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Airborne Video With an R/C helicopter

Posted by Hemos on from the you-can-see-the-world dept.

PerryResearch writes "MacGyver would be jealous - here are the plans for a complete 2.4 ghz wireless video transmission system, mounted on a Mikado Logo 20 R/C helicopter, with realtime video overlay showing wireless signal strength, GPS coordinates, and support for videoglasses. Make sure you check out some of their in-flight videos."

44 of 162 comments (clear)

  1. Wow. Just what I've always wanted. by qewl · · Score: 3, Funny

    Now I can spy on the chick next door.. I just have to hope she doesn't see a mini helicopter with a camera hanging off of it flying outside her bedroom window!

    --

    (\_/)
    (O.o) This is Bunny. (> <)
  2. hah! by Jedi+Alec · · Score: 5, Funny

    MacGyver would be jealous

    Only if they built it from some branches, a trashcan that was lying around somewhere and an old carburator from a dead moped.
    --

    People replying to my sig annoy me. That's why I change it all the time.
    1. Re:hah! by www.microsoft.com · · Score: 5, Funny

      [From Primal Void Engineer, via Sebastian's Humor Group]

      MacGyver Cookie Recipe

      Well, folks, here it is. I didn't have time to cook this stuff myself for you the way Paul Newman does, so I just wrote up this cookbook to give you all the recipes, tried and true just like I make'em in my own kitchen at home.

      CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES:

      Frequent flier coupons
      One medium paperclip (not plastic coated)
      One movie ticket stub
      Now remember that chocolate-chip cookies are supposed to be a nice relaxing kind of food, so the first thing you'll want to do to make them is to go somewhere where you can kick back and relax. Ecuador is good, so use your frequent-flier coupons to pick up a round-trip ticket there. The stewardess will hand you a couple of bags of peanuts, but don't eat them, since we're going to need those for the cookies.

      You'll find yourself sitting next to an attractive woman who teaches archaeology at Cornell; she'll explain that she's going to Ecuador to try to find her father--a biochemist by trade, but he dabbles in archaeology as a hobby--who went down there to find the lost pyramid of Sesquichachloride, well known in archaeological circles as the fabled storehouse of the god Valhequesal who, according to myth, rode down from the skies on a pillar of fire bringing with him a wealth of powerful but somewhat failure-prone magical devices that, according to the priests of the day, were pretty darn all-around nifty.

      Now her father, after examining several stone tablets depicting the god Valhequesal, discovered that he is always shown wearing a curious bracelet on his left wrist that looks surprisingly like a digital watch, leading him to the conclusion that Valhequesal did actually exist, but he was really an advanced space traveller with comparatively poor taste in accessories, and that the lost pyramid of Sesquichachloride must contain his spacecraft and untold other devices from his world. About this time, the stewardess will bring by the main meal and you'll want to be sure to save the little packets of salt and butter that come with your meal--the woman next to you will be too worried about her father to eat and so you'll want to take her packet of butter and go ahead and keep her crackers too.

      When you get off the plane in Ecuador, just go out to the front of the airport and try to locate a cab. There won't be any, for some reason, so you'll go inside to inquire about where transportation might be found and some guy will stumble against you and when you look at him, you'll notice that he's been stabbed in the left side and is bleeding pretty profusely. With a weakly shaking hand, he'll thrust the key to a safety deposit box into your hand, gasp something about "be careful of the poison ivy" and expire messily on the floor of the terminal. You'll decide that maybe waiting for a cab is the better part of valor and head back outside--on the way, though, be sure to stop at the concession stand and ask for a half-pound of chocolate chips. The clerk will measure the appropriate amount and put it in a bag for you. Be sure your movie ticket stub is visible in the handful of change you pull from your pocket to pay her. She'll reach down under the counter and then surreptitiously drop a roll of microfilm into your bag along with the chocolate chips, then hand you the bag, saying, "On the house."

      At this point, speed is of the essence--get back outside the concourse before a swarthy man with a mustache strides up to the snack shop holding a movie ticket stub. Moments later he and the clerk will run out the door looking for you, just as the woman who sat next to you on the plane drives up in her rental car and offers you a lift. Cheerfully accept, and hop in before the man with the mustache disconnects the safety on his gun. If all goes well, you'll both be out of the parking lot and on your way before he has time to squeeze off more than one shot--and he'll miss on the first one anyway and the woman driving the car will think it was just another vehicle b

  3. Should be great for filming sporting events by Wiktor+Kochanowski · · Score: 5, Interesting

    For example, cross country bicycle racing. As a sport - it's fantastic to do it, but extremely boring to watch, because the camera cannot follow riders as it does in road racing. A heli-mounted camera is what this sport is waiting for.

