Howard Gordon who runs Surveyor Corporation just sent me details on their latest product, the Surveyor Stereo Vision System, or SVS for short. The system allows you to record high-resolution full-frame video using two video cameras for a complete stereo vision system. Better yet, the whole set-up is 2.5″ x 6.0″ and only weighs 5 oz.

 

The SVS is open source, and it is intended for researchers, educators and developers interested in enabling depth perception in their applications without the need for an array of active sensors (e.g. laser scanners, ultrasonics, infrared, etc).

The SVS uses two beefy Blackfin DSP’s from Analog devices to do video processing, and can also simultaneously control 8 servos and has a built-in dual motor driver capable of supplying up to 1 Amp per motor. Also included is WiFi connectivity via a Lantronix MatchPort.

The firmware for the SVS is GPL Open Source and comes functional with basic image processing features like, “histogram, pixel sampling, mean, frame difference, blob, scan, count, [and] find”. Currently in development are stereo correspondence and image rectification functions.

Surveyor is targeting this device to the educational and hobbiest crowd, and is selling the SVS for a (very) modest $550. It looks like a great new gadget for robot builders to stick on their creations. Toss on some goofy 3D glasses, and that autonomous aerial footage will really come to life!

Update: Howard has mounted the SVS system to a robotic blimp. You can check out some video after the jump.

(more…)

At the 18th annual International Aerial Robotics Competition (IARC), Georgia Tech came away as the winner, with prize money of $27,000. The event, which was held on July 28th - Aug. 1st, 2008, marked the conclusion of the 4th Mission of the IARC, with a new mission being released for the 2009 competition. The competition, which as been existance since 1991 (the creator of the competition, Robert Michelson, coined the term ‘Aerial Robotics’), and has long been known as a grueling, and nearly impossible, robotics competition.

The forth mission was divided into 4 different levels - a 3km ingress path, locating a specific building in a town environment, flying into, or launching a sensor into, the building and sending back pictures, and finally doing all three steps in under 15 minutes. Several teams were able to complete 3 of the first 4 steps, but no team was able to complete all the steps in under 15 minutes, the “winner take all” requirement. The judges divided the total prize winnings of $80,000 USD between 10 teams, with Georgia Tech taking the most money.

The new 2009 competition will be announced soon. Based on previous competitions, it will be interesting to see the level of difficulty that the new 5th mission will require.

The DelFly Micro, built by Delft University of Technology, is the world’s smallest ornithopther. The flapping robot has a 10 cm wingspan and even includes a video camera. In a mere year-and-a-half, the team decreased the weight from the 16 grams of the DelFly II, to the amazing 3 grams of the DelFly Micro.

The group hopes to use the ornithopther to study the aerodynamics of small flapping vehicles, as computer simulations prove very difficult. They also hope to use the onboard camera to achieve autonomous flight using machine vision. The current vehicle has a 30mAh lithium polymer battery that allows for 3 minutes of flight-time (the battery is 1/3 of the DelFly’s weight). The wings are made of mylar and flap at 30 Hz.

You can see some video of the ornithopther flying after the jump.

Update: The August 15th edition (MP3) of the Robots Podcast features an interview with the creators of the DelFly Micro.

(more…)

Chris Anderson, over at DIY Drones, recently posted a full page advertisement, from the July edition of the AUVSI magazine, for AUS International’s AirSniper product. The AirSniper is described as, “a VTOL combat mini UAV intended for close infantry support.” Or, in other words, “a gun with wings.”

Now, this idea seems like a solid one – why not mount weapons on UAVs? In fact, it’s been done before. However, I don’t think anyone has every proposed a UAV sniper system that can also be torn-down to work as a regular, old, gun. Also, AUS claims,

Our patent pending “tilt and stop” rotor design concept gives AirSniper hovering performance and agility of helicopters, with speed and endurance of fixed wing airplanes.

