Drone News of the Week May 13: DRONELIFE Headlines, All in One Place [Read or Listen]

All of the DRONELIFE headlines and drone news of the week May 13: DJI, Autel, American Robotics and more.

Continue reading, or listen here:

Virginia Natural Gas First in State to Deploy Pipeline Inspection With Drones  

Virginia Natural Gas (VNG) is set to become the first natural gas utility in the state to deploy Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for the inspection of gas pipelines. Self-dispatched Mavic 2 Pro drone will fly across Hampton Roads, northern James and New Kent Counties for the inspection of critical infrastructure and over 5,500 miles of gas pipeline. VNG will also initiate a pilot program for its sister companies in Illinois, Georgia and Tennessee that all fall under VNG’s parent company, Southern Company Gas (SCG). This new project builds on a program established in 2015 by SCG parent Southern Company.Aerospace company

Embraer Moves Ahead Towards Autonomous eVTOL Flight: Project EASy

Embraer recently finished conducting a series of experimental flight operations with its new autonomous system technologies, designed to enable safe autonomous operations in urban environments. The flights were carried out in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in order to observe how the new technologies performed under real flight conditions.

Skyway on Dawn of Drones This Week

AAM and Vertical Flight Month (sponsor: Quantum Systems Inc.) continues this week on the Dawn of Drones podcast with special guest Clifford Cruz CEO of Skyway, leading the efforts in building the most secure automated airspace authorization service for the aviation industry! Built for the future autonomous aircraft, Skyway provides advanced navigation services for vertiport operations.

The Latest Drone from DJI: Super Small, Super Powerful DJI Mini 3 Pro

The latest drone from DJI is the Mini 3 Pro:  Redefining What a Sub-249g Camera Drone Can Do

DJI describes the DJI Mini 3 Pro, released today, as “the first high-end product of the DJI Mini series.”

“Mini 3 Pro is one of the most force-efficient consumer drones DJI has ever made, drawing on our years of experience in battery power, aerodynamics, propeller strength and processing to squeeze the best possible performance into a once-unthinkable sub-250 gram airframe,” Communications Manager Curran Daly tells DRONELIFE.  “Some of those innovations are visible from the outside, such as the rear vents that funnel propeller air into the shell to cool the processor, the rear-facing obstacle sensors mounted from an unlikely position at the front of the drone, or the gimbal that rotates for true vertical video production. We’re most proud of the close coordination between all those efforts by disparate teams that created a singularly extraordinary drone.”

Autel Updates EVO Nano and Lite Series Drones

Today, Autel Robotics unveiled several firmware and software updates for the EVO Nano and EVO Lite series, as well as for the Autel Sky App. These updates provide a variety of new features and improvements, such as Dynamic Tracking for the EVO Lite and Electronic Image Stabilization for the EVO Lite Series.

EVO Lite now has access to the personal dynamic tracking feature employed by the EVO Lite+. Controlled through the Autel Sky App, Dynamic Track allows the camera of the drone to automatically track and follow a person – ensuring that the subject stays within the frame of the shot. Dynamic Track features a suite of shooting modes for smart following, as well as control of safety features such as object avoidance.

Personal eVTOL: AIR ONE Prototype Showcased at Kentucky Derby

AIR Showcases Personal eVTOL Prototype at Kentucky Derby, Announces Partnership with Aeroauto

EVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft creator AIR showcased the prototype of its first vehicle, AIR ONE, at its kickoff event at the Kentucky Derby, where attendees were able to sit inside the aircraft for a virtual flight using AIR’s simulation technology. AIR also announced its formation of a partnership with Aeroauto in order to develop a specialized Urban Air Mobility Vehicle Showroom and Dealership in Palm Beach County, Florida.

American Robotics and Railway Inspection

American Robotics looks to get into the railway inspection business, with new Ondas acquisition of AI-Powered software company Ardenna.

The CEO of American Robotics said a recent acquisition by its parent company, Ondas Holdings, will allow the developer of industrial drone solutions to add artificial-intelligence (AI) and machine-learning components to its existing drone-related software to offer track inspections and other services to the railway industry.

Jersey Mike’s Subs by Drone: Flytrex Partners with National Food Chain

Jersey Mike’s Subs announced the formation of a partnership with on-demand delivery leader Flytrex for drone-delivered food orders in Holly Springs, North Carolina. The new partnership will see orders from Jersey Mike’s delivered directly to the yards of local residents by drone, with a flight time of only five minutes.

Genius NY Applications are Open: Drone Startups Apply Now for $1 Million Grand Prize

New York state is betting on the drone, robotics and IoT industries in a big way.  With recognition that these industries have the potential to drive major economic development in the area, the GENIUS NY program  – an in-residence accelerator operated out of Syracuse, NY – is offering $3 million in investment in 5 finalist companies, including a $1 million grand prize.

Draganfly First Quarter Earnings: Revenues are Growing in a Scaling Industry

Draganfly Inc., a manufacturer of commercial unmanned aerial vehicles and drone services company, announced its first quarter results on May 10, 2022.

• Revenue for the first quarter was $2.04 million, an increase of 32.8% year-over-year and 25% quarter-over-quarter.
• Gross margin percentage was 39.9% compared to 33.4% in Q1 2021.
•  Net loss excluding non-cash charges was $5.83 million compared to a $3.89 million loss in Q1 2021.
• Cash balance at the end of March was $19.6 million.

Click on the links to read or hear any of the drone news of the week, May 13 in depth.