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Drone Racing Poised To Go Mainstream

Posted by Soulskill on from the make-sure-they-wear-helmets dept.

New submitter Strepto writes: Using video cameras and special goggles or screens, First Person View has been a thing in the RC world for a while. In the last couple of years though, mini quadcopters have taken things to a whole new level, and the inevitable racing has begun to happen with these incredibly quick and agile little machines.

A recent event in Melbourne, Australia, was covered by various media including the ABC, Gizmag and Mashable. Our little media race (first and last place videos here) went down well, but there are still a number of regulatory barriers to jump in Australia and overseas. It's hard to judge public perception though. I was just wondering what the Slashdot crew thinks about this; does it look dangerous, irresponsible or just plain cool? What do you think the future holds?

60 of 98 comments (clear)

  1. Let's go to the next level by fustakrakich · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Drone dogfights... with projectiles and everything.

    --
    “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    1. Re: Let's go to the next level by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      If they can't shoot each other out of the sky, it's not worth watching. I want flying battlebots. Or a tiny realization of Crimson Skies.

    2. Re:Let's go to the next level by OrangeTide · · Score: 1

      Even a slight mid-air collision tends to knock both quads to the ground with significant damage. A dog fight might not be that interesting to watch.

      For RC airplanes we've been doing a few different kinds of dog fights for quite some time. My personal favorite is each plane carriers a streamer behind it, while the others use their propellers to cut the streamer. Longest streamer wins.

      --
      “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
    3. Re: Let's go to the next level by modi123 · · Score: 1

      Sounds like you want Fokkers and Spads game from the short story "Dogfight" by Michael Swanwick and William Gibson.. in Omni 07/1985 or 'Future On Fire'!

    4. Re:Let's go to the next level by NewtonsLaw · · Score: 1

      Even a slight mid-air collision tends to knock both quads to the ground with significant damage.

      BS. The 250-sized mini racing quads are tough -- EXTREMELY tough. They're designed to withstand enormous punishment and a mid-air collision is unlikely to produce any more than a broken prop or two -- I know, I race every weekend and the only bits I have to replace are propellers, despite a large number of crashes.

    5. Re:Let's go to the next level by Chris+Mattern · · Score: 1

      Model planes owners do this, though not with projectiles. You attach a streamer to the tail of each model/drone and the first one who can clip off the opponents with his prop wins.

  2. One racing tech at a time, please by rodrigoandrade · · Score: 1

    Let's get Formula E working right before we move to the next step, shall we?

    I'll start: get rid of Fan Boost.

    1. Re:One racing tech at a time, please by chispito · · Score: 1

      Let's get Formula E working right before we move to the next step, shall we?

      Good point. They seem too similar to be developing in tandem.

      --
      The Daddy casts sleep on the Baby. The Baby resists!
    2. Re:One racing tech at a time, please by OrangeTide · · Score: 1

      This year is the last season of American Idol, until that is replaced in our lives I don't see how we can possible consider developing Formula E or Drone Racing.

      --
      “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
  3. New? No by YrWrstNtmr · · Score: 4, Funny

    How is this any different than RC aircraft racing, which has been around forever?
    Oh, I know.....'drones'.

    1. Re:New? No by digsbo · · Score: 1

      You beat me to it. Also, the new "drones" are easier to fly than regular airplanes, and come as consumer or prosumer goods, instead of being stick built like in the old days.

      Also, "Get off my lawn!"

    2. Re:New? No by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Drones (a la quadcopters), FPV, 4 props ... its like exactly the same, but different!

    3. Re:New? No by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Much slower and less nitro-methane.

      So all in all worse.

    4. Re:New? No by Doitroygsbre · · Score: 2

      Well, I was reading a definition of Drone vs. RC Aircraft.

      It would seem that if this was a commercial activity (racing for money), then it could well be considered a drone.

      --
      There in no religion higher than truth.
    5. Re:New? No by CityZen · · Score: 4, Informative

      This is multirotor (quadcopter/tricopter) racing. Since the drones are very maneuverable, the courses tend to be in interesting environments, such as within forests, or inside large buildings with obstacles. Racing out in the open sky is usually much less interesting.