    1. Re:Should be great for filming sporting events by Tall+Rob+Mc · · Score: 4, Interesting

      If you watched the Tour De France, they already use helicopters and video cameras to cover the race. Race observers know not to watch the road, but rather the skies, to anticipate the arrival of the pack. I'm not sure how many RC helicopters would have the 200km range necessary to film an entire stage like a full-size helicopter with a cameraman.

    2. Re:Should be great for filming sporting events by Wiktor+Kochanowski · · Score: 5, Informative

      Yeah, the problem with standard-sized, manned helicopters in XC racing is that

      * they are too big to fit between terrain features, to come close to the riders, and to film something else than their backs from above

      * they are too expensive - even in road racing only the biggest races can afford them.

      But given a cheap RC that can fit between trees and come really close to the racers to make a side shot, follow the racers on hard technical uphills and downhills, and XC racing could look, in TV, way more interesting than it is now.

    3. Re:Should be great for filming sporting events by Samedi1971 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The scale on this is way too small for anything beyond line of sight. For one thing, you have to have control over the heli (hobbyist RC transmitters like the ones used have limited range), and more importantly, 2.4 ghz video cameras like the ones used in the article have much shorter range, even with a clear line of sight. The cameras are also nowhere near broadcast quality.

    4. Re:Should be great for filming sporting events by henley · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Err... See, the thing about model helicopters is that they're a complete pig to fly. I think the mean-time-before-superglue for learner pilots is about 30 seconds of flight time. It's inherent in the technology: they're very mechanically complex and dynamically unstable.

      So having said all that, do you think it would be a good idea to have a whirling mass of blades teetering close to anything you think as valuable? Such as cyclist's heads, for example?

      --

      --
      I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy
    5. Re:Should be great for filming sporting events by dallask · · Score: 2, Informative

      I can host...

      --
      The Code Ninja is swift with his tool, precise in his delivery, and deadly accurate in his execution.
    6. Re:Should be great for filming sporting events by CurlyG · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Well, the people developing Autopilot seem to think it's feasible to automate RC heli flight, which would surely make a compelling package - when combined with an onboard camera - for producers of TV sports of all kinds.

      It would have minimal labour costs, and be cheap enough in comparison to hiring a chopper for an hour or two that you could afford to have a few flying even if you lost on now and again...

      --
      You know they call 'em fingers but I've never seen 'em fing. Oh, there they go.
  4. Application in Sporting Events or Biohazzard? by FauxReal · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Lets just hope it doesn't block that winning touchdown pass at the superbowl. Seriously though.. how about outdoor sporting events in rugged terrain. Or maybe to survey the damage at a post nuclear accident or some kind of toxic gas filled area. Then again you could allways fit it with a laser and paint targets for cruise missiles.

    --
    Deltron 3030 - Virus (music video)
    1. Re:Application in Sporting Events or Biohazzard? by palad1 · · Score: 3, Funny
      Or maybe to survey the damage at a post nuclear accident or some kind of toxic gas filled area. Then again you could allways fit it with a laser and paint targets for cruise missiles.

      Are you suggesting we should come up with a device that could allow us to fire a cruise missile on a target that survived a friggin' nuclear accident??? Talk about overkill!

      ...Unless your target is Prof. Xavier's School For The Gifted.

    2. Re:Application in Sporting Events or Biohazzard? by Blue+Stone · · Score: 2, Interesting
      How about you use one so you and your mates can watch a sporting event without paying? I wonder how much of a fuss this could cause?

      Heh.

      --
      Corporation, n. An ingenious device for obtaining individual profit without individual responsibility. - Ambrose Bierce
  5. Could this be a possbile 3G killer app? by neglige · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Just imagine: build a helicopter with a camera and equip it with a 3G mobile phone.

    Then you can dial in to the helicopter and control it with another phone in your hand while seeing the video streamed live to your device. This could, of course, already work with GPRS or HSCSD, but with 3G its much more l33t.

