Defense Tech: 'Invisible' Boomerang 'Bot


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Edited by Christian Lowe \| Contact

'Invisible' Boomerang 'Bot

It's nice to have a set of robotic eyes in the sky. But surveillance drones tend to be loud, and rather obvious, as they keep watch above a Middle Eastern city. Many guerilla types know by now to avoid the things.

That's why a small company out of Minneapolis, VeraTech Areo, has built a hand-held spy drone that it says is practically invisible. Battery powered and shaped like a boomerang, the "Phantom Sentinel" unmanned aeiral vehicle (UAV) "is in constant motion and the center of [its] mass is located outside of the fuselage," Catherine MacRae Hockmuth tells us in the current issue of Defense Technology International. "As the aircraft spins, it disappears from vision," an AeroTech fact sheet adds.

Even better, the company promises, is that the folding, backpack-ready drone "has a uniquely minimal cross section allowing it to 'slice' through even the most adverse weather conditions that would keep conventional UAV systems on the ground. The rotational inertia generated in flight allows the UAV to self level and maintain a very high degree of stability, even while hovering."

There don't seem to be any military orders for the Phantom, yet. But the company does have a patents for its hard-to-spot flights -- and a wacky, techno-themed video, too.

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Posted by: 2df2ff at June 3, 2008 02:35 AM

Damn, I built something like this twenty years ago, but it was just a single rotor RC.
Would never think it could be used like that, neat ideal!

Posted by: WR at December 5, 2007 07:29 PM

I'd buy it for my kid brother

Posted by: Kevin at April 1, 2007 07:29 AM

Interesting concept.

How useful, don't know. Interesting configuration and a bit of out there in terms of novelty.

Posted by: ldwalaska at October 7, 2006 09:01 PM

I'd like to know why the kid on the left is sagging his pants in the picture. ANd the person on the right has a gut. I'm hoping that isn't active military and just some yahoo actors!

Posted by: Brandon at October 7, 2006 11:03 AM

I watched the video. I could see it just fine after it was flying. And the center of rotation seemed to be a big black spot so it wasn't really outside the hull of the UAV.

Posted by: Henry Farkas at October 6, 2006 06:44 PM

IF this thing is feasable and operable, I also see a potential use in border patrolling. Illegal aliens and 'coyotes' would never know where sensors may be to avoid them. Cheaper and more effective than a 700 mile wall.

Posted by: N. R. Glenn at October 6, 2006 05:08 PM

By the time the pork barrel legislators get done, it'll have armor and be larger than a football field..

Posted by: Norm at October 6, 2006 10:52 AM

Not Drones, UAV's no need to dumb down the name, look it up in Wikipedia. Drones are only loud at low altitude. Most fly at an altitude that your can't hear. I am tired of journalists posing as experts. Just the facts.

Posted by: John at October 6, 2006 10:17 AM

Possible domestic use would be for urban search and rescue operations. I can't find VeraTech Areo phone or web site. Any help out there?

Posted by: J. Huston at October 6, 2006 09:53 AM

What is the height, range, and time on station for the device?

Posted by: pd at October 6, 2006 09:33 AM

Great, something else clogging airspace, as if the Raven wasn't enough for helicopter pilots to dodge. Why not? Dee Dee Dee

Posted by: Andy at October 6, 2006 08:36 AM

Let's get down to the nitty gritty. How is this device controlled, what is it's time on station. How good are the return images. How does the camera gear affect the inertial stab., etc.

Posted by: Les at October 6, 2006 08:20 AM

I wonder about the on-station time of this gadget and its range. looks interesting.

Posted by: Gus Haedo at October 6, 2006 07:07 AM

All of these gadgets are great for fighting terror, as long as they aren't used against the American people at a later date.

Posted by: J. Harper at October 6, 2006 06:09 AM

My Comment is, can this Boomarang operate with other UAV in the sky and how is it controled. and the availability.

Posted by: John at October 6, 2006 12:40 AM

Why are these guys wearing chocolate chip cami's. If you want to make a modern advertisement you should probably get the clothing right first just a thought.

Posted by: adam at October 5, 2006 11:51 PM

This is a very nice gadget!

Posted by: Richard Frazell at October 4, 2006 02:05 PM

Clearly, this promises a revolution in warfare. Hell, we are probably already in an arms race with extraterestrials and this is a vital component. Its straight out of star trek. or even star wars. Hell its buck rogers tech!

Seriously, I vote for this being a practical joke.

Posted by: Aaron at October 4, 2006 07:34 AM

So between us Google & Technorati just how much have we talked up the company stock price? :)

Posted by: JQP at October 3, 2006 04:07 AM

Those boys in the picture look way too soft to be in anyone's army. At least I hope this is the case.

