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AirDog Auto-Follow Drone Captures Your Awesomeness

AirDog is a small, personal UAV that will follow you and film your awesomeness; a selfie video platform.


(AirDog auto-follow UAV drone video)

The AirDog is a quadcopter with rotor-arms that fold away for easy storage when it is not in use. It's said to be fully autonomous, needing no remote control in order to fly. Users can input the basic flight settings using the device's "AirLeash," a dedicated beacon for the AirDog that's worn on the wrist or helmet and is tracked by the drone.

Users can also download the AirDog smartphone app to configure more advanced flight modes, record footage and share video clips online. A manually controlled flight-mode is also available should users prefer.

There are six basic modes from which a user can choose. In the auto-follow mode, the quadcopter will follow the user while maintaining the position and altitude that the user has set. Relative-position mode will ensure that the drone keeps its position in relation to compass direction from the user and follow-track mode allows the user to run through a certain track and have the drone then repeatedly follow it. Additional camera angles and controls can be set in the follow track mode.

The hover and aim mode has the Airdog maintaining its position in one location while tracking the user with its camera, and the circle mode allows the user to set an area and radius around which the drone will circle. Finally, in the the look-down mode, the Airdog can be trained over one particular place with its camera pointing directly down...

I think that this device was fully anticipated by sf author Karen Traviss a decade ago in her novel City of Pearl. Note that it also responds to verbal commands:

He set his camera to follow him, and it hovered behind him like a large tame bee.

"Tight mid-shot and pull out on but behind me," he told it. He checked the shot on his handheld screen and moved a few meters to the right. That was better.
(Read more about Karen Traviss' bee cam)

The AirDog is not cheap; you will need to put down $1,295 to purchase one when they are available hopefully in December of 2014.

Via AirDog and Gizmag.

Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 9/9/2014)

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