Eventually, sometime in the next 5 years, I want to build the ultimate remote-controlled helicopter. It'll have an embedded computer to give it some smarts, and it'll be uplinked to me to give it even more. The thing will have a GPS receiver, an altimiter, a handful of solid-state gyros, and a camera or two.
In theory, this would allow me to sit on my ass at my laptop, and request a realtime video feed of a nearby town, and then the helicopter would go fetch it for me. It would have a cellphone onboard, which would allow it to initiate communications to me, and would allow me to call it to send instructions.
Well, the swashplate is (as far as I'm concerned) the hardest component of the helicopter to make properly (alongside the blades), so I would prefer to buy a premade swashplate unit. Coincidentally, just as I'm getting re-hyped about all these projects, I discovered an R/C Helicopter store about 8 minutes from my house (no explanation as to why this didn't come up earlier). Ergo, I reckon I'll be able to buy a premade swashplate and get some semi-professional ideas regarding materials for the rotors. The clerk (named Al, I think) told me it would definitely be possible to put a beefy little payload on a helicopter, properly balanced and contained. He reckons 2-4lbs, which is more than enough for an embedded computer and some cheap little usb webcams.
I'm really interested in a remote-controlled helicopter, but I think I might scrap the plans for a fully homebrew one and start with a standard frame and equipment set. I'm estimating that it'll cost about $500, so I'm waiting until that number works into that little student budget of mine.
wulf - 2006-11-30 14:40:36
I found a place that sells remote controlled heliopters.. from $90 to $1600... but they also sell parts.. gyros are >= $80, blades are >= $12, and they sell swash-plates too, but I'm not sure how much they sell them for.
Bud - 2007-01-01 10:27:04
Check out www.airrobot.com for a comparison of different helicopter like surveillance systems.