    6. Re:New? No by Strepto · · Score: 2

      FPV is the fairly new thing here. Being able to be on board for the race allows you to fly much more interesting tracks, around corners which you couldn't judge line of sight (or even see!). Also the mini quads are much more durable and agile than planes.

    7. Re:New? No by Randymarsh · · Score: 1

      I think the big thing is that drones are a lot easier to control. Previously in RC racing it would be racing a helicopter or plane where now we have stuff like the Gemini. Drones like this make RC racing more intuitive and the cameras/computers are getting a lot better in recent years so you can really feel like you're in the cockpit of these tiny things. To some extent it may be a fad, to others it might be here to stay. We won't know until maybe a year or two from now. I think it will depend on if everyone grabs one this christmas season.

  4. Hmmm ... by gstoddart · · Score: 4, Insightful

    does it look dangerous, irresponsible or just plain cool?

    I'm sorry, but since when are those mutually exclusive? ;-)

    --
    Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    1. Re:Hmmm ... by Strepto · · Score: 1

      Mate if you think the automation takes the skill out of it, I invite you to try :) It's 100% manual flying, just with a computer to translate stick movements into prop speeds. None of the good pilots I know use autolevel, auto-altitude or anything like that on these little things.

    2. Re:Hmmm ... by Drethon · · Score: 1

      I've got a low cost little quad copter that you can bring the auto leveling down on. You can do amazing things with auto leveling turned off but it really changes your concentration. With leveling on you are thinking about where to go next, with it off you have to think multiple move ahead to get everything into the right position and speeds.

    3. Re:Hmmm ... by Strepto · · Score: 1

      Yeah, I learned to fly with autolevel. It's easier especially if you come from a gaming background. People who've flown other RC helis and planes tend to prefer acro ("rate") mode, and it is a nicer way to fly; you don't feel you're fighting the sticks to move. Takes practice and getting used to though. It just clicked with me one day.

  5. Just what we need... by kuzb · · Score: 1

    ...another really terrible reality TV show.

    --
    BeauHD. Worst editor since kdawson.
  6. Turbo powered RC Jet @ 586 KpH by DigiShaman · · Score: 1

    Drone this https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

    --
    Life is not for the lazy.
  7. Why stop at drones? by HangingChad · · Score: 1

    Why not extend remote control to all kinds of racing, including full size cars? Or, better yet, autonomous vehicle racing.

    That might be what it takes to get it across how absurd auto racing is in the modern world. It's only a sport because of the spectacle of crashes. If robots are racing, there's no spectacle.

    --
    That's our life, the big wheel of shit. - The Fat Man, Blue Tango Salvage
    1. Re:Why stop at drones? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Nobody crashes in golf, and it's still considered a sport. This comment might be what it takes to get across how absurd that argument is.

  8. It might be fun for the RC pilot by Spy+Handler · · Score: 1

    but I can't see anyone getting interested as a spectator.

    Real air racing is still around, featuring WW2 fighters thundering through the skies at 400mph, and interest from the general public is nil. There's a niche audience of aviation buffs but that's about it.

    Drones are tiny compared to the majestic P-51s and Corsairs, and very twitchy, so it would be very difficult to keep a steady camera on them.

    It could still take off, just don't expect to see it on ESPN anytime soon (or ever).

    1. Re:It might be fun for the RC pilot by CityZen · · Score: 1

      Given that the racers all use FPV equipment, this could be even better. You just need to provide a way to broadcast all the FPV streams to everyone.

      Also note that FPV racers often race through forests and other interesting environments, so the chances for interesting crashes can be quite high.

    2. Re:It might be fun for the RC pilot by Spy+Handler · · Score: 1

      Also note that FPV racers often race through forests and other interesting environments, so the chances for interesting crashes can be quite high.

      Interesting point, I haven't thought of that. Maybe you could even build obstacle courses and windmills (like mini golf) that drones have to go through. That could be fun. Drones crashing is no big deal compared to a real airplanes crashing so they could add lots of stuff and fly very low.

      FPV technology still sucks though, it needs to improve. Those beautiful FPV videos you see on Youtube, that's NOT what the pilot sees. Those footages are from GoPro recording that the guy retrieved from the SD card afterwards. Real-time transmission quality is very poor, it's just barely enough for the pilot to make out the sky, ground, tree.

