link procedures and interface with air traffic control. The results of which will go towards developing regulations for "commercial and civil use" (yes, you will one day own and operate a drone). But just because the FAA's given a greenlight to further UAS testing, that doesn't mean you'll see drones whizzing about in our skies anytime soon. The agency's stressed that this is just a test and not an invitation to tempt fate in our national airspace system.
Army seeking proposals for casualty-carrying UAVs
Combat is a grizzly business, and despite the best efforts of medical evacuation crews, it's not always feasible to send rescue teams into the fray. The US Army is seeking to address this with "autonomous vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) unmanned aircraft systems (UAS)" (read: drones) for dropping off medical supplies and picking up injured troops. In its latest request for research and development proposals, the Army calls not for new tools, but for the repurposing of current aircraft to do the job. Preferred candidates in the already unmanned class include the A160 Hummingbird and the K-MAX, while one of the suggestions for remote-control modification is the infamous Black Hawk. Makes the AR.Drone seem a little wimpy, doesn't it?
LaCie reveals new Mac-friendly USB 3.0 external drives
Lacie's just announced its next generation USB 3.0 drives meant to take advantage of the new Ivy Bridge internals of the latest MacBooks. The fresh Rugged Triple, Porsche Design P'9223 and P'9233, and RuggedKey models all use USB Attached SCSI Protocol (UAS) for maximum data transfer speeds to and from machines running Lion or Mountain Lion. If you're looking to pick one of these slick storage devices, they'll be available in Apple stores and on LaCie's website this summer.
Northrop Grumman Unveils US Navy's MQ-4C BAMS Triton unmanned aircraft
If Broad Area Maritime Surveillance, or war gadgets are your bag, then things just got real. Northrop Grumman has just unveiled the MQ-4C BAMS Triton, the latest addition to the US Navy's Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Force. The spy plane was more than four years in development, has a wingspan of 130.9 feet, and is able to cover more than 2.7 million square miles in a single mission. As you will have been unable to avoid noticing, the unmanned aircraft definitely inherited some of the RQ-4 Global Hawk's dome-like DNA, and will edge towards active service after completing functional requirement reviews and system development and demonstration flights. Want to bone-up on the full spec? Hit the more coverage link for the numbers. In the meantime, we're wondering if they might extend the research.
Boeing Phantom Eye takes first flight towards unmanned marathon espionage (video)
Boeing could've aimed a little higher for the Phantom Eye's first successful test flight. And by that, we mean the addition of one Billy Zane in a form-fitting purple leotard fending off baddies as the plane taxied the runway. None of that happened because, well, the aerospace brainiacs behind this unmanned bulbous beauty tend to err on the side of sense, not showy drama. Tant pis. Missed opportunity for ostentatious absurdity aside, the engineering outfit did manage to log in a near-perfect round trip for the hydrogen-powered spycraft, reaching an altitude of 4,080-ft after its early morning take off from Edwards Air Force Base on the first of the month. The still in-development vessel's return to terra firma wasn't without hiccups, as it did sustain minor damage to its landing gear. With further refinements, though, engineers hope to push the autonomous plane even further, prolonging the duration of the flight to an eventual four days and doing so without the need for refueling (or tending to humans). It's an obvious leap forward for cloak-and-dagger government interests, but really, it's all about the recovery of magic skulls. Right? Right. Check out the video after the break.
The E382 Aerial Mapping Airplane touts unmanned cartography, ready-to-fly drone kit starting at $600
Find yourself needing custom aerial maps on the regular? Is Google just not doing the trick when it comes to resolution? Well, the folks at Event 38 have got you covered. The outfit's model E382 photomapping UAV kit is now available for $600. Included in that price tag is a pre-assembled Skywalker airframe, 1250 kV brushless motor, motor speed controller, 4x servos, all the requisite cables and the ArduPilot Mega 2.0 autopilot system -- which handles GPS, flight data logs and pressure monitoring. In terms of performance, the drone cruises at a speed of 25MPH with a flight time of around an hour on a 5000mAh battery. The E382 makes use of a point and shoot camera to handle the cartography duties. You can use your own, or Canon A2200s are available for adding on to the kit at checkout. However, you will need to throw down some extra coin for the aforementioned flight battery and a controller. If you've got some extra cash burning a hole in your pocket, hit the source link below to snag one.
Boeing's Phantom Ray soars like a terrifying, unmanned eagle
Boeing's new Phantom Ray aircraft made a covert first flight last week, taking to the skies above California's Edwards Air Force Base. The unmanned airborne system (UAS) reached 7,500 feet, hitting a maximum speed of 178 knots and flying for a total of 17 minutes -- sure, it won't outlast the Phantom Eye anytime soon, but hey, we've all gotta start somewhere. What the 36-foot long vehicle lacks in relative endurance, it makes up stealth, designed to be undetectable on radar, and thanks to a deeply embedded engine, giving off a minimal amount of heat. Boeing will be running additional tests on the autonomous vehicle in the coming weeks, in attempt to prep it for possible future surveillance and attack missions. No word on when this might actually be hitting an airspace near you, but in the meantime, it's probably best to refrain from ticking off any deep pocketed governments.
