Avionis Services has sold a minority stake to EAT (European Advanced Technology), a subsidiary of IAI (Israel Aerospace Industries) established since 1989 in France. Thus, the Brazilian may engage in manufacturing and marketing of aircraft systems, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), sensors and aircraft upgrades. (Read more)
According to the new MarketsandMarkets' research report “Small UAV Market by Trends (Mini, Micro, Hand Held UAV), by Propulsion (Hydrogen, Electric, Solar, Lithium ION), by Payload (NBC Detection, Telemetry Systems, Software Systems, Meteorology), by Application (Civil, Military, Security), by Region & by Country – Global Forecast to 2014 – 2019″, the Small UAV Market is expected to register growth with CAGR of 21.70%, and reach 2.2 million by the end of 2019.
It provides information about the leading competitors in the global Small UAV Market and apart from a general overview of the companies; it also provides details on their financial positions, key products, their unique selling points and key developments. The report also analyzes the market share on the basis of payloads used in UAVs. The report highlights the revenue analysis of the small UAV market with respect to countries such as the U.S., Austria, France, Germany, Spain, Norway, Saudi Arabia, China, India, Japan etc. This research report also segments the market on the basis of products, types, application and geography, country, forecasting revenues, market share and analyzing trends in each of the sub segments.
According to the country’s 2014 defense budget, the increased investments in UAVs are necessary to ”...build defense capabilities to ensure security of the seas and airspace surrounding Japan, respond to an attack on remote islands” —a not so subtle reference to the disputed Senkaku Islands, or the Diaoyu as they are known in China.
Although both countries claim their drones will only be used for surveillance purposes, experts warn that the possibility of future drone battles in the region’s airspace is “very high.”:Chinese state media last year reported that Beijing will build 11 drone bases along its coastline to boost ISR missions over the islands, and Japan has positioned itself as one of the key players in the escalating global race for military UAVs, a move that’s controversial both at home and abroad.
"Our coverage of the civil UAV market continues to grow with each annual report, mirroring the gradual increase in the civil market itself" said Philip Finnegan, Teal Group's director of corporate analysis and an author of the study. "Our 2014 UAV study calculates the UAV market at 89% military, 11% civil cumulative for the decade, with the numbers shifting to 86% military and 14% civil by the end of the 10-year forecast." he added.
Teal Group analysts, in their 2014 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) integrated market study, estimate that UAV spending will nearly double over the next decade from current worldwide UAV expenditures of $5.7 billion annually to $9.9 billion, totaling just over $77 billion in the next ten years. The new study covers more than 40 U.S., European, South African and Israeli companies, and reveals the fundamental reshaping of the industrial environment as UAV technology proliferates worldwide.
"The Teal Group study predicts that the US will account for 65% of the worldwide RDT&E spending on UAV technology over the next decade, and 53% of the procurement," said Teal Group senior analyst Steve Zaloga, another author of the study. Regarding payloads "The overall UAV electronics market will continue to be the world's fastest-growing aerospace payload market, but not through continued growth of 'the usual suspects' from the past decade," said Dr. David Rockwell, author of the electronics portion. The study also includes a UAV Manufacturers Market Overview that reflects the worldwide UAV market: "Again continuing as one of the prime areas of growth for defense and aerospace companies, the UAV market continues to evolve and become an increasingly global market," said Philip Finnegan.
Colonel Eliot Gerardo Benavides, director of the Directorate of Aircraft Remotely-Manned-DIART the Colombia Air Force will be keynote speaker at the Second Latin American Conference on Remotely Manned Aircraft UNVEX America 2014, which will take place 29 and 30 October in Bogota . (Read more)
Years ago, University of Southampton researchers, led by Jim Scanlan, a professor of aerospace design, scored a world first when they built and flew a UAV constructed entirely from parts made by additive manufacturing, or 3D printing.
That original UAV, four iterations ago, was smaller, with a 4-foot wingspan. Since then, Scanlan’s team – armed with a £3m UK government grant – has been successfully working to prove that drones can be designed, built and tested in the relatively time-warp speed of less than two weeks using additive manufacturing.