Posted by: J Glanton at October 2, 2006 02:39 PM

>>Are you guys even thinking about that the >>camera may have a gyro or bearings that make it >>from staying still while the boom spins?

>That's my guess. It has to be either a software >approach or hardware approach to get stabilized >image.

This can't be the case. The reason why it appears invisible is that the "center of [its] mass is located outside of the fuselage." This being the case, there is no point of the UAV that stays in the center while everything rotates around it. (If there was a point that stayed still as everything rotated arround it, it would certainly be visible.)

I think that there is probably a camera that takes photos once per rotation at the same point in the rotation. This would seem to the viewer to be a (mostly) steady video image.

Posted by: Michael C at October 2, 2006 02:01 PM

This company has been contacted for video devices for that flying wing.
They make fully programmable software driven cameras

Pixim
http://www.pixim.com/

Posted by: kobe at October 2, 2006 01:42 PM

If it only spies on enemies and beams back video, even a tiny camera attached on a fly would do... How about using AIR itself as a camera? Tiny nanoparticles float in air, one is a battery one is a lens one is a transmitter, each fly at different times and reach the target, when they reach there they form a constellation in the air communicating with each other taking pictures and sending it to the transmitter whose only job is to beam back the pics to base. This will help to spy on unmanned military installations that are not vacuum sealed. If it is manned, then a eyeball replacement implant would do the job, if it is vacuum sealed, then the particles cannot travel, that is another challenge...

Posted by: arun at October 2, 2006 11:44 AM

To the naysayers..."whatever can be thought of can be materialized & done." This device would be a potentially great & cost effective portable tool that could be used by our military & intel ops in the field & maybe save many lives & limbs in the process. I can see a myriad of civilian applications for this tool also....

Posted by: Rocky B at October 1, 2006 03:08 PM

>Are you guys even thinking about that the camera may have a gyro or bearings that make it from
>staying still while the boom spins?

That's my guess. It has to be either a software approach or hardware approach to get stabilized image.

Posted by: pedestrian at September 30, 2006 05:45 PM

Are you guys even thinking about that the camera may have a gyro or bearings that make it from staying still while the boom spins?

Posted by: Frank at September 30, 2006 11:47 AM

you morons.

if its going to send video, its going to have a sensor built in to know the rotational speed and only show the appropriately timed shots (so you can have useable video. granted the FPS will suck but still.

Posted by: george battle at September 30, 2006 11:14 AM

Ken, are you sure? It appears to stay "invisible" with its off-kilter spin. But, what if the camera is aimed at a little mirror (positioned dead center of the spin) that points straight down? I think then you have a steady image that's simply spinning, not jerking. Then all you have to do is sync the rotation of the camera sensor with the rotation of "craft" and you're done. Pretty simple. LOL. PS: I saw this posted at TechMeme.com

Posted by: PJ at September 30, 2006 10:31 AM

I highly predict that they will never, ever get stable video out of this thing.

Posted by: Ken at September 30, 2006 09:09 AM

Todd, if you look towards the right of the photograph you can also see (on the bench) the http://veratech.aero/rotorx.html looking rather small and somewhat frail. Strange looking stablemates indeed.

Posted by: JQP at September 30, 2006 04:36 AM

I saw this thing at an unmanned system symposium: http://static.flickr.com/85/229606020_83d736cce5_b.jpg

Posted by: todd at September 29, 2006 08:27 PM

Cool concept.

I would think if the camera is in the dead center, and the have the camera spin the opposite direction of the craft, then you would have a good stable airiel view of your surroundings.

Posted by: Murc at September 29, 2006 07:15 PM

Something else that's not mentioned...look at the soldier beside the 'launcher-dood'. See the goggles he's wearing? If you look at the site, another product the company has developed is an extremely high speed camera. If you examine the photo of the drone closely, you will see that one of the three 'arms' of the drone has no propeller on the end. If you were to pack an extremely high speed camera in the end of that arm, facing out, you would have a very useful 360 degree live view of the area the drone is flying over. How?
The whole drone spins very quickly. If the camera is facing outward, and is set to take very quick snapshots as it spins, and send them back to the viewer, it would be an easy thing to display those snapshots in order, and use head-tracking to be able to look around in 360 degrees with minimal delay. Pretty neat. If this is for real, the military would be STUPID to not jump on it.
Add to that the ability to hover AND very stable flight and you have one badass surveillance drone.

Posted by: DS at September 29, 2006 01:20 PM

Typo alert: you spelled "invisible" wrong in the title.

Posted by: substitute at September 29, 2006 12:31 PM

Interesting. It sounds like a low-hi mix cost effective UAV.

Posted by: pedestrian at September 29, 2006 11:09 AM

'Invisible' Boomerang 'Bot

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