Drone stans get in here
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This drone can detect and detonate land mines
The Mine Kafon Drone is now looking for funds on Kickstarter
by James Vincent@jjvincent Jul 19, 2016, 9:08am EDT SHARE
The creators of a drone that can autonomously map, detect, and detonate land mines say their technology could potentially clear the world of these deadly devices in less than 10 years' time. It's an ambitious goal, but one well worth pursuing. Worldwide, there are thought to be some 100 million land mines, many of which are leftover from conflicts long since finished. Every year these mines kill thousands of people, the vast majority of which are innocent civilians. The Mine Kafon Drone (MKD) wants to help change this.
The MKD is designed to make clearing land mines easier, cheaper, and safer. The drone has six rotors and a trio of different attachments. The first is used to map the desired area, while the second, a metal detector, is used to detect mines, flagging them with GPS markers. After this, the drone returns to its operator and swaps its metal detector for a robot arm, which is used to place small detonators the size of tennis balls over the mines' locations. The drone then retreats to safety and the mines are detonated.
MKD's designers claim that this method is up to 20 times faster than traditional de-mining techniques, and up to 200 times cheaper. The team, led by designer Massoud Hassani, previously created the Mine Kafon — a cheap, disposable wind-blown device that looks like a tumbleweed made out of toilet plunger, that rolls around fields, blowing up mines as it goes. Hassani himself knows from experience the damage these devices can do: he grew up in northern Kabul in Afghanistan, a country which is riven with land mines, with some 10 million concentrated in an area of around 500 square kilometers.
THE CREATORS OF THE DRONE WANT TO RAISE €70,000 FOR FURTHER TESTING
Hassan is looking to raise funds for the drone on Kickstarter, and has launched a campaign today with a target of €70,000 in funding. The money will be used to improve the design of the MKD, develop base stations, test the drone in different environments, and train pilots. Rewards include postcards of sponsored locations which backers' money will help clear of mines, as well as miniature models of the wind-blown Mine Kafon.
The designers of the MKD admit that using a drone for such sensitive work creates its own problems. These include the difficulty of detecting mines that have been buried for decades, with a drone that has to hover around four centimeters above the ground. It can also be tricky to rely on GPS (which has an accuracy of around four meters) for precise geolocation, and the MKD team wants to improve this using triangulation from external antennas. Even with these challenges though, if the MKD can live up to its creators' claims, it could help change — and save — lives around the world.
The Mine Kafon Drone is now looking for funds on Kickstarter
by James Vincent@jjvincent Jul 19, 2016, 9:08am EDT SHARE
The creators of a drone that can autonomously map, detect, and detonate land mines say their technology could potentially clear the world of these deadly devices in less than 10 years' time. It's an ambitious goal, but one well worth pursuing. Worldwide, there are thought to be some 100 million land mines, many of which are leftover from conflicts long since finished. Every year these mines kill thousands of people, the vast majority of which are innocent civilians. The Mine Kafon Drone (MKD) wants to help change this.
The MKD is designed to make clearing land mines easier, cheaper, and safer. The drone has six rotors and a trio of different attachments. The first is used to map the desired area, while the second, a metal detector, is used to detect mines, flagging them with GPS markers. After this, the drone returns to its operator and swaps its metal detector for a robot arm, which is used to place small detonators the size of tennis balls over the mines' locations. The drone then retreats to safety and the mines are detonated.
MKD's designers claim that this method is up to 20 times faster than traditional de-mining techniques, and up to 200 times cheaper. The team, led by designer Massoud Hassani, previously created the Mine Kafon — a cheap, disposable wind-blown device that looks like a tumbleweed made out of toilet plunger, that rolls around fields, blowing up mines as it goes. Hassani himself knows from experience the damage these devices can do: he grew up in northern Kabul in Afghanistan, a country which is riven with land mines, with some 10 million concentrated in an area of around 500 square kilometers.
THE CREATORS OF THE DRONE WANT TO RAISE €70,000 FOR FURTHER TESTING
Hassan is looking to raise funds for the drone on Kickstarter, and has launched a campaign today with a target of €70,000 in funding. The money will be used to improve the design of the MKD, develop base stations, test the drone in different environments, and train pilots. Rewards include postcards of sponsored locations which backers' money will help clear of mines, as well as miniature models of the wind-blown Mine Kafon.
