The group, led by Professor Missy Cummings, spent six weeks working on the software before their first flight test. The commercially-available flying robot used for the test is robust enough to carry a camera and collision avoidance systems should it ever become commercially available. The iPhone app they developed sends GPS coordinates to the craft, which then, in turn, can send photos and video back to the iPhone. Cummings said, “We had the idea in June. In six weeks, we went from the idea to a real flight test using MIT’s indoor robot range.” The total cost was $5000 for a new, commercially available, quad-rotor robot and the cost of iPhones for her students. Professor Cummings’ has an altogether less sinister use for the app than a military one — “Being able to launch one out of the window and fly it down to the Starbucks, to tell me how many people are in line, so I know when to get coffee.” Guess the Apple iPhone really CAN do just about anything!
iPhone In Control — Of A Drone
A team of 30 aeronautics students at MIT have written an app that allows users to control airborne drones via the iPhone’s accelerometer — simply turning the handheld device controls the drone.
The group, led by Professor Missy Cummings, spent six weeks working on the software before their first flight test. The commercially-available flying robot used for the test is robust enough to carry a camera and collision avoidance systems should it ever become commercially available. The iPhone app they developed sends GPS coordinates to the craft, which then, in turn, can send photos and video back to the iPhone. Cummings said, “We had the idea in June. In six weeks, we went from the idea to a real flight test using MIT’s indoor robot range.” The total cost was $5000 for a new, commercially available, quad-rotor robot and the cost of iPhones for her students. Professor Cummings’ has an altogether less sinister use for the app than a military one — “Being able to launch one out of the window and fly it down to the Starbucks, to tell me how many people are in line, so I know when to get coffee.” Guess the Apple iPhone really CAN do just about anything!
The group, led by Professor Missy Cummings, spent six weeks working on the software before their first flight test. The commercially-available flying robot used for the test is robust enough to carry a camera and collision avoidance systems should it ever become commercially available. The iPhone app they developed sends GPS coordinates to the craft, which then, in turn, can send photos and video back to the iPhone. Cummings said, “We had the idea in June. In six weeks, we went from the idea to a real flight test using MIT’s indoor robot range.” The total cost was $5000 for a new, commercially available, quad-rotor robot and the cost of iPhones for her students. Professor Cummings’ has an altogether less sinister use for the app than a military one — “Being able to launch one out of the window and fly it down to the Starbucks, to tell me how many people are in line, so I know when to get coffee.” Guess the Apple iPhone really CAN do just about anything!
