Researchers at the Vienna University of Technology are using a Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone paired with an [Atmel based] Arduino board as the brains behind a small, inexpensive drone dubbed the SmartCopter.
Annette Mossel, a graduate student behind the project, told Rachel Metz of the MIT Technology Review that the ‘copter is envisioned as an inexpensive, autonomous, unmanned aerial vehicle capable of surveying disaster zones. Indeed, harnessing a smartphone as the processing unit cuts costs and makes it easier to update the drone’s software. Excluding the phone, the copter cost approximately 300 euros ($412) to build.
“We wanted to keep the costs low and build our ‘copter based on open hardware approaches,” Mossel told the publication. “We don’t think, ‘Okay, in a year we will make a company and turn it into a product. But I think it’s pretty possible for all of us who are working on it.”
According to Mossel, one of the biggest challenges the researchers faced was determining how the drone could navigate without activating using the phone’s built-in GPS, as the technology is only accurate to within 26 feet.
“The group’s first prototype solved this challenge in a fairly low-tech way: by detecting paper markers that had been set up in the area the drone needed to track,” Metz explained. “An app on the smartphone tells the drone to lift itself to a predetermined height, from which it starts looking for the markers. Each time it finds a new marker, it is added to the drone’s map.”
The software is currently capable of determining the drone’s position by analyzing markers and evaluating sensory input from the smartphone’s accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer. If there are no new markers to be found, the drone hovers and awaits new instructions from a remote laptop monitoring its flight. The drone can also be programmed to land in a specific spot once its job is completed.
So what else does Mossel envision for the SmartCopter? A wide range of use cases, including inspecting the condition of walls and ceilings, analyzing open rooms in churches and museums, as well as helping shoppers navigate malls.
Interested in learning more about the SmartCopter? You can check out the project’s official page here.
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The iPhone 5c is Apple’s more colorful version of the popular iPhone 5 flagship. Featuring an all new design, a 4-inch Retina display, super fast A6 chip, iOS 7 and an 8 MP iSight camera, the iPhone 5c encompasses everything you love about Apple and the iPhone in a fun, colorful package. iPhone 5c’s all-new design is crafted from a single, hard-coated poly-carbonate body with a steel reinforced frame that delivers an extremely solid feel but also makes it slightly bigger than its older brother. Its A6 processing chip provides excellent performance that we’ve come to know and love on the iPhone 5, while its 4G LTE connectivity provides support for 10 different LTE wireless bands; more than any other smartphone in the world. It also sports a slightly larger battery than its older brother, offering you up to 10h of talk time on 3G networks, up to 10h of web browsing on WiFi or LTE networks, up to 10h of video playback, and last but not least, up to 40h of audio playback. The iPhone 5c also comes with the latest version of Apples mobile OS, the iOS 7, which includes a stunning user interface that has been completely redesigned with a new colour palette and distinct features that make the UI even more interactive. Featuring hundreds of new features including Control Center, Notification Center, AirDrop, significantly improved multitasking functionality, an enhanced photo gallery, as well as Siri, the iPhone 5c and iOS 7 are the very picture of efficiency and intuitiveness. Moreover, iOS 7 also includes iTunes Radio, which is a free Internet radio service based on the choice of music you listen to on your iTunes, providing you with even more ways to listen to your favorite tunes. With all this and so much more, the iPhone 5c will provide Apple fans with a colorful alternative to the incredibly popular flagship, delivering all the favorite features and specs in a fun and more affordable package.
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“The group’s first prototype solved this challenge in a fairly low-tech way: by detecting paper markers that had been set up in the area the drone needed to track,” Metz explained. “An app on the smartphone tells the drone to lift itself to a predetermined height, from which it starts looking for the markers. Each time it finds a new marker, it is added to the drone’s map.”
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Nice and informative article.
Your thorough research shows in the way the article is crafted. Thanks for taking time and planning out the content.
Bookmarked for further reference.
Can you also check my blog on Google Project Ara
Thanks,
Ara.
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