The designers of the MKD admit that using a drone for such sensitive work creates its own problems. These include the difficulty of detecting mines that have been buried for decades, with a drone that has to hover around four centimeters above the ground. It can also be tricky to rely on GPS (which has an accuracy of around four meters) for precise geolocation, and the MKD team wants to improve this using triangulation from external antennas. Even with these challenges though, if the MKD can live up to its creators' claims, it could help change — and save — lives around the world.
Bought a DJI Mavic...Love it. I have a DJI Phantom 3 Pro, Yuneec Typhoon H, now the Mavic. Been flying the hell out of the Mavic since its so portable. The other two take better videos, with the Mavic you have to focus it to get clear video but its not that bad at all. Very easy to fly.
Don't waste your money buying a drone. Build your first drone so you can learn. So when it breaks you are not stuck with high repair costs. Most drone pilots don't know the important parts of a drone. I recommend building your first drone to understand how the components work together.
it's actually not even 4 miles and with no obstructions and a battery mod, you could go way past that 4 miles.
i've done it a half dozen times, at least.
go to the lake and just go out at about 150 ft altitude.
you can go 4 miles out and your signal won't even begin to turn red.
you just have to watch your battery to make sure you have enough battery to return.
don't just take my word... try it.
You didn't believe me.
Did you try it yet?
Do a double battery mod and our Phantoms will go past 5 miles, as long as there are on obstructions... hence, over the lake.
no you were right. dawg i caught pics of huge ass ships out in the middle of nowhere 4 miles out on lake erie
i just mentioned in another thread i have about 80 hours of flight i need to edit and post up
I used litchi app and the Mission Hub to fly around my neighborhood.....once you master the settings....you send it on missions. Just tried it and when I lost the signal I was like fuuuuuuckkkkk
. When the signal returned it was coming home 
. Cool app
. When the signal returned it was coming home . Cool app
They are selling well. I thinking about getting this or mavic.
I never looked into it but, does anybody know what the next Phantom features will be? They always seem to come up with better and better drones each year.
I'm still loving my Phantom Pro 3 but I'm gonna upgrade for the hell of it.
What's next... Phantom 5... 6?
...I've lost count.
I'm still loving my Phantom Pro 3 but I'm gonna upgrade for the hell of it.
What's next... Phantom 5... 6?
...I've lost count.
Parrot's gliding Disco drone is ready to come to the party
August 24, 2016
The Disco drone is crafted from expanded polypropylene and can fly for 45 minutes at time
Parrot has never been afraid to push the boundaries when it comes to drone design, with rovers that jump through the air and miniature quadcopters that scale walls. The Disco revealed at CES earlier this year is yet another departure from the typical consumer drone form, and Parrot has just revealed a few new details about how the speedy fixed-wing glider will work, along with details on pricing and availability.
With their incredible agility and maneuverable cameras, quadcopters have ruled the consumer space with regard to unmanned aerial vehicles. But fixed-wing versions have their place too, with these types of gliders taking to the skies in the name ofcrop monitoring, wildlife conservation, deliveries and surveillance.
With its Disco drone, Parrot is trying to bring the strengths of this design to those who simply like flying for fun. This makes for an ultralight, 725 g (1.6 lb) drone crafted from expanded polypropylene that can fly for 45 minutes at time, compared to the 20 to 25 minutes most top-flight consumer drones will run for. There's also the matter of speed, with the Disco able to fizz along at 50 mph (80 km/h), while most quads, including Parrot's own Bepop 2, top out at around 37 mph (60 km/h).
A few impressive specs here and there is all well and good, but what might really make the Disco unique is the experience of flying the thing. The first-person view (FPV) capability, where a camera built into the nose live streams the drone's view back to a set of virtual reality goggles, has been a major factor in the explosive growth of drone racing, and Parrot will be hoping this immersive sensation can have a similar effect here, hooking hobbyists by making them feel like they are right there in the cockpit.
