Maryland - A United States Navy (USN) spokesperson recently announced the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) may likely be the last strike-fighter flown by the USN. A strike fighter is a primarily ground attack plane with some air-to-air capability.
Citing unmanned systems as a key element of needed innovation in a fast-changing global technological environment, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus says, he plans to start up a new Navy office for unmanned systems, and appoint a new Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Unmanned Systems. The new office, called N-9, will seek to streamline various unmanned system efforts and technology. See also, www.aviationweek.com.
Saturday, May 23, 2015
Thursday, May 21, 2015
Verizon Would Like To Purchase Aol
Washington - Aol is one of the original online content providers. Verizon Communications, Inc. now views Aol Advertising, an Aol company, as a company Verizon can use for future television advertising. Verizon Communications might pay $4.4 billion to buy Aol if the acquisition is allowed to be completed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Verizon wants to increase its personalized advertising on the over-the-top, online, and stand-alone video service Verizon plans to launch later this year. Now, commercials seen on over-the-top services (OTT), which include Hulu, Sling TV, and HBO, are often repetitive and not well targeted, particularly when compared with other online venues such as Facebook Inc.
Verizon wants to use a specific technology Aol has. That technology will allow real-time bidding of advertising space by advertisers as viewers tune in to OTT services. Basically, the same television show, seen at the same time, on Verizon's OTT service in two different homes, might have different commercial advertisements. Advertisements that are only relevant to the viewers preferences. The advertising industry views this way of putting the advertisements (commercials) of products that are based on what the individual website address normally searches for as a better way of buying and selling advertisements. This, so-called "programmatic" buying is becoming the most effective way for online advertisements to be bought and sold. See also,www.businessweek.com.
Verizon wants to use a specific technology Aol has. That technology will allow real-time bidding of advertising space by advertisers as viewers tune in to OTT services. Basically, the same television show, seen at the same time, on Verizon's OTT service in two different homes, might have different commercial advertisements. Advertisements that are only relevant to the viewers preferences. The advertising industry views this way of putting the advertisements (commercials) of products that are based on what the individual website address normally searches for as a better way of buying and selling advertisements. This, so-called "programmatic" buying is becoming the most effective way for online advertisements to be bought and sold. See also,www.businessweek.com.
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
E-Drone Telephone Home
New York - Pilots of increasingly popular mini-copters (drones) have a tendency to crash into things like trees, houses, etc. Drones require electronic (computerized) stabilization to remove some of what makes personal drones dangerous, or less safe.
Newer generation drones can do much of the flying themselves. Applets (apps) can tell drones to take-off, follow flight plans, and land automatically, without human effort. Drones require some practice to fly as a hobby and professional drone use is still in the future, but it is coming. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is considering rules that would require pilots of commercial drones to have a license, but that would not apply to consumers. Some cities, and all United States national parks have banned drone flying, even recreational flight. Piloting drones requires hours and hours of practice. Autopilot drones can turn your smartphone into a joystick controller and can be told to fly to specific places. Autopilot apps can also suggest manuevers, like having the drone circle a building while keeping its camera pointed at the building. Without many hours of practice, that would be difficult to do using a traditional joystick controller.
Some drones offer a feature known as 'Follow Me' mode. When using Follow Me mode the drone tracks the location of your smartphone and will hover over you and your smartphone, wherever your smartphone is. You select the altitude it follows you at. Drones cannot sense and avoid objects and will crash into things that you have not programmed the drone to fly over. Or, things that enter the drones flight path after the drone has launched and is on its way. Follow Me mode still has some issues in the program that need to be improved. Drones that leave the flight path you input are called rogues. The phenomenon is known as 'fly-away'. Smartphones transmit and receive with very low power. If the GPS in the smartphone that is commanding the drone does not consistently track the location of the smartphone the drone can leave the flight path you put in. When it leaves the flight path you input, the drone becomes vulnerable to crashing into objects it is not programmed to fly over. Some drones have a feature that allows them to return home. Return Home mode works, but flying in a crowded city is still very complicated.
Drones with Follow Me mode programmed into them are still expensive. According to the WSJ, a good drone with Follow Me mode can cost as much as $2,900. Some companies will not enable Follow Me mode until their drones can be programmed to avoid obstacles while flying on autopilot. Drones that have autopilot take time to learn to pilot and drones that do not have autopilot take even more time to fly learn to fly. See whole story, www.wsj.com.
Newer generation drones can do much of the flying themselves. Applets (apps) can tell drones to take-off, follow flight plans, and land automatically, without human effort. Drones require some practice to fly as a hobby and professional drone use is still in the future, but it is coming. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is considering rules that would require pilots of commercial drones to have a license, but that would not apply to consumers. Some cities, and all United States national parks have banned drone flying, even recreational flight. Piloting drones requires hours and hours of practice. Autopilot drones can turn your smartphone into a joystick controller and can be told to fly to specific places. Autopilot apps can also suggest manuevers, like having the drone circle a building while keeping its camera pointed at the building. Without many hours of practice, that would be difficult to do using a traditional joystick controller.
