From April 9-12, Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus and law enforcement partners will offer a training course specifically targeted at how first responders can use UAS in daily operations and safety procedures. The course will be held at the campus in Salina, Kansas.
Attendees of the course will be taught the necessary skills to operate UAS for specific law enforcement purposes. Pilots will receive hands-on flight training in several areas such as, but not limited to, accident scene reconstruction, search and rescue operations, and night operations.
UAS
UAS
Media Advisory: Webinar on UAS Regulatory Landscape
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Feb. 21, 2018
Contact: Tom McMahon, tmcmahon@auvsi.org, (571) 255-7786
DARTdrones pledges $100,000 in UAS training grants to public safety organizations
DARTdrones has announced that it is pledging $100,000 in UAS training grants to public safety organizations as a way to give back, and ultimately, save more lives with UAS.
For DARTdrones, UAS provide a number of benefits for public safety entities and first responders, but the financial costs associated with launching a UAS program remains an obstacle for many public safety organizations.
DARTdrones believes that every department should have the opportunity to use UAS technology as part of its daily operations, so with this in mind, the company is launching the DARTdrones Public Safety Grant to provide a “pathway for departments to adopt this cutting-edge technology.”
Lockheed Martin's new VCSi software allows operators to simultaneously control dozens of unmanned vehicles
On Feb. 20, Lockheed Martin announced the launch of its new vehicle control software, VCSi, which is a commercial software that enables operators to simultaneously control dozens of unmanned vehicles and conduct information, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.
VCSi will be unveiled during the Unmanned Systems Exhibition and Conference in Abu Dhabi this month, and according to Lockheed, it has several major enhancements.
AeroLabs and BGE autonomously inspect distribution assets in Maryland using UAS
In early February, AeroLabs and Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE) successfully completed a test on the use of a DJI Matrice 210 UAS to perform autonomous inspections of distribution assets in a rural area of northern Maryland.
AeroLabs says that the Matrice “held its own and flew quite well on its programmed flight path” despite flying in adverse conditions, which included strong 15+ mph winds.
The test consisted of a 10-12 pole segment of a circuit that presented various hardware configurations, and tree encroachments that allowed AeroLabs to showcase the UAS' ability to safely maneuver around the assets, and avoid environmental hazards.
Weekend Roundup
This Week in the Unmanned Systems and Robotics World
Transport Canada has granted Drone Delivery Canada (DDC) a Compliant UAV Operator Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC). DDC says that receiving this additional approval “represents the balance of the remaining two steps of a methodical process to prove the Company’s operational safety practices and our professionalism to Transport Canada.” (Drone Delivery Canada)
V-cube Robotics announces solar power plant inspection package service utilizing UAS
V-cube Robotics, Inc., which is headquartered in Shibuya, Tokyo, has announced that it will begin offering a solar power plant inspection package service that uses UAS called ‘SOLAR CHECK.’
The UAS, which are equipped with infrared thermography cameras, autonomously fly around a facility, imaging the solar panels. These images are then analyzed using artificial intelligence, which, according to VStar, dramatically improves the efficiency of inspection, making it possible to discover discrepancies and report on the results of an inspection in a short amount of time.
Loveland Innovations launches deep learning engine built specifically for UAS-based inspections
A company called Loveland Innovations has announced the launch of the beta version of IMGING Detect, a “deep learning engine built specifically for drone-based inspections.”
Deep learning is an “advanced approach to artificial intelligence (A.I.) that allows IMGING to “learn” as it gathers more data,” Loveland explains, which makes IMGING “more sophisticated and accurate each time it’s used.”
Loveland says that this capability has “vast implications” for a variety of applications such as, but not limited to, damage detection and object and materials detection. Loveland adds that IMGING’s proprietary damage detection algorithms are the “most advanced currently available” to the UAS-based roof, building and property inspection space.
Skydio introduces R1, the 'world's first fully autonomous flying camera'
A California-based company called Skydio has announced the availability of its first product, R1, which is a fully autonomous flying camera. Skydio says that with the introduction of R1, it is “taking a step toward the future of autonomous drones and enabling a new type of visual storytelling.”
According to Skydio, a team of world-class researchers and engineers built R1 from the ground up for autonomous flight. The fully autonomous flying camera is powered by the Skydio Autonomy Engine, which allows it to “see and understand” the world around it, so that it can fly safely at high speeds while avoiding obstacles, even in dense and challenging environments.
Intel's Shooting Star UAS light up Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 Opening Ceremony
The Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 Opening Ceremony featured 1,218 of Intel's Shooting Star UAS, in what was the Winter Olympics’ first-ever drone light show.
The flight, which was prerecorded for the event, set a Guinness World Records title for the “most unmanned aerial vehicles airborne simultaneously,” breaking Intel’s previous record of 500 UAS flown simultaneously in Germany in 2016.