Alongside the Disco drone, Parrot is launching a set of FPV goggles called Cockpitglasses that work in a similar way to the Samsung Gear VR headset. Pilots slide their iOS or Android smartphone into the headset which hooks up with the drone over Wi-Fi and displays live vision from its full-HD, 14-megapixel camera with radar and flight data laid over the top.
There is also an onboard computing unit called C.H.U.C.K (Control Hub & Universal Computer Kit), which handles the Disco's autopilot capabilities. This allows users to simply toss the drone into the air like a frisbee for take-off, which sees it ascend to an altitude of 164 ft (50 m) and circle automatically until the pilot takes the joysticks. When it's time to come down, the automatic landing feature brings Disco down below an altitude of 19 ft (5.7 m) and slows it down to land smoothly in a straight line.
The drone is controlled with the newly announced Skycontroller 2, the second generation of Parrot's remote control for drones. This allows Disco to roam up to 1.2 mi (1.93 km) away and connects with the dedicated FreeFlight Pro smartphone app to enable the FPV streaming, along with functions like geofencing, limiting altitude and recording video onto the drone's 32 GB onboard memory.
Parrot says that Disco will be available from sometime in September with a price tag of US$1,299, with the Skycontroller 2 and Cockpitglasses included. You can check out the latest promo video below.
Good looks. Will be checking this out.
I'm looking at this water drone.
https://www.quadh2o.com/hexh2o/hexh2o-pro-ready-to-fly/
I have this drone and the wind does nothing to it. Flew it in high wind conditions and it was as stable as ever. The DJI Spark is an amazing peice of technology.
you haven't had it in heavy winds high up yet then.
check youtube there's lots of videos of people losing them. i'm not knocking them i have one but there are days i won't fly that over one of my other ones
My P3P loves strong winds!
It slows down in 30 - 40 mph winds but it keeps the fuck going!
I heard the P4 isn't as strong.
this is nice, but i might consider going this route. better performance for a fraction of the price
I flew it in high winds without an issue. I use it more than my Phantom now.
That is an amazing piece of tech.
GoPro is Officially Done With Drones
Once the remaining Karma inventory is gone, GoPro will leave the drone market.
2017 was a rough year for GoPro. Its big product, the Hero6, didn't perform nearly as well as the action camera company expected, even after a rather sizeable price drop from $499 to $399. In a press release which dropped earlier this morning, the full repercussions were detailed.
While the company will undergo some major restructuring (reducing its global workforce from 1,254 employees to fewer than 1,000 employees worldwide), the major bombshell was that they would no longer be pursuing a stake in the drone industry. Not only will they halt production of their flagship Karma drone, they will be exiting the competition entirely.
"Although Karma reached the #2 market position in its price band in 2017, the product faces margin challenges in an extremely competitive aerial market," the newsletter explained, "and furthermore, a hostile regulatory environment in Europe and the United States will likely reduce the total addressable market in the years ahead. These factors make the aerial market untenable and GoPro will exit the market after selling its remaining Karma inventory. GoPro will continue to provide service and support to Karma customers."
The $799 Karma drone had a short-lived, and ultimately troublesome, lifespan. The product was first released on October 23, 2016 and was recalled less than three weeks later due to safety concerns. At the time of the recall, approximately 2,500 units had been sold. The company decided to issue the recall because a small number of drones reportedly "lost power during operation" for unknown reasons. Essentially, their drones were falling out of the sky.
GoPro
As Charles Haine reported back at the time of the recall, this is (quite obviously) not an ideal problem for a drone to have. "As has been proven in the past, drones have the potential be dangerous and need to be treated with respect," he writes. "In the hands of an experienced operator amazing shots can be created, but reliable equipment is just as important as a safety-conscious operator, since a drone that acts erratically or falls from the sky unpredictably can cause real damage to both people and property. The best case scenario for a drone losing power while in the middle of flight is that it crashes to the ground and is destroyed, but there are obviously much worse situations where it could crash into a person and cause injury."
GoPro attributed the issue to a faulty battery latch which experts speculate allowed the batteries to become loose and cause power failures.