    3. Re:It might be fun for the RC pilot by Strepto · · Score: 1

      Well, it's a little bit better than that, but yeah, HD will make things take a huge leap. Currently the problem it cost and latency. But in 5 years when we're all running 3D digital channel hopping HD video it will be *amazing*. Regarding obstacles, people are using things called "air gates" which are basically just little hoops on the ground that the pilot has to fly through. This is just the tip of the iceberg though. Remember this is racing but in 3D. Airborne "obstacles" would be great.

  9. Prop shrouds by ThatsNotPudding · · Score: 2

    It still amazes me to see folks still operating (let alone being allowed to sell) drones without any shielding around the prop perimeters. Yes, yes; weight and efficiency, but I don't think the bystander damage would be nearly as great when *when* they fall out of the sky.

    1. Re:Prop shrouds by ScentCone · · Score: 4, Insightful

      It still amazes me to see folks still operating (let alone being allowed to sell) drones without any shielding around the prop perimeters. Yes, yes; weight and efficiency, but I don't think the bystander damage would be nearly as great when *when* they fall out of the sky.

      I agree. Safety should be paramount. That's why I only buy kitchen knives that have their sharp edges hidden behind a shield in case I drop one on somebody's foot. And more importantly, I'm glad that we've finally got a market where we can only purchase 2,000-pound manually-operated motor vehicles that ride on inflated rubber balloons as people operate them over wet or icy pavement ... but which we're no longer allowed to buy unless they are completely surrounded by huge foam cushions, and can't go more than 3mph. You know, to mitigate the damage when *when* somebody operating one happens to collide with another human being.

      Oh, right. Untold hundreds of thousands of multirotors being flown by amateurs and professionals alike (most without any prop guards), and no deaths. Compared to, say, hundreds of thousands of preventable medical deaths or traffic deaths.

      Some perspective, please.

      --
      Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
    2. Re:Prop shrouds by CityZen · · Score: 2

      First off, these races should be held on closed courses with spectators kept well out of the crafts' potential paths.

      Second, these are usually 250mm/10" class drones that are fairly small. Plastic props are usually required (no carbon fiber). Sure, they'd hurt if they hit you, but should do little damage (usually).

    3. Re:Prop shrouds by ScentCone · · Score: 1

      Right. Over the last several decades a handful of RC enthusiasts have suffered some pretty gruesome injuries. Not nearly as many, of course, as ... rock climbers, scuba divers, joggers, avid gardeners, or casual hockey players. So that definitely means prop guards, no question.

      --
      Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
    4. Re:Prop shrouds by OrangeTide · · Score: 1

      Prop shrouds have never been proven to be safe. Often the shroud is destroyed and goes flying out in all directions. Instead of two or three pieces of very light prop flipping through the air. The props (especially 6" and smaller) don't have a lot of mass and when they break they tend be less dangerous than a baseball or hockey puck.

      ps - I fly 250 size quads.

      --
      “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
    5. Re:Prop shrouds by OrangeTide · · Score: 1

      First off, these races should be held on closed courses with spectators kept well out of the crafts' potential paths.

      I would assume the vast majority of the market would watch the races on TV/online and may not even be physically present.

      I imagine I could really hurt someone if I crashed my 250 into their face. But if they had a plexiglass barrier or even a chainlink fence that seems unlikely.

      --
      “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
    6. Re:Prop shrouds by NewtonsLaw · · Score: 1

      The props used on these small racing craft are flexible plastic (carbon props actually generate less thrust, as I've proven in testing).

      I've hit myself a couple of times and the injuries didn't even require a band-aid.

    7. Re:Prop shrouds by NewtonsLaw · · Score: 1

      "I imagine I could really hurt someone if I crashed my 250 into their face"

      And every year people are injured and killed when playing or when as a spectator at dozens of different sports. Life without adrenaline is sleep!

    8. Re:Prop shrouds by OrangeTide · · Score: 1

      And that's why event operators pay liability insurance!

      You should only pay it if the cost of the premiums is lower than covering everyone in fool proof safety equipment, which is of course never the case.

