Uber shows prototypes of flying cars that look like huge drones - part 2

At present, Uber has begun cooperation with NASA to develop new UberAIR services, and will face competition pressure from many competitors in the future. For example, Kitty Hawk, an auto flying taxi company invested by Alphabet founder Larry Page, launched the latest commercial model Cora in March this year. At present, the company has started to cooperate with the New Zealand government and gradually promote the commercialization of its air taxi. Uber's other competitor, Airbus, also successfully piloted an autonomous flying car product for the first time in February this year. To advance the project, Uber also signed a Space Act Agreement with NASA last November to develop an "automated traffic management" system for its "flying cars." This is the second agreement between Uber and NASA. As part of the agreement, Uber will share data related to its plan to produce a flying taxi in 2020 to assist NASA in developing urban air traffic (UAM) projects.

This flying car prototype looks like a large drone, not a helicopter, with four rotors on the wing. According to Uber, this design is safer than a helicopter with a single propeller. The flying car flies at an altitude of 300 to 600 meters above the ground and is quieter than a helicopter. The noise it generates is only half the size of a truck passing outside a window.

Uber also plans to launch UberAIR services in Dallas-Fort Worth and Los Angeles in 2023 and begin testing in these cities in 2020. According to previous plans, Uber will launch flying cars in Dubai and Dallas-Fort Worth in 2020 and will be fully operational by 2023. In addition, Uber plans to launch the service in Los Angeles before the opening of the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028.

Uber shows prototypes of flying cars that look like huge drones - part 1

On May 8th, Uber demonstrated the concept prototype of the "flying car" at its second Elevate annual summit, which will be used as Uber's air taxi in the future.

Uber announced the prototype of its "flying car" at its second annual summit of the "Elevate Summit." The prototype of the "flying car" looks more like a large drone than a helicopter. It uses a four-rotor design and Uber executives call this design safer than a helicopter. Their flying height will be between 1000 feet (about 305 meters) and 2000 feet (about 610 meters). Uber said that the initial "air taxi" service price will be comparable to the current Uber Black high-end taxi service. However, as the popularity of services increases, the price of passengers will be reduced to that of Uber X services.

In 2016, Uber announced its "Uber Elevate" flying car project. The aircraft can take off and land vertically, flying at low altitudes in the city. Unlike helicopters, Uber's "flying cars" use multi-rotor and fixed-wing designs that are more efficient and quieter. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi stated in February this year that Uber’s “air taxi” service is expected to be commercialized within 5 to 10 years. Uber expects that these "air taxis" will eventually take off and land 200 times per hour. Initially, these flying cars will be equipped with pilots, but they will eventually achieve automatic driving.

Uber hopes to launch a flying taxi service for passengers in the next two to five years. Vertical take-off and landing can be achieved from ports, on the roof or on the ground. According to Uber executives, specialized landing and landing stations can handle 200 take-offs and landings per day while using only 24 seconds each time. Initially, the Uber flight taxi still needs guidance to get up and down smoothly. Uber's goal in the future is to allow it to achieve full automatic flight.

Zipline Tests Second Generation UAV - part 1

According to CNET, drone startup Zipline recently tested its drone at the foothills of the western part of the Central Valley in California. The company had previously shown some technologies but now reveals its faster new drone model - from 68 miles per hour increased to 80 miles per hour. In addition, it has an upgraded transportation system that can handle 500 flights a day.

Zipline was founded in 2011 by a group of engineers from SpaceX, Boeing, Google and Willow Garage and launched a drone-based logistics service as early as 2016. As of now, Zipline has raised approximately $43 million in funds. Zipline's investors include Visionnaire Ventures, which led the Round B financing, and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, founders of Yahoo Yang Zhiyuan, Sequoia Capital, and Anderson Horowitz and so on.

Amazon, Google, Wal-Mart, and other companies are also testing drones, but Zipline is now able to use drones to deliver blood from bases to Rwandan hospitals. The company’s second launch site in Rwanda is nearing completion to expand the delivery of vaccines and drugs and plans to start operations in Tanzania.

When the road was flooded or the clinic was on the island, delivery drones could quickly reach medical supplies 50 miles away. So Keenan Wyrobek, founder and director of engineering at Zipline, believes drones will also come to the United States. Wyrobek said that Zipline’s drone will be able to integrate with existing air traffic control systems in the future. At present, drones are operated by humans remotely. If there is a problem, they can change course, but in Rwanda, there are 7,000 flights that do not require any action based on the requirements of the air traffic controller.

The Federal Aviation Administration of the United States is wary of approving drone operations, but Zipline hopes to find a place to operate in the United States. This is part of the eight proposals made by states and local governments to launch drone delivery plans.

How does an FPV drone beginner start? - part 2

Small drones

They are bigger than the micro-drones, but still quite small. They do not exceed 2 meters in length and usually have fixed wings. Small in size and powerful, they can be thrown into the air by hand, from where they continue to slide easily in the air.

Medium drones

These are smaller planes than light planes, but still quite big. They usually have to be carried by two people and can weigh up to 200 kg.

Great drones

These types of drones are as big as a small plane. The military frequently uses these drones and sends them to high-risk areas instead of fighter jets containing officers. Surveillance functions can also be exercised by these drones through extremely powerful cameras attached to their bodies that can study an area of several hundred feet in the air.

The scope refers to the distance of the user from which a drone is able to fly. You can choose from several options for the amount of range you want your drone to have, including:

Very close range

Toy drone usually falls into this category. These drones have a range of about 5 km. They can stay in the air for 20 minutes or more, up to an hour.

Short range

These can be controlled up to 50 km from the user. A powerful battery allows them to stay in the air for up to 6 hours. The army often uses these drones.

Middle range

Drones that can be controlled at 150 km are known as short-range drones. They can stay in the air for up to 12 hours and are another breed of drones that are popular for the purpose of spying and surveillance.

Long range

You can control these drones from as far as 650km! While surveillance is a natural use of these drones, they are also a popular choice for collecting scientific data relating to the weather and geology of a particular region.

Amazon applies for a new patent for drones

March 23 quoted GeekWire news, Amazon has submitted a patent for the delivery of drones. Drones can recognize human gestures and respond accordingly. For example, the gestures identified by the drone include waving arms, pointing, flashing lights, and speaking.

The patent states that human recipients and/or other humans can use human gestures to communicate with the drone to help the drone follow its path to the delivery site. The patent shows that the drone will recognize human gestures, including welcome and dangerous gestures. If a person waves in a welcome manner, the drone can interpret the gesture as an instruction to deliver the package."

The patent details several components of a drone, including communications, navigation, gesture determination, and delivery components. The drone will also have one or more light sensors, depth sensors, visible light cameras, infrared cameras, audio sensors and depth-sensing cameras. Although the drone concept is impressive, it is still only a patent, and it is not yet clear whether the drone will be produced. Amazon also submitted other patents that have not yet been converted into products, including a self-destructive drone and a mirror that allow users to wear virtual clothing.

The concept of drones that can respond to human interactions is not new. Samsung also has a similar UAV patent that can detect human faces and gestures. DJI's Spark drone can also respond to human gestures.

The application time for this patent was July 2016, and was disclosed this week. According to the patent description; "The human parcel receiver can use gestures to communicate with the drone to help the drone follow the path to the delivery point." The patent demonstrates the drone's "refuse" mode when the drone recognizes the "refuse" gesture, it will no longer be close to the gesture sender and adjust its speed and direction. When it recognizes the "welcome" gesture, the drone thinks it should deliver to the sender of the gesture.

Although the patent appears to be very powerful, it is still only a patent after all. It is not yet clear that the if the patent will be produced.