In response, GoPro not only provided a full refund for the Karma but went ahead and sent a free GoPro Hero5 to anyone who purchased the drone as a sort of mea culpa. That was a pretty sweet $400 deal. The Karma then went through a re-release of sorts in the Spring of 2017. The company attributed the issue to a faulty battery latch which experts speculate allowed the batteries to become loose and cause power failures. A press release at the time read, "To clarify, this Karma is the same Karma that launched last year—to the naked eye. If you break the construction down, you’d see that we’ve redesigned the battery latch. A small change that led to a huge improvement. "
As a result of the failed Karma drone, GoPro lost $373 million in revenue in 2016. With DJI holding a clear lead in the drone market, this seems like an unfortunate but smart decision for GoPro.
Once the remaining Karma inventory is gone, GoPro will leave the drone market.
2017 was a rough year for GoPro. Its big product, the Hero6, didn't perform nearly as well as the action camera company expected, even after a rather sizeable price drop from $499 to $399. In a press release which dropped earlier this morning, the full repercussions were detailed.
While the company will undergo some major restructuring (reducing its global workforce from 1,254 employees to fewer than 1,000 employees worldwide), the major bombshell was that they would no longer be pursuing a stake in the drone industry. Not only will they halt production of their flagship Karma drone, they will be exiting the competition entirely.
"Although Karma reached the #2 market position in its price band in 2017, the product faces margin challenges in an extremely competitive aerial market," the newsletter explained, "and furthermore, a hostile regulatory environment in Europe and the United States will likely reduce the total addressable market in the years ahead. These factors make the aerial market untenable and GoPro will exit the market after selling its remaining Karma inventory. GoPro will continue to provide service and support to Karma customers."
The $799 Karma drone had a short-lived, and ultimately troublesome, lifespan. The product was first released on October 23, 2016 and was recalled less than three weeks later due to safety concerns. At the time of the recall, approximately 2,500 units had been sold. The company decided to issue the recall because a small number of drones reportedly "lost power during operation" for unknown reasons. Essentially, their drones were falling out of the sky.
GoPro
As Charles Haine reported back at the time of the recall, this is (quite obviously) not an ideal problem for a drone to have. "As has been proven in the past, drones have the potential be dangerous and need to be treated with respect," he writes. "In the hands of an experienced operator amazing shots can be created, but reliable equipment is just as important as a safety-conscious operator, since a drone that acts erratically or falls from the sky unpredictably can cause real damage to both people and property. The best case scenario for a drone losing power while in the middle of flight is that it crashes to the ground and is destroyed, but there are obviously much worse situations where it could crash into a person and cause injury."
GoPro attributed the issue to a faulty battery latch which experts speculate allowed the batteries to become loose and cause power failures.
In response, GoPro not only provided a full refund for the Karma but went ahead and sent a free GoPro Hero5 to anyone who purchased the drone as a sort of mea culpa. That was a pretty sweet $400 deal. The Karma then went through a re-release of sorts in the Spring of 2017. The company attributed the issue to a faulty battery latch which experts speculate allowed the batteries to become loose and cause power failures. A press release at the time read, "To clarify, this Karma is the same Karma that launched last year—to the naked eye. If you break the construction down, you’d see that we’ve redesigned the battery latch. A small change that led to a huge improvement. "
As a result of the failed Karma drone, GoPro lost $373 million in revenue in 2016. With DJI holding a clear lead in the drone market, this seems like an unfortunate but smart decision for GoPro.
5 Ways Hiring a Drone Operator Can Save You Time and Money
Drone operators can do more than you think.
Filmmakers instinctively think of drones being used to get high, wide, establishing shots or as cameras that can be positioned in places traditional equipment cannot. But a knowledgeable and skilled drone operator knows how to go beyond the obvious and use their drone to do a lot more than capture high establishing shots. As such, there are many ways that hiring a professional drone operator for your next production can help you save time and money. Here are five of them.