Some drones offer a feature known as 'Follow Me' mode. When using Follow Me mode the drone tracks the location of your smartphone and will hover over you and your smartphone, wherever your smartphone is. You select the altitude it follows you at. Drones cannot sense and avoid objects and will crash into things that you have not programmed the drone to fly over. Or, things that enter the drones flight path after the drone has launched and is on its way. Follow Me mode still has some issues in the program that need to be improved. Drones that leave the flight path you input are called rogues. The phenomenon is known as 'fly-away'. Smartphones transmit and receive with very low power. If the GPS in the smartphone that is commanding the drone does not consistently track the location of the smartphone the drone can leave the flight path you put in. When it leaves the flight path you input, the drone becomes vulnerable to crashing into objects it is not programmed to fly over. Some drones have a feature that allows them to return home. Return Home mode works, but flying in a crowded city is still very complicated.
Drones with Follow Me mode programmed into them are still expensive. According to the WSJ, a good drone with Follow Me mode can cost as much as $2,900. Some companies will not enable Follow Me mode until their drones can be programmed to avoid obstacles while flying on autopilot. Drones that have autopilot take time to learn to pilot and drones that do not have autopilot take even more time to fly learn to fly. See whole story, www.wsj.com.
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
The Porsche 965 Did Exist... Almost
Stuttgart - The street version of the Porsche 959 debuted at the 1985 Frankfurt Motor Show as a 1986 model, but numerous issues delayed production by more than a year. In 2004 Sports Car International named the 959 number one on its list of Top Sports Cars of the 1980s. First customers received their Porsche 959s in 1987. The car debuted at a cost of $225,00 USD per unit (with some models selling for as high as $1,000,000 USD per unit in 1992).
The Porsche 964 Turbo was not a model 965. Porsche model 965 was a project in the 1980s that was to have been sold as the Porsche 969. The Porsche 969 would have been a high-tech successor to the original Porsche 911 Turbo. The Porsche 964 Turbo (or 965) was deemed to complicated and expensive to manufacture, distribute, and sell. The Porsche 964 was rushed out in its place in 1989. Porsche introduced the Porsche 969 Turbo in March 1990, as the successor to the 930. In 1992 the 3.3 litre Porsche Turbo S was introduced. Porsche boasted the Porsche 964 Turbo 3.6 in January 1993. At the end of 1994 the Porsche factory had some 90 Porsche 969 chassis left, these were all transferred to Porsche Exclusive and built as the very special Porsche 964 Turbo S 3.6 litre. The Porsche 964 Turbo 3.6 was available with the traditional Porsche 964 Turbo 3.6 body or with the exclusive Slant nose option. See whole story, www.total911.com.
The Porsche 964 Turbo was not a model 965. Porsche model 965 was a project in the 1980s that was to have been sold as the Porsche 969. The Porsche 969 would have been a high-tech successor to the original Porsche 911 Turbo. The Porsche 964 Turbo (or 965) was deemed to complicated and expensive to manufacture, distribute, and sell. The Porsche 964 was rushed out in its place in 1989. Porsche introduced the Porsche 969 Turbo in March 1990, as the successor to the 930. In 1992 the 3.3 litre Porsche Turbo S was introduced. Porsche boasted the Porsche 964 Turbo 3.6 in January 1993. At the end of 1994 the Porsche factory had some 90 Porsche 969 chassis left, these were all transferred to Porsche Exclusive and built as the very special Porsche 964 Turbo S 3.6 litre. The Porsche 964 Turbo 3.6 was available with the traditional Porsche 964 Turbo 3.6 body or with the exclusive Slant nose option. See whole story, www.total911.com.
Monday, May 4, 2015
Quadcopter Drones the Most Popular
Tokyo - Most recent developments in the field of small autonomous drones seem to use quadcopters (four motors). Most small drones don't look like regular helicopters because the quadcopter design is mechanically more simple for small drones.
Small drones are less stable than an equivalent sized regular helicopter. On a regular helicopter the main-rotor blades adjust their pitch as they spin. The cyclic-pitch mechanism allows a regular helicopter to do this is complex and expensive. Quadcopters use four motors connected to four fixed-pitch propellers. This makes quadcopters more simple and less expensive than an equivalent sized helicopter. When helicopters are made larger it starts to make more sense, from a cost and complexity point of view, to have a single, more complex (variable-pitch) propeller and one tail-rotor. Quadcopters, and other small drones, require electronic stabilization for humans to fly them without constantly crashing. For a quadcopter to remain stable in the air it must indivdually adjust the thrust produced by each of its propellers. See also, www.aviationweek.com.
Small drones are less stable than an equivalent sized regular helicopter. On a regular helicopter the main-rotor blades adjust their pitch as they spin. The cyclic-pitch mechanism allows a regular helicopter to do this is complex and expensive. Quadcopters use four motors connected to four fixed-pitch propellers. This makes quadcopters more simple and less expensive than an equivalent sized helicopter. When helicopters are made larger it starts to make more sense, from a cost and complexity point of view, to have a single, more complex (variable-pitch) propeller and one tail-rotor. Quadcopters, and other small drones, require electronic stabilization for humans to fly them without constantly crashing. For a quadcopter to remain stable in the air it must indivdually adjust the thrust produced by each of its propellers. See also, www.aviationweek.com.
Sunday, May 3, 2015
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