But now Scanlan has set his sights on an even larger target: "All cargo aircraft will soon be unmanned,” Scanlan says. More boldly, Scanlan also believes that large cargo planes –assembled from 3D-printed parts – can soon be flying the skies using inexpensive, off-the-shelf communications technologies, instead of relying on expensive, and yet-to-be developed, sense-and-avoid systems. To prove his point, Scanlan’s started a program called HIATUS, for Highlands and Islands Aerial Transport using Unmanned Systems, that he hopes will, within 18 months, use 3D-printed drones, each about half the size of a small Cessna and flying semi-autonomously, to ferry goods to remote islands in Europe that have poor transportation links and are often inaccessible because of fog and bad weather. “Our unmanned aircraft,” he insists, “is perfectly happy flying in fog.”
“Drones will soon be part of everyone’s lives,” says Amanda Stainer, commercial director of the biennial Farnborough International Airshow, which runs from July 14th to 20th. There are 78 companies displaying UAV technologies, a nearly four-fold increase from the 22 that took part in the 2012 show. “It’s pretty buzzing,” she says of drone systems. “People obviously see it as the future.” A 2012 report by US aviation consultants Teal Group estimated that, by 2022, annual spending on UAVs would jump from $6.6 billion to $11.4 billion, for a total of $89 billion over the decade.
UAVs will soon be a mainstay of agriculture -according to experts- as UAVs outfitted with multi spectral cameras can alert growers to crop diseases, inadequate moisture content and many other problems.
Ron and Mary Bitner, founders of Bitner Vineyard, have grown grapes at Sunny Slope (Idaho) for 33 years using as few chemicals as possible: "Rather than spraying the whole field, if we can identify spots of disease or pests, we can do spot spraying," Bitner says. "That will reduce chemicals. We can reduce water stress. There will be some real benefits to it."
Robert Blair has flown hobby-kit drones over his 1,500-acre farm 34 miles northeast of Lewiston since 2006. Blair says he was the first American grower to deploy UAV technology for agricultural purposes, outfitting his 3-pound fixed-wing Styrofoam UAV with a GPS autopilot system that tracks coordinates to traverse his barley, wheat, lentil, alfalfa and garbanzo bean fields.
A digital infrared camera snaps photos that Blair downloads and scrolls through. He finds patches of crops needing attention and keeps an eye on plants after storms when the fields are too muddy for on-the-ground scouting. "I can't cover 100 percent of my fields by traditional scouting," Blair says. "This allows me to see better and realize, 'Hey, I do have a problem out there. Maybe it's something I can fix.' "Blair says drones can help growers improve their yields while accommodating the swelling demand for more eco-friendly farming practices.
"Agriculture has the tremendous responsibility of feeding people and doing so sustainably," Blair says. "This technology will allow us to better manage our inputs and make better management decisions."
For the first time, the Patriot Missile Division shot down an UAV that breached Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip.
The threat of hostile UAVs has increased since the Second Lebanon War in 2006: In October of 2012, IAF fighter jets intercepted a UAV that breached Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip, and approximately a year ago IAF fighter jets intercepted a UAV in the skies above northern Israel after it infiltrated Israeli territory from the Lebanese border.
Since 2012, there has been a significant upgrade of the Patriot system and an adjustment to deal with the latest challenges, among them the interception of unmanned aerial vehicles: "The 'Patriot' Missile Division is an inseparable part of the IAF's and its talented soldiers' answer to threats such as ground-to-ground missiles", said Colonel Chemi Bar-El, Commander of the "Sky Protection" Branch. "But, in the modern battlefield, the main threat comes from hostile UAVs and hang gliders".
If you work as a photographer’s assistant setting up lighting for the photographer, be advised that you could improve your job using UAVs that automatically may assume the positions necessary to produce lighting effects specified through a simple, intuitive, camera-mounted interface:
The first ever Precision Aerial Agriculture Show (PAAS) is happening July 9th, and 10th. It's a show all about unmanned aerial vehicles otherwise known as a UAV or a drone.