Zephyr solar powered UAV lands after a fortnight in the air (whatever that means)
With all the excitement surrounding the solar powered UAV's record-breaking flights, we would be remiss if we didn't mention that QinetiQ's Zephyr has finally landed in an airfield in Arizona, 14 days and 24 minutes after take-off. This quadruples the previous unofficial world record for unmanned flight (which it set itself in 2008). This is a dramatic proof-of-concept, having flown longer without refueling than any other airplane. We'd like to imagine that this technology would be used primarily for delivering toys to children in developing nations, but something tells us that will have to wait until the military gets its hands on it. PR after the break.
MIT researchers develop autonomous glider that can land on a wire
The latest research at MIT is not only paving the way to more agile autonomous aircraft, but it's a reminder of how much catching up we have to do to match the complexity and skill of the common bird. In a project that's been ongoing since 2005, Rick Cory and Russ Tedrake have developed a mathematical model of how a bird lands on a wire and emulated the move with an autonomous glider. To control the glider, they developed a system that allows the craft to keep an eye on itself and the position of the wire using external cameras, sending control data if adjustments have to be made. As it is, UAVs are generally limited to the same set of maneuvers that piloted aircraft have, but the researchers don't feel that this has to be the case. For their next trick they plan to take the show outside, as well as develop vehicles with flapping wings. This is all great, but we're holding out for a device that pitches (and wisecracks) as well as Woody Woodpecker.
Zephyr solar UAV sets yet another flight record: 7 days and counting!
This certainly is an interesting time for solar powered flight. Solar Impulse just returned from a 26-hour manned test flight, and now QinetiQ's Zephyr, a drone who we last saw clocking over 83 hours in-flight is in the air again: this time, it's more like seven days and counting! The craft, which took off from the Army's Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona last Friday, is being billed as an "eternal aircraft," one that can stay aloft for extremely long periods of time for use as recon and communications platforms. The previous world endurance record for a UAV was set by NASA's Global Hawk, which stayed aloft for 30 hours and 24 minutes.
Boeing Phantom Eye unmanned spy plane stays aloft four days, sort of bums us out
Sometimes, in the seat of our despair (which almost always corresponds with a viewing of The Real Housewives of New Jersey), we reflect on the sorry state of the world and note that the one thing we don't have to doubt is that history is marching us towards a mechanized slaughter that will make World War I look like Burning Man (the rave, not the actual burning people). Sure, it never occurred to anyone to maybe figure out how to cap an undersea oil well, but at least we are making headway in our development of autonomous, long range aircraft (you know, for shooting people and eavesdropping and whatnot). Our latest example of a world gone mad comes courtesy of Boeing, and it's called Phantom Eye. The unmanned aircraft system looks something like a bowling pin with wings and can spend up to four days at 65,000 feet. Also featured on the craft is a hydrogen propulsion system that promises great fuel economy, and whose only byproduct is water. At the unveiling ceremony in St. Louis, Boeing Phantom Works president Darryl Davis noted that the "capabilities inherent" in its design "will offer game-changing opportunities for our military, civil and commercial customers." Awesome! Look for the device later this summer, when it begins a series of ground and taxi tests in preparation for its first flight early next year.
Super Talent introduces world's first USB 3.0 flash drive
USB 3.0 devices are just now starting to peek their heads out at retail, and it looks as if Super Talent is doing its darnedest to not be left out of the spotlight. Said company has just introduced what looks to be the planet's first USB 3.0 thumb drive (or "RAIDDrive," as it were), promising transfer rates of up to 320MB/sec when relying on a separate UAS Protocol driver with a USB 3.0 port. If you're using a stock USB 3.0 socket, you'll see speeds as high as 200MB/sec, while those bold enough to slam this into a USB 2.0 connector will see it slow to USB 2.0 speeds. There's no mention of a price or release date, but it should ship relatively soon in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB flavors. %Gallery-77281%
US Air Force takes delivery of micro unmanned aircrafts
Shortly after the Navy announced its intentions to utilize unmanned combat aircrafts, the US Air Force is making sure it doesn't get left behind by taking delivery of "its initial BATMAV micro unmanned aircraft systems (UAS)." Among the diminutive crafts is a legion of Wasp IIIs, which have a wingspan of 29-inches, weigh in at just one-pound apiece, and carry integrated forward and side looking electro-optical color / infrared cameras. The backpackable devices are meant to be hand-launched and aim to provide "real-time video imagery to a handheld controller used by tactical units" in reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition missions. Now, if only these things had an ultra-lightweight chaingun strapped under each wing and were available at the local BX, we'd be sold.[Via The Raw Feed]
