Archive for May, 2009

Draganfly Innovations Inc. is excited about our ongoing relationship with FLIR Systems, Inc.

FLIR will be using the Draganflyer X6 UAV Helicopter to promote their traditional line of Photon cameras and their new light weight Tau long wave infrared camera core.

Stan Laband and Mark Bateson with the Draganflyer X6 UAV Helicopter at FLIR corporate offices.

The Draganflyer X6 UAV Helicopter and base station, as well as a live video broadcast, were recently demonstrated at FLIR’s corporate offices to an enthusiastic audience of engineers, technicians and marketing personnel.

FLIR will showcase their cameras, mounted on the Draganflyer X6, at a number of leading industry trade shows and the X6 will be featured in the display area of their corporate lobby, broadcasting video from the attached FLIR camera to a wall-mounted plasma display.

Draganfly Innovations was awarded the SABEX (Saskatoon Achievement In Business Excellence Award) in the New Product Category for our Draganflyer X6 UAV on May 14, 2009. Nominations closed on March 19, and Draganfly Innovations was named a finalist on April 14. Designed by the Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce, SABEX awards are designed to promote aspects of business excellence in Saskatchewan. SABEX awards fall under several categories, including innovation, customer service, and many others.  The New Product Award is given to a business demonstrating exceptional performance in launching a new Saskatchewan-made product or device in the last three years, which is both original and currently available to customers.

Criteria for applying for a SABEX award include the following:

• Potential for Market Expansion
• Projected Product Life Cycle
• Uniqueness of Product
• Development and Developmental Stages
• Product Age

and many others.

We’re very proud to be honoured with this award, and will continue to strive for business excellence.

Vertical 911, a publication dedicated to helicopter usage in the EMS, law enforcement, fire and search an rescue sectors, has recently featured and article about our Draganflyer X6. The article notes the UAV’s applications to policework and usage by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) .

Vertical Magazine is the helicopter industries “insider” publication, featuring commentary by some of the industries leading voices. Although they usually feature full scale, piloted helicopter applications, our 1 kg UAV’s features were unique enough to write an article about.

The OPP became the first police service to use a UAV for forensic purposes inside city limits. If you want to learn more about our UAV’s features and how it can help your organization, take a look at the Draganflyer X6 product information page.

VTOL is an abbreviation for Vertical Takeoff And Landing, and is used to describe an aircraft which has the ability to take off and land without a runway, completely vertically. VTOL aircraft have been important in the aerospace industry for many years, and first began when helicopters were invented. Helicopters are by far the most common type of VTOL UAV, with other types being invented only recently.

VTOL aircraft are useful for a number of reasons, including:

• No Runway Space Needed - By definition, VTOL aircraft do not need a runway to take off or land.
• Increased Portability – Because VTOL aircraft do not need a runway to land or take off, they can be used and flown in locations that conventional aircraft don’t have access to.
• More Useful For Aerial Photography and Videography – This advantage applies mostly to small UAVs designed for reconnaissance, such as our Draganflyer X6. The ability to stop the aircraft and hover over one location is invaluable when it comes to taking still and precise images.

A History of VTOL Aircraft

Besides the helicopter, which had always been a successful VTOL aircraft, there have been several technological innovations over the years. The first major contribution was the Rolls-Royce Thrust Measuring Rig, otherwise known as the”flying bedstead”. This aircraft used 5 engines for flight, 4 to control vertical motion and one to move horizontally. A similar device was used to train pilots to fly the Nasa Lunar Lander.

More sophisticated VTOL aircraft designs used a single engine with thrust vectoring. Thrust vectoring means that the aircraft can redirect thrust from the engine in different directions, so that one engine can be used to control both horizontal and vetical flight. The Hawker Harrier was one aircraft to use thrust vectoring, beign able to alternaticvely take off and land vertically, or with a conventional runway.

Smaller VTOL UAVs are almost exclusively helicopters, because of the complexities of designing fixed wing aircraft. One such aircraft is the Camcopter S-100, a fuel powered UAV helicopter. With a weight of 200 kg, and a maximum endurance of 6 hours, this UAV is designed for longer and more extensive missions.

The Draganflyer X6 – A Modern VTOL UAV

The Draganflyer X6 is a great example of a VTOL UAV. Foregoing the complexities of building a VTOL fixed wing UAV, we have opted for a helicopter design. Because of this, the Draganflyer X6 UAV can take off vertically, land vertically, and hover in one place to take pictures. You can learn more about the Draganflyer X6 VTOL UAV by visiting the product page on our website.

The Draganflyer X6 UAV was recently featured in Italy’s Police Commemorative Display, arranged by Polizia Ferrovie Dello Stato. The three day event features new police technology, including UAVs, ground vehicles, and other equipment. The Italian railway network expressed great interest in our latest UAV, because of it’s applications to their field. The pictures show our UAV displayed in Rome, and some views of the entire event.

Click on any of the pictures below to open a full resolution version.

The Draganflyer X6 On Display for the Group of Railways of the State (Grupo Ferrovie Dello Stato).	Another shot of the X6 UAV, on display next to a stone statue.	A picture of the entire Police Commemorative Display
The Draganflyer X6 UAV On Display	Sign greeting visitors to the event, "polizia" means police in Italian	Close up picture of the Draganflyer X6 UAV

Rotary Modeler Magazine, one of the leading magazines in the RC helicopter industry, has written a 10 page, detailed review of Our Draganflyer X6 UAV. The review discusses all aspects of our latest unmanned aerial vehicle, including applications, construction quality, flying properties, and the included flight accessories. The X6 UAV got a rave review, with the authors citing it’s simplicity, functionality, and versatility.

The reviewers were impressed with our optional FLIR infrared video camera. The small FLIR camera is the most sophisticated cameras available, being able to see in the dark and spot people from a great distance. Here’s what the reviewers had to say:

“With either of these cameras, people “leap” out of the video even from great distance. As a result, these cameras are perfect for search and rescue operations and over the years have been responsible for saving many lives.”

Thermal Infrared cameras like the Photon 320 and 640 used to be large, cooled units that required a huge amount of power to operate. Now, camera technology has advanced to the point that we can install and deploy a FLIR camera on a small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) such as the Draganflyer X6.

The reviewers also noticed the build quality and design simplicity of the the unmanned aerial vehicle, commenting:

“When you remove the X-6 from the case you can immediately appreciate the simplicity of the design, making this a very robust and easy to maintain aircraft.”

The reviewers were very impressed with the bright OLED display screen built in to the transmitter. You can see the screen clearly, even in direct sunlight, ensuring that you don’t miss critical flight information due to glare.

All in all, the Draganflyer X6 got a great review. You can read the review by picking up a copy of the May/June 2009 issue of Rotory Magazine, available from Rotary Magazine’s Web Site and most hobby stores.

UVS Canada is a non profit organization representing public and private innovation in unmanned vehicle systems. They have featured an article about the Draganflyer X6 UAV in their E-Newsletter. The article is on pages 8 to 9, and covers the recent application of the Draganflyer X6 to OPP police applications. You can download the newsletter (in PDF format) and read the article.