Skysense Debuts Charging Pad for Parrot Bebop Drone at CES 2015

Posted on May 15, 2015 by personal drones

15 May

I am glad to publish the following press release from SkySense:

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Berlin, January 2, 2015.

Charging drone batteries by having to disconnect them is now a thing of the past. The Skysense Charging Pad makes charging batteries as easy and landing on the charging station. Enabling remotely managed flights and fully automated missions. Preorders with a shipping date of February 2015, are now being taken at http://skysense.de/preorder.

The response that Skysense has received from early customers and the global UAV community has been very strong and Skysense has partnered with many innovative companies in the drone industry.

Parrot's Beebop drone charging on a Skysense pad — Parrot’s Beebop drone charging on a Skysense pad

At CES, Skysense and Parrot will debut a smart battery module specifically designed for the Parrot Bebop Drone. After its demo with the MYO gesturecontrol armband last year, Parrot confirms once again its openness and interest in collaborating with startups on its most innovative products.

Since its inception in April 2014, Skysense started delivering the first units, joined the Start-Up Chile family and announced a fundraising campaign for their new ambitious product line.

Andrea Puiatti, Skysense CEO, will be attending CES and welcomes visitors to meet with him at the Parrot booth, from January 6th 9th. In addition to demonstrating the charging pad, Andrea will also be discussing the company’s vision and the next big challenge.

Stay tuned on the Personal Drones Blog for the latest quadcopter and multirotor news!

SOURCE: Personal Drones – Read entire story here.

Chris Anderson launches the DoneCode Foundation

Posted on May 15, 2015 by personal drones

Image chris-anderson-3d-robotics-hero.jpg

15 May

Here’s the welcome post by Chris Anderson that announces the birth of the Dronecode Foundation, in partnership with the Linux Foundation.

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Welcome to the Dronecode Project

I’m thrilled to announce our partnership with the Linux Foundation to create the new Dronecode Foundation, a non-profit organization that brings together the leading open source UAV software projects under the professional management and leadership of one of the world’s foremost open innovation organizations.

For me personally, this is the culmination of a half-lifetime of work on open innovation and in particular a seven-year journey in drones that started with my children and me experimenting with Lego Mindstorms robotics parts and RC airplanes back in early 2007 (I love that first video we shot, shaky as it was; it was a life-changing moment).

I was amazed by what was possible with sensors, embedded microprocessors and GPS, but knew nothing about drones. So I set up a community called DIY Drones, mostly to “ask dumb questions in public”. Two wonderful things happened as a result. First, lots of people generously answered my dumb questions and helped me learn about all the disciplines that come together in aerial robotics, from software and electronics to aerodynamics and data analysis. Second, the existence of this community created a place for other people to ask their own questions, and in those early days of amateur UAVs, everyone was learning as we went. Even the experts in one domain had to learn about the others that had to come together to take robots into the air.

The DIY Drones site quickly grew, and is now one of the largest robotics communities in the world (nearly 60,000 active members and as much as 2 million page views per month). But it wasn’t just talk: members were collaborating on electronics, software and aircraft designs, first informally and then increasingly in organized open source projects, including the APM/ArduPilot platform (including ArduCopter, ArduPlane, ArduRover), Mission Planner, DroidPlanner and countless others, from radio/telemetry to video. Many of these stood on the shoulders of other open source innovation projects, especially the Arduino open computing platform, which gave many of these projects the “Ardu” prefix.

At the same time, leaders in the academic robotics world were also embracing open innovation, and we soon found a kindred spirit in Lorenz Meier from ETH in Zurich, one of the best robotics research institutions, and the PX4 and MAVlink projects that he leads. Soon we joined forces, and today the Pixhawk autopilot platform represents the fruits of that collaboration, a joint effort of an open source community, a premier academic institution and a Silicon Valley company (3D Robotics, which I co-founded in 2009 with Jordi Munoz, who I met through DIY Drones.)

Today, I’m proud that this platform has been adopted by more than 100,000 users and is helping bring advanced UAV technology to regular people, allowing them to do extraordinary things from Hollywood-quality aerial video to crop-mapping, 3D-scanning of buildings. It’s a classic example of the power of democratizing a technology; we are entering the consumer and commercial drone age and I’m delighted that an open source platform is helping lead the way.