    And you do not want to receive a call from your mom, which would interrupt your current transmission :/

    --
    My cats ate my karma. They also wrote this comment.
  6. Nice going, guys. by mu_wtfo · · Score: 5, Funny

    We've Slashdotted Estonia!!

    --
    If all the world's a stage, anyone who says they want better lighting spends far too much time in a dark theatre.
  7. Re:Hum... by SoupIsGoodFood_42 · · Score: 2, Funny

    You'll need a pretty f'n big RC heli to hold a decent size morter plus all the other camera gear etc. It would probably just be easier to walk up and fire it.

  8. Re:Hum... by perly-king-69 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Trrsts don't tend to need that sort of accuracy.

    A van packed with explosives parked against a building usually does the trick.

    --

    --
    This sig is inoffensive.

  9. Old news or not, it'll get slashdotted. by tugrul · · Score: 5, Informative

    Mirror in progress of those videos...

    This might give me the final push in ordering a R/C heli. Any advice on starter models and how steep the learning curve is?

    *goes back to playing the R/C heli mission in GTA Vice City*

    1. Re:Old news or not, it'll get slashdotted. by JiffyJeff · · Score: 5, Informative

      Any advice on starter models and how steep the learning curve is?

      Two Part Question: 1) Starter Models don't exist -- You can buy a small model built for a .30 engine for the least amount of money, but it in no way equates to an "easier to fly" machine. In fact, the larger engined machines are easier to fly, but when you crash them it costs more to repair.

      2) The Learning Curve is very steep. If you buy an R/C Heli, count on spending another $200 or $300 simulator. The simulator will allow you to connect your radio transmitter to your computer with a cable that allows you to use your own radio to control the on-screen heli.

      More Info: For every minute I've ever flown on an RC Heli, I've spent at least 5 fixing/repairing it on the ground. And for every hour flown, I've spent probably 10 on the simulator... Before I got into the hobby, I was told that flying one of these beasts was like "balancing a steel ball bearing on a convex glass lense" which is pretty damn hard.

    2. Re:Old news or not, it'll get slashdotted. by hoofie · · Score: 3, Interesting

      No its not crap - have you ever flown one ? At least have the bottle to say it winout being an anonymous coward.
      The Piccolo is indoors only or else on a day with zero breeze.

      The main posters comments are spot on - I used to fly .30 rc helis for a while and they are very hard to fly - even with gyroscope stabilisation and computerised transmitters.

      The best advice is don't buy one unless you are serious about learning to fly one - its expensive and you will bend it on numerous occasions, although everything is repairable.

      Also, safety first - even a little .30 copter has a lot of inertia in its rotor blades at full power and could cause some serious damage to someone.

      Having said all this, when you eventually manage to get it into a stable hover for as long as you want, its a real feeling of accomplishment.

    3. Re:Old news or not, it'll get slashdotted. by Chazmati · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Do you think it would be easier to fly if you had real-time video feedback from the helicopter's point of view? Maybe not as good as balance feedback from your inner ear, but to the uninitiated (me) it seems like the hard part of flying an R/C heli would be visually picking up the subtle changes in orientation and correcting through the controller.

  10. Re:If only . . . by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    you know, real helicopters do actually exist, you can even pay to take a ride in one - imagine that eh ?

  11. Re:Hum... by joFFeman · · Score: 5, Insightful

    naturally someone had to bring 'this' up. the fact is there's no way to be totally safeguarded from an attack by someone who has issues with your country. the best thing for a government to do is try to refrain from making enemies, and the best idea for a private citizen is to get on with your life and go about your business without constant worry. widespread paranoia in the public doesn't do anyone any good, save for those manufacturing gas masks, bomb shelters, or war.

    --
    "Life is great; without it, you'd be dead." -Harmony Korine
  12. Another application by fven · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If the camera fitted was an infrared camera, this would be great to help find lost hikers/ skiiers.

    This could also be adapted for something like rogaining - every team carries some form of tag. Helicopter flies around competition area giving real-time tracking of competitors and also some cool video.

    1. Re:Another application by clickety6 · · Score: 2, Funny
      This could also be adapted for something like rogaining...


      Using it to look at the tops of guys heads to see who is developing a bald spot?!?

