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Its a bird, its a plane, its a drone? What is a drone? Why is everybody so hyped up over them? Click for more, what all the fun is, and how to get airborne.
Drone Definition
A drone by definition can mean a few things. This could mean a low continuous low humming sound, but not in this case. We are talking about the unpiloted aircraft, watercraft, or even spacecraft as the situation might call for.
Name Variations:
Quad? Quadcopter? sUAS? UAV? It’s all so crazy. All of these are considered generically a drone. A quadcopter, or quad for short, maintains its flight path by using its four main motors vs a fixed-wing airplane or helicopter. Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) only refers to the vehicle itself, whereas Small Unmanned Aircraft System (sUAS) refers to the entire system also. This could include other aircraft, ground control, and communication units.
What is the Hype?
On a personal hobby level, these can be a ton of fun for people of all ages. My kids, both around 10 years old, take my Hubsan H111C (See Review Here) drone off the charger to fly it. Once they are done, they plug them back into the charger. This has been a huge responsibility jump and encouragement for them to listen.
In History
UAV and UAS were developed for the military and these terms have been since adopted by civilians. Drones were developed for military uses that were best suited not to put a pilot at risk. Also, because UAVs do not require rest, they could fly longer and further than conventional methods allowed.
Our Future
As time passes, there are some amazing people coming up with some ingenious ways to use these machines. Exploring places unsafe or unreachable any other way. Disaster areas, deep sea exploration, or long space missions. Using infrared technology to assist in search and rescue missions. Even flying vehicles for personal transport are taking leaps and bounds in development right now. It seems our biggest hurdle now are the batteries that sustain these amazing UAVs.
Now that you have all the details, head over to our next article about Best Drone For Beginners Here.