Now that we have reached this level of adoption and maturity, it’s time to adopt the best practices of other highly successful open source projects, including professional management and governance structures, to ensure the continued growth and independence of these efforts. There is no better organization to lead this than the Linux Foundation. Not just because of the extraordinary success of Linux itself, but also because of all the other collaborative projects that it helps run, allowing each to reach the next level of participation, performance and innovation. The combination of independence and a clear path for corporate participation and adoption while protecting open source ideals is something these projects have always been built on, and the experience and reputation of the Linux Foundation ensures that those values will be embraced and preserved in our own projects as the industry around them grows.

The creation of a formal non-profit organization to organize, lead and coordinate these projects also makes it easier for companies who want to embrace open innovation in their own UAV and robotics efforts. This allows them to participate in a more formal way that helps ensure that they can contribute back to the community, in everything from code to people power to financial resources. So I’m particularly delighted to welcome our company launch partners, including such giants as Intel, Qualcomm, Box and Baidu in addition to UAV leaders such as Yuneec, Walkera and my own 3D Robotics.

Why now? Not just because drones are hot and open innovation is hotter Most of all, it’s because as our platforms have matured, they are increasingly heading in the same direction as Linux itself. The extraordinary improvements in mobile hardware technology (thanks Intel and Qualcomm!) and cloud technology (thanks Box and Baidu!), means that our community and software is increasingly running on gigahertz-class Linux computers and with constant broadband connections to the cloud. That means that the opportunity for us to join forces with the broader Linux and Embedded Linux communities is now, and the Linux Foundation is the perfect place to lead that convergence.

Welcome to Dronecode. I can’t wait to see what this community creates next.

By Chris Anderson, CEO 3D Robotics

Souce: Dronecode.org

SOURCE: Personal Drones – Read entire story here.

Serbia-Albania football match stopped because of DJI Phantom hovering over the stadium with Albania flag

Posted on May 15, 2015 by personal drones

Image Screen-Shot-2014-10-15-at-01.49.09.png

15 May

A Serbia-Albania football match was stopped when a DJI Phantom appeared carrying an Albania flag. A player manages to catch the flag and apparently (not fully clear from the video) take down the phantom.

DJI Phantom hovers in stadium during Serbia Albania football game

Here’s the video:

Stay tuned on the Personal Drones blog for the latest multirotor and quadcopter news!

SOURCE: Personal Drones – Read entire story here.

Acro Naze 32 flight control board images

Posted on May 15, 2015 by personal drones

Image DSC4825-acronaze32-cp-1600-150x150.jpg

15 May

In this post, just a little photogallery with images of the AcroNaze32 flight control board. I ordered a few during the last months and each time they came into different colors (red, black, the last batch was white). Actually the white board on the photos below is the full Naze32 version with barometer rather than the Acro version.

SOURCE: Personal Drones – Read entire story here.

An overview on the DJI Phantom Plus

Posted on May 15, 2015 by personal drones

I am very glad to publish the following article by Ben Stuart, Webmaster of Ready Quadcopters. Make sure you pay a visit to this beautiful and informative web site by clicking the logo below!

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The DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus is a fantastic machine. Whether you are looking to get into photography or just looking to fly something awesome, then this is the machine for you! It’s great for beginners as well as advanced flyers, just make sure you are someplace that won’t hurt anyone.

While this machine is very cool, we highly recommend you start with something smaller like the Hubsan X4 when learning how to orient yourself with a quadcopter. Even if you have flown model airplanes before, this is something completely different. The Hubsan X4 will give you a cheap flying lesson so you don’t have to experiment on your $1200 DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus.

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We wanted to give you a good overview of what is in the box with your new DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus so you can see exactly what you will get. We wanted to give you a good overview of what is in the box with your new DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus so you can see exactly what you will get.

The packaging is great, reminds us of the packaging you might get with an iPhone.

Put the batteries that come with it into your controller.

Everything you need is in the box! The only other piece you will need will be an iOs or Android device with the DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus app downloaded so you can connect to your Phantom.

Before you take the Phantom out to where you are going to fly, make sure to charge up the battery. There is this handy quick guide that comes with the Phantom that is recommended to follow. The great thing about the DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus is that it is pretty easy to fly once you have everything together. First go ahead and put the propellers on and make sure you have them in the right places. Opposite corners spin in the same direction and there will be a little image that shows you which one goes where. Each propeller will have a different color on it as well with either a black or silver top. After you have put on the propellers make sure to take off the protective cover on the camera and gimbal. Follow the instructions on turning the quadcopter on.