      --
      ----------------------------------- My Other Sig Is Hilarious -----------------------------------
  13. One day... by Ascender · · Score: 2, Funny

    Someone will have a webserver running in a hovering helicopter... which we can slashdot, yay! Brings new meaning to the phrase "crashing the server".
    It's pretty impressive that the server's not crashed yet (even though it's not on the actual helicopter), seeing as it's offering avi's on slashdot.

  14. Whatever happened to ... by Alaska+Jack · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Video eyeglasses?

    Seeing this guy wearing his clunky "Video I-glasses" made me wonder why these never caught on.* Three or four years ago I tried on a pair of television eyeglasses, and was sure that within a few years, the technology would improve to the point where these things would become practical, ubiquitous and cheap replacements for computer monitors. So why the total lack of demand? * And no, I don't mean as fashion accessories. Smartass.
    1. Re:Whatever happened to ... by aug24 · · Score: 2, Interesting
      Sony made some things called GlassTrons, which, according to their website, were excellent.

      I actually tried to buy some for use with my laptop while commuting, but all the Sony outlets are franchises and couldn't afford to lay out the cash to Sony to buy (very expensive) unproven stock. So I couldn't find anywhere to actually try them. So I never got a pair.

      In other words, they were successfully manufactured, but badly marketted, and now Sony and others don't seem to think there is a market. Arse.

      Anyway, how come you got modded interesting instead of off-topic?

      J.

      --
      You're only jealous cos the little penguins are talking to me.
  15. The first and only X10 costumer! by Dark+Lord+Seth · · Score: 2, Funny
    Beside the CONRAD equipment, also the well-known US XCam/XCam2 system (from X10) is available in Europe from EDENTRONICS. Both options are still low-power small-range systems.

    Wow, someone bought an X10 camera! I think I'd prolly refuse to buy an X10 camera out of principle or at least sue X10 afterwards for failure of said cameras to reveal scantly clad women all over the place!

    --
    Hate me!
  16. OR just get it all in one by ItsIllak · · Score: 3, Informative

    Buy one of these:

    http://www.rctoys.com/draganflyer3.php

  17. Beware: This is a hoax ! by OMG · · Score: 2, Funny

    From the viedo page:
    "All videos are made at the field back of my house in Bielefeld, Germany."

    This is clearly a hoax. Everybody knows that Bielefeld does not exist. But THEY want to make us believe that it does exist.

    Obviously they choose to use advanced tactics to make us believe it exists. But THEY can't fool me ;-P

  18. other examples by jsailor · · Score: 2, Interesting

    This has been done for some time with RC planes. Examples are here
    [kitesplus.com], here
    [k8xg.com], and here
    [zagicam.com].

  19. Been done. by Phreakiture · · Score: 2, Interesting

    At the 2003 Rochester Hamfest, some folks were demonstrating a lower-tech, longer-range, lower-cost concept. They were using the 220MHz band to control a blimp (which has a lower energy cost than a chopper, and is also less noisy), and the 440MHz band to send back NTSC video. This setup has been used in previous years, also.

    Of course, it required a license, but the license is easy to get these days, and every geek should have one, because it also makes higher-powered 802.11 legal.

    --
    www.wavefront-av.com
  20. Why is it so friking hard to fly these things by Sodade · · Score: 2, Interesting

    You'd think that it would be possible to abstract the control scheme and build a controller that was more natural. That RC mission in Vice City sucked 'cause it was way to hard to grok the controls.

  21. Definitely a biohazard by sakusha · · Score: 2, Interesting

    RC Copters are popular with Japanese farmers, they use them to spray pesticides on a small scale. Aum Shinrikyo used this idea, they bought 3 mini copters with the intention of spraying botulism toxin over Tokyo. But they crashed all 3 copters while learning how to fly them. End of plan.
    On a related note, here's a story from yesterday's Mainichi Daily News, "Farmer's radio-controlled chopper cuts off his leg"

    http://mdn.mainichi.co.jp/news/archive/200307/30 /2 0030730p2a00m0dm024000c.html

  22. UAV by punish3r · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I'm suprised no one else has mentioned this yet. If you are 'all-thumbs' and can't learn how to fly a R/C chopper, why not buy/build a system that flies itself based on GPS waypoints. This bad boy has been on my "When I Win Powerball" list for about 3 months now: http://www.nationalinfrared.com/x20/shop/pshow.php ?SKU=UAV-E2&id_category=17 3 Hour flight time... TI camera... Even has a target tracking mode! And it literally flies itself. The only shortcoming is that you lose the stationary flight capibility of a chopper. But really, all this does is preclude you from getting arrested for being a Peeping Tom. Check out the movies, they do an impressive job of showing the capibilities of the system.

