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Posts Tagged “

Drones

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china

Chinese UFO Looks Like Emergency Life Raft, Spies on You

Chinese company Harbin Smart Special Aerocraft has spent 12 years and over $4 million developing its unmanned flying saucers. Somewhat reminiscent of the Honeywell Micro Air Vehicle, the unmanned drone has propellers that run on methanol, a top speed of around 50mph, and can stay at an altitude of around 1,000 yards up for 40 minutes or so. Expect to see it being used for aerial photography, geological surveys and in people's LSD-fueled weird-outs. [DVICE]

7:10 AM on Thu Jun 19 2008
By AddyDugdale
3,922 views, 22 comments

iphone

Berkeley Group Uses iPhone to Control UAV Squadron

The Center for Collaborative Control of Unmanned Vehicles (C3UV—the "3" makes it hip) at the University of California, Berkeley has developed a system that uses the iPhone to develop tasks, set coordinates and send orders to a fleet of UAVs. Naturally, this development is interesting because it allows a single person to control a large number of small, unmanned aircraft at one time using a cellphone. But, as Wired points out, the clause in the SDK agreement clearly states that "autonomous control of vehicles, aircraft, or other mechanical devices" is a big no-no. So the future of this type of technology is unclear.[C3UV via Wired]

6:00 PM on Mon Jun 16 2008
By Sean Fallon
2,374 views, 23 comments

Latest by n/a: ahhh...All I see is the use of an iPhone as a dumb terminal connected to a laptop. For that matter, any phone will do... more »

drones

Morphing Micro-Drone Is Half Bat, Half Cockroach, Creeps Us Out

I don't know what's more creepy about this 11-inch remote controlled drone developed by the USAF for reconnaissance missions. Maybe it's the flexible wings, which close and open like a bat when landing. Perhaps it's the crawling on the floor, modeled after cockroaches, to reach hidden places to spy. Or most probably is the fact that they are planning to develop a large drone that will carry 50 of these little beasts, ready to burst out of its belly at any time. Whatever it is, I want one. [Flight]

5:00 AM on Fri Apr 18 2008
By Jesus Diaz
20,643 views, 28 comments

Latest by n/a: Reminds me of the Zanti Misfits Outer Limits episode: [upload.wikimedia.org] more »

le tired

Predator Pilots Are Most Fatigued Military Flight Crews

According to a just-released Navy research paper, pilots of the MQ-1 Predator unmanned air vehicles are the most fatigued crews in the military, which seriously affects job performance, operational safety and family relationships. The most worrying thing is the reasons why and the lack of a clear solution: More »

10:31 PM on Wed Apr 16 2008
By Jesus Diaz
15,584 views, 70 comments

Latest by BigDanInTX: I think the big thing would be the lack of head movement. They put everything in front of them so they're only looking in one direction. Mount cameras to the left/right and to the left/right rear sides. more »

imperial eyes

Spy Drones Coming Soon to the US, AT-ST Walkers to Follow Next

Reuters is reporting that the Miami-Dade police department will "soon" start deployment of the infamous Honeywell Micro Air Vehicles, the spy drones that will keep all you criminals and Gizmodo editors in check with forward and downward looking cameras, flying over a 100 waypoint flight plan at 57MPH, and from 10,500-foot altitude. Seeing them hovering over the skies is kind of menacing. Actually, with the right music, it's downright scary.

More »

6:35 AM on Wed Mar 26 2008
By Jesus Diaz
15,127 views, 59 comments

Latest by n/a: Okay...I think its about time to form a resistance movement. Who's with me? more »

big brother

Miami Cops to Use Spy Drones for SWAT Team Ops

Drones like the one you see in the video above might soon be used by the Miami Police Department, serving as an unmanned eye-in-the-sky that can go places where it's too dangerous for human beings to tread. Expected to be rolled out next year first in SWAT team operations, the 14 lb. vehicle is unarmed but can fly just about anywhere, and even goes up to altitudes of 10,500 feet. These particular craft were first tested by Honeywell early last year, and now the FAA has given Miami and Houston permission to use them in their busy airspaces. Cops say they're not going to be using these drones to spy on people. Yet. [WPLG, via CrunchGear]

12:30 PM on Wed Nov 28 2007
By Charlie White
8,919 views, 34 comments

Latest by lucface: or like those annoying security Bots in Bioshock more »

military

Router Drones to Deliver Wifi From the Sky

Military personnel already use unmanned drones for spying on areas from above, but Wired's Danger Room reports that soon they'll also be using them for a less exciting but just as important task: wireless networking. AeroVironment, a company that makes unmanned aerial vehicles, has been working on making router drones, planes that can fly around acting as hubs, allowing for signals to be sent from previously inaccessible locations. It's a pretty neat idea, but I'd be totally pissed if one of them ran into a building or something right when my It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia torrent was about to complete. [Danger Room]

3:00 PM on Tue Sep 25 2007
By Adam Frucci
2,011 views, 7 comments

Latest by ChromeBro: Uhmm, Bill Gates had this idea like 15 years ago with Teledesic, only with low-earth-orbit satellites to give everyone on the planet hi-speed Internet. Bring it back. I think the satellites are still up there. more »

gadgets

Attack of the Hunter-Killer Grim Reaper Robots

What's not to like about the sneaky and efficient drone, a robotic aircraft controlled from afar that can put the hurt on enemies while assuring that none of us good guys die in the process? The radio-controlled warplanes have come a long way since those first Predator surveillance drones, and now the more-powerful Reaper hunter-killer is six times heavier and holds as many missiles and bombs as the mighty F-16 fighter. More »