      --
      “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
    9. Re:Prop shrouds by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Carbon props are also very unlikely to kill you (though a friend of mine needed stitches after flying his drone into himself due to a software glitch). The key here is that while sharp they do lack momentum. Actual deaths are the result of high speed, and weight (from model planes), or high momentum on the propellers (from large model helicopters). Though I imagine if you're really unlucky you could get hit in the neck or something with a carbon quad and that may end you.

  10. More irresponsible than full-size vehicular races? by Benmachine · · Score: 1

    Under what analysis could one claim racing "drones" is irresponsible relative to racing full size cars and aircraft? If a DJI Phantom 2 goes down in a crowd, it doesn't sever body parts and kill seven people.

  11. Link to the drones by StikyPad · · Score: 1

    Are these built from kits, from scratch, or are they factory models with upgrades? Where can we get them? Anyone have a link or more information?

    --
    https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere
    1. Re:Link to the drones by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      These quads are scratch built. There are a few kits out there, but generally people are mixing and matching their own components. HobbyKing.com has a decent kit (HobbyKing Spec FPV250 V2 Quad Copter ARF Combo Kit - Mini Sized FPV Multi-Rotor)
      That kit does not include the flight control board, the radio, or the camera/goggles. If you are interested in getting started with FPV then I highly recommend getting a Hubsan X4 h107d. It's pretty much the cheapest FPV on the market and is actually a pretty awesome product. I use one for practice when I'm not flying my 250 class racer.

    2. Re:Link to the drones by OrangeTide · · Score: 2

      I picked up a pre-made frame for 250 size, and bolted my own motors and stuff on it. It was a Saturday afternoon to put it together and get it running. But about 3 weeks waiting for all the different parts shipments to arrive. You can find very low-end bundles on ebay that have almost everything you need frame, motors, props, and flight controller. Get yourself a transmitter bundled with a receiver, a battery pack and charger. And you have enough to fly around a bit without FPV. Once you get that much working, you can start adding FPV gear to it. (I'd strongly recommend practicing without FPV first, even though FPV might seem more comfortable initially)

      Expect to spend around $250 for a very low-end setup sans FPV. Triple that if you spend money on higher quality parts. (a good frame won't break the first time you crash, that's the difference between my $25 frame and a $125 frame)

      --
      “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
    3. Re:Link to the drones by Strepto · · Score: 1

      These are indeed often scratch built, but kits are available. Look for the blackout mini-h quad. Also google the ImmersionRC Vortex - it's just been released as a "ready to fly" mini racing quad.

    4. Re:Link to the drones by NewtonsLaw · · Score: 1

      These videos show you how to build one of these craft and where to get the bits:
      Low-cost racing mini-quadcopter build

    5. Re:Link to the drones by CityZen · · Score: 1

      You should check out HobbyKing.com to see what kind of stuff is available (under "multirotors"). You can buy the parts at lots of places. I frequent Ebay to find deals, but there are many specialty online stores that sell this stuff.

      You should also visit rcgroups.com and read up (again under "multirotors") to see what the community is doing and find reviews and answers to questions.

      You can buy prebuilt, or you can buy parts and assemble. Figuring out what works with what can be a bit of a pain, since descriptions can be sparse. But most questions can be answered by searching rcgroups.com.

      If you really shop for bargains, you could put together an entire 250 FPV setup for about $250. That's for the craft, r/c transmitter, camera with transmitter, video receiver with display, and battery with charger. But $300 might be a more realistic starting budget.

    6. Re:Link to the drones by NewtonsLaw · · Score: 1

      HobbyKing have some fine products but when it comes to racing FPV quadcopters, they're not the best source of things like frames. They're still behind the eight-ball in that area.

  12. Step 1 by tc3driver · · Score: 1

    STOP CALLING THEM DRONES.

    Calling a multi-rotor radio controlled vehicle a drone is bad for the hobby. They are quad/hex/octo-rotors, they do not become a drone until they follow pre-programmed instructions, or make movements based on topography of the surrounding environment, with no input from human operators. It is like calling a radio controlled car, plane, or helicopter a drone.

    --
    42 69 6C 6C 20 47 61 74 65 73 20 69 73 20 61 20 77 68 6F 72 65 21
    1. Re:Step 1 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      So my refrigerator is a drone? It takes no input from me and follows and epicyclical orbit around the Sun in close range to my kitchen floor.