  23. How about a Sony Clie on an RC Airplane? by jbarr · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Yup...Someone strapped a Sony Clie to the bottom of an RC plain to film the "experience"! Check it out here

    --
    My mom always said, "Jim, you're 1 in a million." Given the current population, there are 7000 of me. God help us all!
  24. my own rig by AcesAreWld · · Score: 5, Informative

    Hey guys, I have been flying R/C for a long time. About 3 years ago I built a little, cheap, but highly functional mount for my .30 sized helicopter. Since then I started a company and purchased a 6.5 foot 23 lb helicopter that carries a Canon GL1 high quality video camera, 2.4 Ghz Video Downlink, Canon Powershop S400 Elph for stills, and more. My website is VERY OLD and outdated, but check out some of the stuff I have done here:

    http://www.rchelicam.com

    Most pics on the site are from the old demo .30 rig, the new rig is featured (for now) here:
    http://www.rchelicam.com/gasser/
    What do ya think?

    --Geoff
    "Aces Are Wild"
    http://www.rchelicam.com

  25. Aerial Robotics by pergamon · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Sorry, but that really isn't impressive at all compared to the Aerial Robotics Competition. They fly themselves!

  26. Modern day control systems.... by splerdu · · Score: 2, Insightful

    ...will be the solution. The aerospace industry has so many unstable designs now that would otherwise be unable to fly without computers, I can't see why the same school of thought shouldn't be applied to helicopters. If we can have small handhelds packing 300+MHz processors, surely we can have a similarly powerful system in an R/C chopper.

  27. How about this then, you won't need to pilot this by mijok · · Score: 2, Informative

    http://autopilot.sourceforge.net/ It seems very interesting and probably much nicer to use (once it's finsihed) since you get an autopilot :)

    --
    Karma. Moderation. Is my .sig good now?
  28. x10 2.4G very directional by jeepliberty · · Score: 2, Informative
    I bought an X10 camera kit. Advertized as a home surveillance system, it consisted of 3 2.4G wireless cameras and a base receiver connected to a PC. What a waste!

    It was impossible to align the PC antenna to receive a clean signal from more than a single camera. The signal degrades quickly with distance.

    The video picture reminded me of UHF TV before cable (rabbit ears). Maybe I should have tried a coat hanger or aluminum foil on the antennae?

  29. robot chppers by savuporo · · Score: 2, Interesting

    http://www-2.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs/project/chopper/www /heli_project.html
    Carnegie Mellon's autonomous helicopter model. AFAIC, flew with on-board laser mapping system. Of course, development time and budget are of another league, compared to my fellow countryman Risto here. Restecp for such achievements.
    Funny that our local news outlets, including ./ wannabe minut.ee have never mentioned it

    --
    http://validator.w3.org/check?uri=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.slashdot.org Errors found while checking this document as HTML5!
  30. RC helis are not toys!!! by helipilot · · Score: 2, Informative

    Guys, it's just not as easy as you think. I have been flying rc helis for 2 years now. With many hours of simulator time and actual flying time I have finally gotten to the point of doing some mild aerobatics like loops and rolls. No one will just pick up a transmitter and fly one of these on the first try - no one. I have progressed from a .30 size to a .60 size and have great respect for them. It will cost you many dollars to get truely involved in this hobby. From the heli, radio, gyro, engine, and not to mention ground support equipment you are going to have easily over $1000 invested in just a .30 size machine. Are helis unstable - yes, to a certain point, but no where near what they were a few decades ago. Can you build and fly one without some expert help - possibly, but you will still have a huge learning curve this way and you better have a deep checking account for replacement parts. Also, if you are going to try it by yourself, which I don't recommend, please do it in a VERY wide open area with no one around. Small electrics like the Piccolo are not the way to start - they are far more difficult to control than a nitro powered machine. One of the best beginner helis is the Raptor 30 from Thunder Tiger (please note - there really isn't a "trainer" heli, they are all diffcult to fly. What make a good "trainer" is one with the control sensitivities turned down, cheap replacement parts, and a good training gear). If you want to see what some of these cost visit: www.heliproz.com They have all the kits, radios, etc. need to get started and to advance in this hobby.