The Colorado Grand Junction Free Press reports in this article that the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office has been working with Draganfly Innovations to test the Draganflyer X6 for policing operations.

Flying unmanned aerial vehicles in the United States is governed by the FAA as they control the airspace. In order to operate a UAV in US airspace you must receive authorization from the the FAA. The FAA currently classifies all UAVs’ including the Draganflyer X6 as a reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle. This is the same classification used for the aerial vehicles that the military uses in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Mesa County Sheriffs office had to complete a complicated permitting process, meeting all the stiff FAA requirements specifically in the area of safety. The Draganflyer X6 was able to met all the requirements imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration. This allows the Mesa County Sheriffs Office to obtain a certificate of authority (COA) from the FAA. By obtaining the certificate of authority the Mesa county Sheriffs office can submit a Notice to Airmen to the FAA which in turn allows them to conduct operations with the Draganflyer X6. Read more in this article by the Grand Junction Free Press.

Identification Constable Marc Sharpe of the Kenora Identification Services Unit, Ontario Provincial Police with Draganflyer X6.

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (PRWEB) March 26, 2009 — From the pages of Popular Science Magazine’s “Top 100 Innovations of the Year“, Draganfly Innovations’ Draganflyer X6 UAV RC Helicopter has made the significant leap to commercial utilization.

The six-rotor, one kilogram, electric, VTOL, UAV helicopter designed for aerial photography and videography was used by the Forensic Identification Unit of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) on February 21, 2009 to collect evidence in a homicide investigation in a remote area outside of Kenora, Ontario, Canada. This represented the first operational mission of a federally approved, commercially produced Unmanned Aerial Vehicle by an emergency service in North America.

Then, in March, 2009, the Saskatoon Police Service announced that it will follow suit, becoming the first urban police service in North America to utilize the Draganflyer X6 Police UAV for aerial forensic purposes within city limits.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles such as Draganfly’s Draganflyer X6 helicopter are subject to Transport Canada aviation regulations. Prior to the Saskatoon Police Service being able to test the Draganflyer X6, Transport Canada officials were in Saskatoon for a flight demonstration, to undertake their standard risk assessment testing, and discuss technical issues with Draganfly Innovations.

Under the Special Flight Operations Certificate granted by Transport Canada, Draganfly Innovations personnel will operate the Draganflyer X6 Police UAV Helicopter while Saskatoon Police Service personnel will operate the cameras used for forensic support.

The use of UAVs goes back to the 1950′s with the military, but only recently has it evolved into police applications. One of the innovators was Identification Constable Marc Sharpe of the Kenora Identification Services unit of the Ontario Provincial Police.

The Ontario Provincial Police's Draganflyer X6 UAV helicopter captures high resolution aerial photographs of major case scenes. The Draganflyer X6's onboard camera has remote controlled zoom, tilt and shutter. Typically, one police officer controls the UAV and another operates the camera controls.

“Having used a fixed wing UAV since 2007, I could see the potential for great benefits to our forensic support operations. It gave us the ability to collect aerial evidence quickly and at minimum cost,” states Sharpe. “However, it also became apparent that in order to improve and expand operational effectiveness, an optimal UAV would need certain attributes. It would need to be small and light, have Vertical Take Off and Landing VTOL capabilities, have a GPS hold system while hovering, be constructed of exceptionally strong materials and be completely transportable.”

The Draganflyer X6 met all Sharpe’s requirements for a Police VTOL UAV. Sharpe continued, “The Draganflyer X6 enables us to economically obtain high quality aerial photos of major case scenes in a timely fashion.”

About Draganfly Innovations Inc.:
Draganfly Innovations Inc. has been manufacturing Unmanned Aerial Vehicles including radio controlled helicopters, airplanes, and airships for the past eleven years. From toys to industrial tools for police and military, Draganfly Innovations Inc. strives for optimum performance and ease of use. Draganfly’s innovative products have been featured on CNN Headline News, MSNBC, Discovery Channel, and in magazines and newspapers such as Popular Science, Popular Mechanics, Gizmodo.com, WIRED, GQ, Stuff, Maxim, The New York Times, and The London Times. All Draganflyer helicopters, including the new Draganflyer X6 are exclusively available from Draganfly Innovations Inc.

Draganfly president Zenon Dragan flies a mini-helicopter with a camera mounted on it for police to do aerial photography of crime scenes and accident scenes. Photograph by: Gord Waldner, Star Phoenix, Saskatchewan News Network; Canwest News Service

The Draganflyer X6 Helicopter is the first North American, federally approved, commercially manufactured UAV legal for use by emergency services in North America. The Saskatoon Police and Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) will begin using the Draganflyer X6 in police investigations.

