I told you a little about my personal drone in January. Here is the CES drone update. I will start with parrot.com who made my drone, the AR Drone 2.0. They had four drones flying together in a pattern that was incredible. Right after that show, the new stuff came out. The new “mini drones” premiered at only three inches square. They had a presentation with five of them flying around all by themselves. These new drones have a piloting mode for beginners and use the Bluetooth smart technology. They look small and have a “mean” look to them. The new mini drones will come with a training wheel so they can also roll around on the ground.

Another new drone product is called “Jumping Sum.” It looks kind of like a small cannon. It has two wheels and a small tail and can turn ninety degrees. It will use intuitive control through a smart phone or tablet and has an embedded camera and foldable wheels. But wait, there is more! This robotic toy can jump 2.5 feet high and always land on its wheels. There is no price or details yet on these new products.

The next new drone is the eBee from sensefly.com. It is a professional mapping tool. The eBee is an easy-to-use, fully autonomous mini-drone. It comes with a carrying case, planning and control software, and professional mapping software. This drone weighs in at 1.5 lbs. and has autopilot, artificial intelligence, ground sensing and linear landing. With a wingspan of 96 centimeters and a 45 minute flight time, it can cover a 10 kilometer area in its flight. The eBee drone can gather the information to create 2D maps and 3D models with centimeter accuracy. Some of its uses include agriculture, disaster management, surveying, animal observation, landfill survey, forestry conservation, environmental and mining. The price tag for this drone is about $25,000.

There were a few more new drones at CES but I have run out of space in this article. I will address those in a future article. In the meantime, I might create a small drone that will track desert tortoise movements. What will you make your drone do?

To learn more about this and other Tech Tip articles, contact Brad at (702) 294-1392 or applebyarts.com.