UAVS INVESTIGATE FIRES

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Utilizing UAVs for firefighting is well-known.  This video demonstrates unmanned systems being used for fire investigations, a completely different application. The ease of determining the causes of fires is directly related to the view the investigators have of the burned trees.  The perspective provided by high-definition cameras on small UAVs is close to ideal.  I doubt that many developers could have predicted this particular use for unmanned systems.  As unmanned systems diffuse into the civilian/commercial sector, we can expect more unexpected applications.

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Not so rugged test videos

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Videos of computers being smashed have a certain visceral appeal. Even though computers make our life easier, all of us have experienced an impulse to chuck one through a window.

While not quite as violent as a window toss, this video  demonstrates a test that seems eerily familiar to a drop test of MIL-STD 810.

Read more

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AMREL on Wired.com

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Wired has a video featuring MESA’s amazing ACER UGV as well as its autonomy programming, which was created by the folks at 5D.  At the 5 minute, 20 second mark of the video, you can see the AMREL laptop that’s serves as ACER’s Operator Control Unit.  Check out Exclusive Video: Robot Mini-Tank Battles Homemade Bombs

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Unmanned Vehicle Abuse

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With tongue firmly placed in cheek, Military’s & Aerospace Electronics Report’s John Keller expresses his concern about the latest social ill. After viewing the numerous displays of  rugged, ”throwable” robots at the recent AUVSI gathering, he worries about Unmanned Vehicle Abuse. Video below.

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Micro UAVs do more than look cool

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Some of the big attractions at last month’s AUVSI North American conference were micro-UAVs.  The Samurai UAV was especially impressive, sporting an unusual asymmetric design.  You may have seen images of this amazing little device, but do yourself a favor and check out the video below of Engineering TV’s interview with Bill Borgia, Director of the Intelligent Robotics Laboratory at Lockheed Martin. Read more

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FedMil.com’s ROCKY DB6 Video

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Watch Ted Ventresca of www.fedmil.com interview Ron McMahan, VP Engineering Solutions at AMREL, about the ROCKY DB6, the world’s smallest rugged handheld that runs Windows 7/Linux.

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Libyan system integration video

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An IEEE Spectrum article features an Al Jazeera video (see below) about Libyan rebels making their own weapons.  The rebels transform a child’s toy into a weaponized UGV, prompting IEEE to conclude that “Anyone can (on principle, at least) build a robot, and given the need or the motivation, anyone can put a gun on one…”

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Flexpedient Interoperable Solutions Video

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Flexpedient® Technology enables one computer to run a variety of applications, including robotics and biometrics.  This field-expedient system allows developers to protect proprietary technology while deploying it in an interoperable solution.  To see just how simple it is, watch this video.

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Hummingbird UAV Video

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Check out this amazing video of a hummingbird UAV from AeroVironment Inc.

This speedy, little UAV illustrates several significant trends in unmanned systems: Read more

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Peter Singer talks about the future of robotic warfare

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We found a very interesting video from TED.com on the future of robotic warfare and we thought you might enjoy it!

How are robots changing war?

Peter Singer talks about how robots are changing how we fight wars and how robots will change the way we fight war in the future. How does using robots in war change public perception of war?

With thousands of robots already in the air and on ground of warzones, what part do they currently play in war and how will they change how we think and fight wars in the future?

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