The Draganflyer X6 is a small remote-control helicopter, which uses six horizontal blades, and a built-in camera for aerial photography and HD video. Up until now, police have had to rely on beam trucks to take aerial photographs and capture images of an entire collision scene.

“Say we have a major artery blocked in excess of eight hours… with this we hope that we can do all our measurements and free that freeway up within half the period of time.”

Read the entire story published by the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, the Regina Leader-Post, and the Calgary Herald newspapers on March 10th, 2009.

Officer.com recently published an article about police department creativity. “When the right tool for the job isn’t available, law enforcement can get remarkably creative.”

One department even outfitted a hobbyist’s remote-control mini-helicopter with a wireless camera to create an inexpensive yet functional piece of aerial surveillance equipment.

They don’t say what brand of RC helicopter they used or even what kind of wireless video camera system they retrofitted it with. One popular wireless video platform used by some police departments, videographers, and hobbyists is the Draganflyer SAVS from Draganfly Innovations Inc.

A remote controlled (RC)mini-helicopter may appear to be a neighborhood child’s toy but could be outfitted with a wireless camera to provide surveillance without moving officers too close to the situation.

Read the entire Officer.com article, The Products of Ingenuity.

Using the Draganflyer electric remote control helicopter (manufactured by Draganfly Innovations Inc) Vanderbilt University has developed the Vanderbilt Embedded Computing Platform for Autonomous Vehicles (VECPAV). This system is able to control an aerial or ground vehicle autonomously (without a pilot).

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (PRWEB) November 20, 2007 — Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN has successfully used the Draganflyer electric rc helicopter for autonomous vehicle research, involving flight by computer control without human input. The project is called VECPAV (Vanderbilt Embedded Computing Platform for Autonomous Vehicles). VECPAV is intended to create and develop autonomous control systems for unmanned aerial and ground vehicles. These control systems eliminate the need for an operator by substituting intelligent control software and electronics. This research is part of a larger project aimed at improving the design of hybrid systems which use embedded electronics and software to control mechanical devices used in performance-critical and safety-critical applications.

Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN has successfully used the Draganflyer electric rc helicopter for autonomous vehicle research, involving flight by computer control without human input. The project is called VECPAV (Vanderbilt Embedded Computing Platform for Autonomous Vehicles). VECPAV is intended to create and develop autonomous control systems for unmanned aerial and ground vehicles. These control systems eliminate the need for an operator by substituting intelligent control software and electronics. This research is part of a larger project aimed at improving the design of hybrid systems which use embedded electronics and software to control mechanical devices used in performance-critical and safety-critical applications.

Having autonomous control over a vehicle creates many benefits and removes the need for continuous human input. This could be applied to full size vehicles, allowing cars to drive themselves, or allowing automated vehicles to perform tasks in hazardous conditions. This would eliminate the risks normally faced by an on-board operator. By removing the operator and related systems from the vehicle, it also allows for increased payloads, smaller sizes, and increased mobility.

The VECPAV system uses a sensor tracker to monitor the motion and position of a Draganflyer rc helicopter by using identifier points on the helicopter. The system then analyzes this data and sends commands back to the Draganflyer rc helicopter through a radio control transmitter, telling the Draganflyer rc helicopter to maintain position or move through its flight plan. Videos of Draganflyer helicopters flying autonomously can be found on the VECPAV homepage, and This YouTube Video. In addition to being successfully used to control Draganflyer electric rc helicopters, the VECPAV system has also been implemented on ground based scale model vehicles.

As a result of his efforts on the VECPAV project, team leader Prof. T. John Koo has been recognized with an NSF (National Science Foundation) CAREER Award: Computation Platform for the Design of Hybrid Systems. This award is considered a highly prestigious honor. Prof. T. John Koo is now at Shantou University, China, where he plans to build on and extend what he has achieved at Vanderbilt.

The Draganflyer radio control rc helicopter has also been used in similar projects such as the MIT Aerospace Controls Laboratory’s UAV SWARM Health Management Project and the Stanford Testbed of Autonomous Rotorcraft for Multi-Agent Control. The Draganflyer rc helicopter is well suited for these applications because it is a stable aerial platform with fewer moving parts than a standard rc helicopter. The Quad-Rotor Draganflyer rc helicopter manoeuvres by varying the thrust generated from each of its four rotors. With one rotor at each corner, differential thrust causes the airframe to rotate and change direction. This eliminates the need for the linkages and components used on conventional rc helicopters that vary the pitch of the main rotor blades in order to manoeuvre. With fewer moving parts, there are fewer things to wear out, and less maintenance required. Because it is an electric rc helicopter, the Draganflyer is safe to use indoors. Its small size allows it to be used in smaller areas than conventional rc helicopters. The Draganflyer rc helicopter is manufactured and sold by Draganfly Innovations.