3:18 PM on Wed Jan 31 2007
By Charlie White
4,632 views, 19 comments

robots

Star Wars Drone Inspired Satellites

These little Star Wars-inspired orbs are being tested on the International Space Station to see whether their technology is suitable to be used in a new generation of "smart" satellites. The nine pound spheres use carbon dioxide expelled from their thrusters to maneuver around the ISS. These satellites will be cheap and can fly in formation, so they can be thrown up into space by the shuttle-load. More »

5:17 PM on Mon Jul 17 2006
By Jason Chen
549 views, 4 comments

cellphones

Swiss Planning Unmanned Marketing Drones

In the hard-edged world of international marketing, you do not want to put your boys at risk when trying to beam your message to millions via Bluetooth. Swisscom, a Swiss telecomm (hence the name), is working on remote controlled planes that will fly over concerts, malls, and battlefields, beaming down advertising messages to the surging crowd. And we are here as on a darkling plain/ Swept with confused alarms of struggle and flight," is right, friends. The war against our anti-marketing instincts just got kicked up a notch. – John Biggs More »

12:32 PM on Tue Jun 27 2006
By johnb
130 views, 4 comments

Latest by qwertyblue: this type of thing is annoying at the local nightclub, and im sure it will be even more annoying when they can get to us wherever we happen to be. Whats wrong with the people handing out leaflets that more »

gadgets

Unmanned Drones Over LA

The LA County Sheriff's department is taking a page from the military and sending unmanned drones over the streets of LA. These drones are much lighter and cost a lot less than military ones, and is only going to be used for looking for lost kids and hikers along with scouting for break-ins. Each drone will be $20,000 to $30,000, compared to a police helicopter, which goes up into the millions when you account for fuel, training, and maintenance. More »

8:24 PM on Tue Jun 20 2006
By Jason Chen
460 views, 3 comments

Latest by Destardi: "..only to be used for finding lost kids.." YEA RIGHT!! Big Brother, 1984. Whatever. more »

robots

Air Force Drones Come to Light

Following the Global Hawk into battle, the Air Force's latest drones, the Penetrating High Altitude Endurance system, is designed for stealthy flying behind enemy lines. These drones are thought to be covered with radar absorbing material and are thought to be based on the Compass Arrow design created back in the 1970s. Strangely enough, it's pretty hard to get much good information on the Air Force's top secret robotic drone projects. More »

4:09 PM on Mon Apr 24 2006
By johnb
305 views, 3 comments

gadgets

Son of Son of Killer Drone

The X-45C looks like it means business. This is a bigger killer drone—over 18,000 pounds—that offers a remote viewer a point-click-and-eviscerate user-interface for destroying the enemy. More »

10:05 AM on Fri Dec 9 2005
By johnb
331 views, 2 comments

robots

Border Drones Protecting theBorders

In a speech earlier this week, good ole' Dubya called for better technology to protect our precious US borders. This would include more employees and possibly the addition of drones to monitor the borders. The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently purchased a Predator B drone to assist in the monitoring. The Predator B, an unmanned and remotely-controlled aircraft, is currently being used in the Tucson, AZ area and the CBP has received the go-ahead to purchase another one. More »

4:00 PM on Fri Dec 2 2005
By Travis Hudson
173 views, Comment

smartphones

Gizmodo Ink

  • If there's somethin' strange in your neighborhood, who you gonna call? Paranormal investigators equipped with electromagnetic-field meters, radiation and motion detectors, barometric pressure monitors, and thermometers, of course. [San Francisco Chronicle]
  • Mini pilotless reconnaissance planes that fit in a backpack are the hot money-making ticket with military contractors. These mini drones are popular with the U.S. Defense Department because they're relatively cheap, maneuverable, portable, and most important, capable of saving soldiers' lives. Where are the consumer versions? I want one. [Washington Post]
  • The Boston Globe discusses your options if you want to chuck the USB headset into the trash and get a Skype phone. [Boston Globe]
  • The LA Times reviews the iPaq hw6515 smartphone and says "nice try, but the Treo 650 has better ergonomics and a better keyboard, not to mention it looks way cooler. [LA Times (reg)]
  • They're not exactly beating plowshares into swords, but more and more small ISP companies are using WiFi to beat down the big, bad telecom Goliaths. [NY Times]
    • More »

    11:15 AM on Mon Oct 31 2005
    By Noah R
    63 views, 1 comment

    Latest by Apreche: While I'm all for a bit of fun, and Ghostbusters is a great movie, we really have to stop taking these nutty ghost hunters seriously. The fact that a real newspaper, not a tabloid, didn't show more than a tiny more »

    robots

    Drones Watching Rita

    NOAA has been sending an unmanned Aerosonde drone airplane over this last wave of monster hurricanes to amass unprecedented weather data, a kind of sweet use of a technology developed for military intelligence. Also recently flipping their switches from Evil to Good have been the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency's spy satellites, as they've mapped the path of destruction of Katrina and are now monitoring Rita with their incredibly powerful cameras, taking a much-needed break from tracking your movements from space via your license plate. One of the chief mandates of The Agency this week is monitoring the oil fields along the Gulf Coast for some before and after images. Which is all reassuring or creepy, depending on how you look at it. More »

    11:10 AM on Fri Sep 23 2005
    By johnb
    232 views, Comment