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A new approach uses aerial imaging to generate 3D models of cities and regions with advanced precision, enabling urban planners to incorporate full-scale designs of all types of architectural and urban structures. — Tech Xplore
Tech start-up Uzufly operates out of the Le Garage space located inside the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL)’s expanding Innovation Park. "The company's 3D models incorporate a wide range of urban-planning data and can accommodate any type of architectural design at full scale,"... View full entry
An international team of researchers from Imperial College London and the Swiss Federal Laboratories of Materials Science and Technology have developed autonomous, bee-inspired 3D-printing drones. They would work in fleets, cooperatively building and repairing structures while flying. The... View full entry
According to South Korean car manufacturer, Hyundai, flying cars will exist in cities around the world by the end of this decade. At the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) conference, a trade association for the United Kingdom motor industry, Michael Cole, the president and chief... View full entry
Earlier this week, U.S. autonomous drone manufacturer, Skydio, launched Skydio 3D Scan, an adaptive scanning software that allows its drones to generate incredibly detailed 3D models of real-world settings with a very high degree of autonomy. 3D Scan is equipped with advanced artificial... View full entry
[...] a team of Canadian science and engineering graduates is pitching a dream to plant a billion trees by 2028 using drones. The project is dubbed Flash Forest and combines the use of drones with specially-designed pods and an accelerated seed germination process. According to Flash Forest, its technology can plant trees 10 times faster than a single worker and at a cost that is 80 percent cheaper than traditional tree planting methods. — New Atlas
On their Kickstarter page, the team behind the Toronto-based Flash Forest project explains what happens before and after heavy-lift drones pneumatically fire their custom-designed seed pods into the ground: "Before we plant our pods, we pre-germinate the seeds inside using our own 'secret sauce.'... View full entry
Architect Carlo Ratti's design studio has utilized drone technology to produce a crowdsourced work of art in Turin, Italy. Measuring in at 46 x 39 feet, the project was developed as part of UFO-Urban Flying Opera, a participatory technology and art project funded by Compagnia di San Paolo. Created... View full entry
Salesforce Tower, San Francisco’s tallest building, can be seen for miles around the Bay Area.
But to inspect the building’s exterior for potential damage, owner Boston Properties needed to get close. So it enlisted a drone.
At 1,070 feet, the tower is a major example of the growing use of drones for building and construction inspections.
— San Francisco Chronicle
The SF Chronicle writes about the increasing deployment of flying high-tech equipment to cut down on the inspection time (and cost) on very large buildings, such as Salesforce Tower: "The small aircraft, which now have high definition cameras, are cheaper, faster and safer than traditional human... View full entry
The most densely populated rural area in the world, East Africa's Lake Victoria basin is home to 35 million people. Many in hard-to-reach, rural locations, these communities often lack necessary infrastructure, separating them from vital services as well as from markets where they can sell their... View full entry
Southern England has been particularly parched, enjoying the driest June on record, but the hot weather has lead to an array of unlikely discoveries across the British Isles. Outlines of ancient and historic sites are being revealed – some of which haven’t been seen in living memory. — The Telegraph
"As the grass and crops dry out in the fields, the remains of wood and stone features are being spotted. The effect is caused by soil building up above the foreign material left in the ground over centuries in a way that makes the live material react to the conditions at a different rate to that... View full entry
If Uber is to get its “flying taxi” service off the ground, it will need dozens of launchpads and landing sites on rooftops around cities as a supportive infrastructure. At the ride-hailing company’s second annual Elevate conference in Los Angeles, six architecture firms presented their winning designs of what these so-called “Skyports” could look like. And holy cow, these things look straight out of Star Wars. — The Verge
It was all futuristic sky towers, helipads, and beehive references this week when six architecture firms presented their "uberAIR Skyport" design proposals for Uber's autonomous flying taxi service in the not-too-distant future. According to the call for proposals, all facilities needed to be... View full entry
First renderings were unveiled today of Dajiang Innovation HQ, the slick new Shenzhen headquarters of drone maker and robotics company DJI.Designed by Foster + Partners, the ensemble of two mirrored towers connected via a not so undramatic sky bridge is currently under construction. Foster +... View full entry
The Federal Aviation Administration has issued a new regulation restricting unauthorized drone operations over 10 Department of Interior sites, including the Statue of Liberty and Mount Rushmore. [...]
The announcement says the action comes at "the request of U.S. national security and law enforcement agencies."
— NPR
These new FAA restrictions will be effective as of October 5 so make sure to keep your drones at least 400 feet away from these ten National Landmarks: Statue of Liberty National Monument, New York, NYBoston National Historical Park (U.S.S. Constitution), Boston, MAIndependence National Historical... View full entry
In a scene from Dead Poets Society, Robin Williams' character, the English teacher John Keating, famously climbs on top his desk to remind himself, and his students, that "we must look at things in a different way. The world looks very different from up here." Thanks to satellite and drone... View full entry
Like a miniature perfectionist city, the new Apple campus in Cupertino is made up of several different buildings: there's the familiar Norman Foster-designed "spaceship," as well as a massive parking garage that features gleaming solar panels atop the roof.This drone video reveals that very little... View full entry
7-Eleven, the world’s largest convenience store chain, shared new numbers from its drone delivery experiment today. Seventy-seven customers in Reno, Nev., have now received items ordered from 7-Eleven delivered to their doorsteps via drone.
All 77 flights were from one store to a dozen select customers who live within a mile of the shop. 7-Eleven has partnered with the drone maker Flirtey for its delivery pilot.
— ReCode
It marks the first regular commercial drone delivery service to operate in the United States, flying ahead of other, potentially bigger drone delivery projects that haven’t yet been able to take off in the U.S. — like Alphabet’s Project Wing and Amazon’s Prime Air, the latter of which only... View full entry