    2. Re:Step 1 by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      So my refrigerator is a drone?

      If it were a lot smarter than it probably is, it might be a robot, but it's certainly not a drone.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  13. Re:Won't catch on. by Scoth · · Score: 1

    A way around this might be to have "spectator goggles" that would allow people watching to flip among the racers. That might increase the appeal a bit. Or maybe a few TVs displaying the view. I expect that'd be somewhat more exciting than just watching them from the outside. I don't disagree though, it'll be a hard thing to gain a lot of spectators unless people start racing drones big enough to see well in stadiums or something. I've never been able to enjoy esports too much myself.

    +1 also to the dogfights. We've done some "wrestling" with drones here at the office that just sort of involve trying to knock them out of the sky either physically or using the downwash, and it's been interesting. Actual weapons would be cool.

  14. What Real Drone Racing Would Be... by Glasswire · · Score: 1

    Decades from now, they're going to laugh at any early 21st century definition of a drone that meant a remote controlled aircraft that was just smart enough to keep itself in the air without being directly controlled in real time. Real drones get assigned a task and execute it (flying there is a self-managed task).
    So.... drone racing would be a bunch automous units that know when to show up at an invisible, but coordinated starting line at a certain time then lunge into a defined course at scheduled race start trying to get to the finish line first after however many laps or course segments were defined. They'll probably want to avoid contact with other racing drones (unless their AI gets good enough to do sneaky things like bumping or interfering with each others airflow) and any obstacles that are part of the race course.
    And of course they'll have have 3d surround cameras so media can switch instantly to the view from any racer.
    I'd watch it.

  15. Re:Won't catch on. by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

    Or maybe a few TVs displaying the view

    Yep, that's all it takes. Two displays for every competitor, one for their view and one for stats so that people can see who's winning; put their place in the race real big in the middle, put some kind of groovy g-force display underneath it (opportunity for some fun graphics here) and put other info around the edges... name, speed, battery charge, stick inputs, whatever.

    --
    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  16. Re:Like NASCAR by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    There are lots of crashes. Have you never watched it before? Maybe you should inform yourself before farting through your mouth.

  17. FPV racing club at Argonay by orogorhotmail.com · · Score: 1

    Imho much more interesting fpv races
    They are in a closed part of the forest and there are landmarks to not get lost
    Everyone races at the same time and drones have leds on the back to see each others (starwars effect)

    Theses ones show an actual race:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

    In french : it show some background info and preparations, in 3/4th of the video you can see what the actual fpv look for the pilot (not the recorded hd video)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

  18. Re:Won't catch on. by KGIII · · Score: 1

    I will watch it when it is something like Predators with Hellfire Missiles. Note: This should be in video and out in the middle of nowhere - not in a stadium, though that would add some more amusement for spectators at home. Also we should be allowed to bet on it.

    --
    "So long and thanks for all the fish."
  19. drone racing by turkeydance · · Score: 1

    F1.

  20. Some more quick links for those who are interested by Strepto · · Score: 1

    Aussie racing leagues: http://qarop.com/ http://fpvracing.tv/ Suppliers of gear: http://warpquad.com/ (au) http://nextfpv.com/ (au) http://boltrc.com/ (au) http://getfpv.com/ (us) http://readymaderc.com/ (us)

  21. Re:Won't catch on. by NewtonsLaw · · Score: 1

    Absolutely correct. We always have a few spare pairs of goggles and/or an LCD monitor for spectators to use and that's what makes the difference.

    Spectators can become a passenger on any of the craft in a race, simply by changing the receiver channel on their goggles or screen. Whenever people try out the goggles or screens they're blown away and have nothing but a long list of superlatives streaming from their mouths.

    Imagine streaming this stuff live over the Net from each of the craft being raced and allowing viewers (from anywhere in the world) to switch back and forth between craft. That's one thing F1 racing doesn't offer and yet F1 is a very popular spectator sport with far fewer crashes and much less adrenaline on the part of spectators.

  22. Acid Rain by WhipITGoodER · · Score: 1

    Love to watch the vids of these races - like this Star Wars one (www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwL0t5kPf6E). The only problem I fear is that some drunk idiot will crash one onto the White House lawn and bring down regulatory rain. Or worse yet, that someone might crash a full size version onto the Capitol lawn or something.