These UAV's are the reason why hundreds of people from around the globe are participating in the PAAS, which show manager, Stu Ellis, hopes will become a yearly event. UAV technology is designed to enhance the farmers efficiency and productivity, which is why the show will have on-site experts to discuss the technology, the laws, and the risks.
BAE Systems have claimed that with the help of futuristic technology like 3D printers they could create small UAVs by 2040.
It was suggested by the defence firm's scientists and engineers that these unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) could potentially be used as a group of wide-winged aircraft for protracted or enduring surveillance or as rotary-winged UAVs to rescue single civilians or soldiers from dangerous situations, the Guardian reported.
Nick Colosimo, a futurist and engineering manager at its research and development team in Warton, Lancashire, said that BAE Systems have a rich heritage in research and development and work done by thousands of scientists and engineers. The defence firm has unveiled the '3D printed UAV' as one of the many futuristic technologies like the 'Survivor', an aircraft that could heal itself or 'Transformer', a long-range aircraft which divides into a number of smaller one, they believe could be incorporated in military and civil aircraft in 2040 or even earlier.
An unidentified western European NATO member has selected the MicroBUAS for its defense forces.
According to the Israeli OEMBlueBird Aero Systems, this micro UAS has a 10-kilometer communication range and over one hour’s endurance. Equipped with proprietary gimbaled and stabilized EO or HR un-cooled IR payloads, the MicroB can be autonomously launched from its hand-held launcher within seconds – even in a crowded urban environment, or through a window, providing high quality video and images, with GIS information and automatic target tracking capabilities.
Aimed primarily at the consumer market, AirDog is an innovative, yet simple-to-use, ‘quad-copter’ that operates via a wrist-worn tracking device and accommodates a standard GoPro sports camera.
“Airdog is a perfect example of how 3D printing is an enabler for inventors looking to turn their ideas into fully-operational parts quickly and effectively,” said Andy Middleton, Senior Vice President and General Manager EMEA at Stratasys. “In this case, both our core 3D printing technologies have proved instrumental in producing a fully-functional drone and wrist device. With the exception of the advanced sensor technology, both parts have been created entirely using 3D printing.”
“AirDog not only grants end-users their own affordable and personal aerial video crew, but goes one step further in providing thrilling footage from distances and angles previously inaccessible to such consumers,” said Edgars Rozentals, Co-founder and CEO of the Latvia-based, Helico Aerospace Industries. Helico is specifically targeting the outdoor ‘extreme’ sports market and expects AirDog to be of particular interest to recreational participants of freestyle BMX, motocross and skateboarding, as well as water-sports such as surfing, kite-surfing and wake-boarding.
Prior to investigating the use of 3D printed parts, Rozentals was trying silicon-molded designs through a supplier in China. But finally “The benefits delivered by 3D printing compared to the method we trialled originally are numerous,” said Rozentals. “Above all, turnaround time is significantly reduced and if we need to make last minute changes to a design, we can do so within a matter of hours, easily and cost-effectively. This was simply unachievable before as it necessitated time-consuming production of a costly new mold. In fact, I’m not sure how we would have arrived at the stage of having a functional part, were it not for Stratasys 3D printing technology. I founded the company two years ago and we’re a staff of three, so for start-ups like Helico, this technology isn’t just a game-changer, but the ticket to the game itself,” he said.
The company sought the expertise of Stratasys’ Latvian partner, Baltic3D, who also worked with Polish reseller Bibus Menos to meet the requirements outlined by Helico’s team. The final AirDog drone was fully 3D printed using Stratasys’ FDM-based ULTEM material, chosen for its ability to provide parts of extreme strength and durability, with the lightweight characteristics vital for take-off and in-flight manoeuvrability. “We were particularly impressed by how far we could push the boundaries of the ULTEM material,” added Rozentals. “The material’s functional stability enabled us to print very thin walls that further reduced AirDog’s overall weight.” To produce fully-functional parts that could perform in the real environment, both Stratasys’ FDM and PolyJet 3D printing technologies were used for AirDog and its AirLeash tracking device, respectively.