When starting out MAKE SURE YOU CALIBRATE THE COMPASS. This is very important and will help prevent any sort of fly aways. After your phantom is on go ahead and turn on your iPhone and connect to the “DJI Phantom” wifi signal. Once you’ve done that go ahead and open the special DJI Phantom App on your phone. Make sure that there are more than 3 satellites for the GPS coordination. This is a very important side note as you don’t want to risk flying this thing manually if you can avoid it. Having proper satellite connection will make sure this doesn’t happen. It also make sure that if you fly out of range that the “return to home” feature where the DJI Phantom 2 drone automatically flies back to where you took off, will work properly.

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Once you have properly calibrated everything, you can see more than 3 satellites, then you are ready for lift off! Pull both joysticks down and to the middle to start up the motors. Push up on the left joystick and watch your drone take off! Make sure you get it up in the air, don’t be scared to really get it up quickly to avoid tipping over and damaging the rotors.

Once you get it in the air you will see how truly amazing this quadcopter is! It is so fun to fly and really really easy compared to something more manual like the Hubsan X4. It truly is awesome with the GPS assist and the ability for the drone to just hover where you want while you take pictures.

After you take off you have around 25 minutes of flight time so have fun! It takes surprisingly good pictures and videos and the best part is that everything is controlled right from the App. With the GPS stabilization you are able to just put your Phantom wherever you want up in the sky and then look at the app and take pictures. It really is an all in one system out of the box that works exactly like it is supposed to.

Make sure you fly safely and always keep an eye out where your drone is in the sky. If you do end up losing it just go ahead and turn off your controller and the DJI will fly 60ft above where you took off from and come and land within a few feet of where you launched. Try to always know the orientation of the drone so you don’t have to do this!

Overall this is one slick machine. I highly highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in getting into photography by drone. The camera is pretty awesome (not as good as a GoPro though) but it’s the fact that it is all ready to go and you can go ahead and get started right out of the box. It takes some great pictures and is super easy to fly. While it is expensive, this is definitely the way to go if you want ease of use and great functionality. As a recent update, Walkera came out with an answer to this drone in the form of the Walkera Scout X4. If you want to see how that stacks up check out our review here.

What do you think of the DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus?

SOURCE: Personal Drones – Read entire story here.

Calling all Drone enthusiasts: help design ‘safe-to-fly’ app

Posted on May 15, 2015 by personal drones

We are glad to publish the following press release by Newcastle University

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Drone enthusiasts are being urged to help design a new ‘safe-to-fly’ app idea, created for flyers to share their favourite sites all over the world. The creators are looking to crowdsource input and opinions to help them progress the idea, with the design stage set to start next month.

A self made quadcopter in search for the right and safe spot to fly

An increasing number of consumer multirotor aircraft, UAVs or drones are being bought and flown around the world. However, there is some confusion over how and where you can legally fly drones, with both manufacturers and airspace regulators keen to educate people on this issue. Users need to be aware of any prohibitions or local laws; in the UK, for example, you can’t fly over or within 150 metres of congested areas or within 50 metres of people, vehicles or structures of buildings not under your control with a camera drone.

Once it is built, the app will allow flyers to share appropriate and legal sites they have found for flying, wherever they are in the world. This will enable drone users to find easily accessible public right of ways for taking off from, beautiful scenery in open airspace and large, unobstructed areas perfect for flying.

The idea is being hosted on AppMovement.com, a new service released by Newcastle University, which enables anyone to propose, design and develop a mobile application. No previous experience is required in app design, with the site aiming to make the process fun and simple. People can get their friends and fellow enthusiasts involved in supporting the concept and promoting the idea, which is then automatically generated by the AppMovement service and released on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

Simon Newton, the creator behind the idea, commented: “The drone app will help hobbyists around the world find safe and legal places to fly, by bringing together the different experiences of drone users. It is important to show the world that we don’t all buzz airports, peep into windows or fly like reckless kids!

“We’ve had great support for the idea so far and the development will be starting soon. However in order to make this free app a success, we need a good user base with plenty of people interacting with the app. This is a great opportunity for drone lovers to be part of the development of an exciting new app, set to enhance the flying experience.”

To take part in the done app’s design phase, you must register your support at https://app-movement.com/8xvy

SOURCE: Personal Drones – Read entire story here.