1. Use a drone for dolly & jib shots
Drones can move right, left, forward and backward in a straight line all while carrying cameras stabilized by 3-axis gimbals. They can produce smooth, consistent moving shots that mimic the movements of legacy filmmaking equipment. This saves you money in two ways. First, you don't have to rent a dolly, track, and pay a crew to set it up, operate it, and tear it down. Secondly, you'll stretch the value of your drone operator's day rate by having them capture some of the traditional shots as well as the obvious drone shots.
You might think that because your shot list doesn't contain high altitude aerials, your production doesn't "need" a drone op. But, if you're planning to get a bunch of dolly and jib shots, you might be surprised how much time and money you can save by enlisting an experienced drone operator to get those shots for you. As a bonus, you might even get the high-altitude shots you didn't think you could afford.
2. Use a drone as a Steadicam
DJI illustrated this concept when it released the Inspire 2. Your drone operator can hand-hold and walk the drone just as you would a hand-held gimbal or Steadicam in order to do walk & talk shots or any other ground-based gimbal shots on your list. While it seems that everyone has handheld gimbals these days, drones can do all the work of a handheld gimbal and then some. By developing a relationship with a local drone operator, you might be able to fill the "Steadicam operator" position on your team while getting a drone operator to boot.
3. Vehicle chase shots
Today's drone operators know how to use the advanced technology and sensors in professional UAVs to create complex shots like chasing cars and motorcycles through winding country roads and parking garages. You no longer need to rent a vehicle mount and risk one of your main terrestrial cameras since your drone operator might be able to get you the same shot for a lot less money and in a lot less time.
Top-Down views from drones allow you to view your shoot location from a vantage point that makes pre-production planning easier.
4. Let the drone help with pre-production
It's obvious to think of how a drone might be used during filming, but what about before the shoot begins? Would getting a bird's eye view of your shoot location help you visualize, block, and plan your shots better? Could that help avoid wasting time and money resetting or re-shooting on the day? Even if you already have your entire crew on board, it might be a worthwhile investment to hire a drone op for a day to film/photograph your intended shoot location throughout the day in order to get insight about lighting and environmental conditions that may play into your blocking.
Julio Macat suggests using a camera placed in a location that can tell your entire story from that one vantage point. Taking this advice, use the drone as a catch-all by having your drone operator position the drone so that it can capture all of your action in a single take. This way, you will always have a fall back in case you can't get your shot from any of your other cameras and will save time, money, by avoiding reshoots.
5. Use a drone as a catch-all angle
When we covered the last Sight, Sound, and Story event, Julio Macat (DP Home Alone) talked about the importance of using what he and the crew called a "bonus cam" as a catch-all angle. He placed the "bonus cam" in a position that would allow them to tell the entire story of that particular scene from a single vantage point. Macat explained that he did this in order to have the confidence of knowing that even if they got nothing usable from any of the other three cameras they had on set, they would be able to use the "bonus cam" footage. Interestingly enough, he said that it was the "bonus cam" footage that frequently got chosen over the other angles in the final cut.
Since your drone operator can easily position the drone virtually anywhere in 3D space, they could become your production's "bonus cam" ensuring that you never miss a shot and save yourself the time money and aggravation involved with reshooting scenes.
Drone operators can do more than you think.
Filmmakers instinctively think of drones being used to get high, wide, establishing shots or as cameras that can be positioned in places traditional equipment cannot. But a knowledgeable and skilled drone operator knows how to go beyond the obvious and use their drone to do a lot more than capture high establishing shots. As such, there are many ways that hiring a professional drone operator for your next production can help you save time and money. Here are five of them.
1. Use a drone for dolly & jib shots
Drones can move right, left, forward and backward in a straight line all while carrying cameras stabilized by 3-axis gimbals. They can produce smooth, consistent moving shots that mimic the movements of legacy filmmaking equipment. This saves you money in two ways. First, you don't have to rent a dolly, track, and pay a crew to set it up, operate it, and tear it down. Secondly, you'll stretch the value of your drone operator's day rate by having them capture some of the traditional shots as well as the obvious drone shots.
You might think that because your shot list doesn't contain high altitude aerials, your production doesn't "need" a drone op. But, if you're planning to get a bunch of dolly and jib shots, you might be surprised how much time and money you can save by enlisting an experienced drone operator to get those shots for you. As a bonus, you might even get the high-altitude shots you didn't think you could afford.