Supposedly the airframe also allows for “precise aiming at any flight speed.” Quite a claim. The comedic aspects of the advertisement give some reason to doubt as to AUS International’s ability to bring this to market. Chris even said, “if this were the April edition, I’d think it was an April Fool’s joke”.

Some of the more laughable lines from the ad:

For an enemy up there, you could be like a sitting duck.
With AirSniper, sitting duck is the other guy.

WIRED’s DangerRoom blog also got into the action with their latest idea, the AirKnife.

Ok, so after AUS International had been give such a bad rap, what did I do? Well, I contacted them to find out what the skinny was. Check out our correspondance after the jump. (more…)

Boeing has announced that they will be purchasing Insitu Inc., which is a major player in the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) market. The two companies have a prior history of working together from as early as 2002, on the ScanEagle project. Insitu is projected to have revenue of $150 million USD this year, which is up 70% from last year. Insitu also makes the Integrator, GeoRanger, and Insight UAV systems. The purchase price has not been disclosed. Insitu will operate as a seperate subsidiary of Boeing. Insitu is based in Bingen, Washington and currently has 360 employees.

This will most definitely not be the last of such acquisitions. As the UAV market grows, be on the lookout for much larger aerospace companies like Northrop Gumman and Lockheed, to buy up all the smaller companies.

  Chris Anderson, over at DIY Drones, has posted some great new information on his new, ultra-cheap, autopilot, the ArduPilot. This fully open source project allows an aerial vehicle to autonomous navigate GPS waypoints, maintain altitude, and can trigger a camera or other external device.

The autopilot, which is built around the Arduino architecture, will replace Chris’ other project, the Basic Stamp Autopilot, and forms the core of what Chris calls, 

… a $110 autopilot, thanks to the open source hardware. By comparison, the Basic Stamp version of this, with processor, development board and failsafe board, would run you $300, and it’s not as powerful.

Throw in a FMA Co-Pilot for stabilization, a Hobbico SuperStar plane, some servos, and a 6-Channel radio system, and you have all the parts for a $440 unmanned aerial vehicle. Way to go Chris!

 

(more…)

The RoboTurK system, based on Microsoft Robotics Studio, is designed to be an autonomous system for taking video surveillance of emergency areas. The motivation fur such a system is events like the 1999 earthquake in Turkey, which took the lives of over 45,000 people. The RoboTurK system will enable emergency crews to quickly assess the damage even when communication systems break down.



The system is designed around a standard RC helicopter and uses Microsoft Virtual Earth for mapping and to display realtime video of a location.

You can keep up with the progress of the RoboTurK project at their website.


(more…)

The US Department of Defense (DoD) has released a report detailing the future of robotic military equipment and how the US military should proceed. The 188 page report (pdf) covers the next 25 years of unmanned military systems in the air, and sea, and on land.



This report is unique in that it address both ground and sea vehicles in addition to the much more "popular" and oft-used arial systems. This reinforces the Department’s position that integration of air, land, and sea systems is a vital part of the future of US military systems.

The report details recomendations made by field commanders and how further AI developments can lead to "thinking" systems.


Another fascinating aspect of the report is a huge appendix listing all the unmanned systems currently in use by the military. The image to the left is a shot of the Lockheed Martin Protector Unmanned Surface Vehicle.

If you have a hard time downloading the document, Roland Piquepaille provides a good outline.


(more…)

 The Miami police force will begin experimenting with using Honeywell Micro Air Vehicles (MAVs) starting in 2008. They plan on using the drones in SWAT operations. These operation will be closely watched by the FAA to see if unmanned vehicles can be effectively (and safely) used in urban environments.


The article references an event two years ago where a police helicopter was shot by an armed suspect, and the pilot was forced to land in someone’s back yard. MAVs would be significantly smaller and ligher and would pose less risk if such an even were to be repeted. The police force only plans to use these vehicles in specific operations, which should reduce the privacy concerns that are raised by these "eys in the sky."



The Houston police force was also given permission by the FAA to use similar drones in their operations. Let’s hope that such operations prove successful and open up the US skies for unmanned vehicles.




(more…)