From Makezine:
Sergei Lupashin has a PhD from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH), and is currently doing post-doctoral work with the University of Zurich’s Robotics and Perception Group.
Sergei came to the Drones & Aerial Robotics Conference (DARC) in New York City to demonstrate his fotokite, an autonomous quadcopter tethered on a small dog leash. He explains that by constraining the robot with the leash, he is able to simplify the dynamics it has to deal with. The robot is programmed to maintain a set angle, and effectively hovers at the end of the leash. A camera mounted on the robot provides an effect that is a cross between an airborne pet and a steady cam.
This was one of my favorite moments of the conference.
More details on Fotokite here. Sergei tells me it's a PX4-powered copter with custom code.
Comments
We can't discuss details of our technology here, sorry. Much of it is patent-pending. Fundamentals that were done as research, as indeed funded by the Swiss taxpayers, will be published in the coming months.
COA airframes in the USA have tail numbers. What you see for the future of commercial platforms is already happening in the UK. You have to have a platform that has been approved and the operator has to have a permission to fly which he has gained by doing the appropriate training. This has been in place since 2007.
What is exciting about this concept is yes its tethered so should not fly away. I would like to see a demonstration of what happens to it if you let go of the tether and regulators are very likely to be gentle with it or ignore it all together other than kite regs. It is after all only a posh kite. I am very very impressed with your work Sergei.
Thanks for posting Chris! There's another video of just the flight demo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzPJEO60LKk
If you'd like to hear more please get in touch via our website: http://www.fotokite.com.
-sergei
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysLiRg8Hqzg&feature=youtube_gda...
This is a truly significant demo.
The potential is enormous, it could make use of even smaller, lighter Hubsan style micro quad copters and could even include leash angle, yaw control and camera pointing in the retractable leash handle.
For that matter it could be powered from the handle and use a lighter Kevlar tether with ultrathin power and serial communication wire built in.
Although still not necessarily outside the jurisdiction of the FAA, the intrinsic safety resulting from the light weight, low power safety and immediate control would make it much easier to convince authorities that it was a safe device for the general public to use freely and even commercially.
Both tethers and extreme miniaturization might prove extremely important for the real world future significance of multicopters.
There are already a few military tethered ground powered multicopters, but they are fairly large and you would definitely not want one landing on your head.
With these, I am thinking 2 to 4 ounce all up weight maybe and enough surface area where terminal velocity is not too high.
In any case, definitely makes you think.
For example there is a place I hike semi-frequently where there is a point which hangs out about 12 from the cliffs edge. I have always imagined a shot of me standing out on the point looking over the dropoff. Unfortunately the only way to effectively get the shot would be aerial, or a pole with a camera. The aerial shot would be cooler. I want a quad which can be hauled in a back pack, PUT in place somewhere in the air (note, not actually hand placed in a spot, but so easily flown there, it feels as natural as say, setting a camera on a rock to get a certain angle) and have it shoot the shots I would like. Then, I tell it to come back to me, and it does. Stow and go.
Alright smart people. Let's do this. Haha.