2. Use a drone as a Steadicam
DJI illustrated this concept when it released the Inspire 2. Your drone operator can hand-hold and walk the drone just as you would a hand-held gimbal or Steadicam in order to do walk & talk shots or any other ground-based gimbal shots on your list. While it seems that everyone has handheld gimbals these days, drones can do all the work of a handheld gimbal and then some. By developing a relationship with a local drone operator, you might be able to fill the "Steadicam operator" position on your team while getting a drone operator to boot.
3. Vehicle chase shots
Today's drone operators know how to use the advanced technology and sensors in professional UAVs to create complex shots like chasing cars and motorcycles through winding country roads and parking garages. You no longer need to rent a vehicle mount and risk one of your main terrestrial cameras since your drone operator might be able to get you the same shot for a lot less money and in a lot less time.
Top-Down views from drones allow you to view your shoot location from a vantage point that makes pre-production planning easier.
4. Let the drone help with pre-production
It's obvious to think of how a drone might be used during filming, but what about before the shoot begins? Would getting a bird's eye view of your shoot location help you visualize, block, and plan your shots better? Could that help avoid wasting time and money resetting or re-shooting on the day? Even if you already have your entire crew on board, it might be a worthwhile investment to hire a drone op for a day to film/photograph your intended shoot location throughout the day in order to get insight about lighting and environmental conditions that may play into your blocking.
Julio Macat suggests using a camera placed in a location that can tell your entire story from that one vantage point. Taking this advice, use the drone as a catch-all by having your drone operator position the drone so that it can capture all of your action in a single take. This way, you will always have a fall back in case you can't get your shot from any of your other cameras and will save time, money, by avoiding reshoots.
5. Use a drone as a catch-all angle
When we covered the last Sight, Sound, and Story event, Julio Macat (DP Home Alone) talked about the importance of using what he and the crew called a "bonus cam" as a catch-all angle. He placed the "bonus cam" in a position that would allow them to tell the entire story of that particular scene from a single vantage point. Macat explained that he did this in order to have the confidence of knowing that even if they got nothing usable from any of the other three cameras they had on set, they would be able to use the "bonus cam" footage. Interestingly enough, he said that it was the "bonus cam" footage that frequently got chosen over the other angles in the final cut.
Since your drone operator can easily position the drone virtually anywhere in 3D space, they could become your production's "bonus cam" ensuring that you never miss a shot and save yourself the time money and aggravation involved with reshooting scenes.
DJI’s new Mavic Air drone leaked a day before its unveiling
Leaks today, details tomorrow
DJI isexpectedto unveil its new Mavic Air drone tomorrow, but you won’t have to wait to see what this new product is all about. Drone news siteDroneDJhas publishedleaked photos and specsthat the publication claims show the as-yet-unseen Mavic Air.
As you’d expect from the name, the Mavic Air looks like a smaller and lighter version of the 2016$999 Mavic Pro. The spec sheet includes an integrated 32-megapixel camera mounted on a three-way gimbal, with panorama mode and 4K video capture (no word yet on frame rate). There’s also gesture control, obstacle-avoiding sensors, foldable arms, and a 21-minute flight time. The drone reportedly comes in white, red, and black, with other colors possible, and has a body similar to last year’s$499 DJI Spark.
In terms of capabilities, the Mavic Air looks like it will be positioned somewhere between the Mavic Pro and the Spark. It has a shorter flight time than theMavic Pro Platinum(30 minutes in the air) and lacks the Platinum’s quiet rotors, but has a more advanced camera and gimbal than the Spark (which doesn’t do 4K).
Of course, these are just leaked images, and even if they are legitimate, DJI will have more to show off at its press conference tomorrow, including details on range, video specs, and colors. Tune in at 10AM ET onThe Vergeto find out more.
https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/1/22/16918910/dji-mavic-air-leak-pictures-specs
Thinking of selling my Mavic Pro and getting the Mavic Air.
What is the run time of your pro? Have u had any issues with it?
Getting a Mavic Air next month. My Mavic Pro is still nice too. That Air is serious though
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