iamman711

Hey gang,

I am a newbie to the hobby of RC flying and am elated by the innovations we have seen so far. This thread is a place to discuss cutting edge news and upcoming innovations to the hobby. We have li-po batteries being replaced by imcombustible li-fe batteries. We have 4D flight with variable pitch propellors. We have 2.4 Ghz radios that virtually eliminate interference problems. Just to name a few. What's next? Can yall please share what else you know is currently in development, or the next big thing(s)?

Future of electric flight...

Future of radio...

DaveFlynn

What about LiNiMnO2 batteries, 2x the energy density of LiPo (LiCoO2), then add Si micro-fibers for another 10x and we would really have something. After all if mol/c = 95,000 A sec = 26Ah, 6 grans of Li should give us a 25Ah battery.

iamman711

Hey great idea that's what i am talking about!

iamman711

apparently this didn't start a commotion. [] only time will tell what the future holds. [&o]

[8D]

DaveFlynn

Most people don't care about tech. I meet very few people who know anything about electronics or chemistry. We are at a point now where nearly anything is possible, all it takes is passion and money.

TallDoode

Well, if you are a reader of RC Heli Mag, they were discussing in their April 1 edition the new Li-Ur batteries coming out of Ukraine. They are super light, have 100x the capacity of Li-Po, very safe, and the best thing is you only have to charge them once in their lifetimes and they are good forever.



Seriuosly though, I havent really heard anything "new and improved" coming out. LiPo's are getting stronger and safer for the same weight. Nowadays it seems like most manufacturers are looking to improve on existing technology rather than add new stuff. X-Treme was showing off a 900mHz radio at a recent show (this came from RC Heli mag as well) but I didnt really see anything else super innovative in the magazine.

So the future? Be interesting to see. What I would like to see is some type of failsafe on my heli. If i lose control of it, flip a switch and have it magically "right" itself until I can get control again. Should be too hard to make that sort of gadget. I know they have the IR things you can add to your cyclic but that only helps in certain situations and may not work when it is really warm (like it gets here in Vegas). I am tired of crashing my heli because I am a new pilot and it is hard to get up the guts to try new things when I think about crashing and repair costs (and sims dont help that much).

Good thread idea. Wish it had more traction.

Cheers,

dave

j.m.

huh.

Do you really think that making a radio have a higher frequency makes that much of a difference?

The cool thing with 2.4ghz radios, is that the transmitter ans receiver are "locked" together. A 9 Ghz radio won't make a difference inthe world. (except cost more and you'll have the FCC on your ass.)

TallDoode

Actually, it is 900mHz, not Ghz so it is a lower frequency. The 900mHz band is less crowded according to the blurb in the RC Heli magazine. Might be meant for park flyers or something as I doubt it has the range of the 2.4Ghz. I would have to assume that their 900mHz transmitter and receiver have the same locking functionality otherwise it wouldnt make much sense.

Cheers,

dave

matty_p80

Dave

i believe there is now an automatic pilot system (definitely for helis anyway) available!

i'm afraid i'm not much help further, being extremely new, but i do believe i saw something about them in these very forums!!

cheers

Matty ><}}}}@>

p.s. i'm like you guys, i can't just plug it in and go; i have to know how things work so that i have a better understanding of what i'm doing. i've broken both my little i/r helis finding out what is inside

-pkh-

My Feedback: (2)

Actually 900mHz is less than 1Hz (it's 0.9Hz), I think you mean 900MHz.

j.m.

less than one hertz? Are you kidding?

-pkh-

My Feedback: (2)

I kid you not:

m = milli = 0.001
M = mega = 1,000,000

I'm sure Talledoode meant 900MHz, since 900mHz doesn't really qualify as an "RF" frequency!

iamman711

i'm still laughing about the Li-ur joke and that was almost 24 hours ago.

back to the topic, [link=http://www.sonicelectric.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=NEW]servoless retract landing gear[/link] anyone? (click the video on the left to see it in action)

I wonder if it's mainstream material.

TallDoode

Ya, sorry. I am not an electrical type person. To me, MHZ, MhZ, MHz, mHz and mhz are all the same thing <grin> so my apologies and thanks for the correction PKH. Plus, I suck at acronyms!

And I too was laughing about the "new" Li-Ur batteries when I read that in RC Heli - for just a second I was like SWEET!, then I "got it" and laughed out loud.

Love the landing gear. Espeically the slow retract.

d.

jmohn

Battery technology is where the biggest jump will be since we are seeing a lot of problems with LiPo fires and performance issues. My industry (cell phones, laptops and other small electronic devices) are going to hit a way very soon since the power consumption of these devices are using too much energy. Everyone wants a cell phone that does everything your laptop can do, but not as big. That's great, but your battery will only last 15 minutes. I don't think there will be much market for a device like that

Battery techology is definately a good place to be right now as there are lots of companies ready for some new and better power sources for their mobile devices. Display technology is another area that can make some big improvements in our mobile devices. The display screens are the largest power drain on any device at this time. There are some very inovative display techologies out there, but they are not market ready at this time.

I would like to see more glass or plastic molded airplanes with detailed scale. What about aluminum skin planes just like the real ones I know some folks are already doing this, but what about someone making a kit with pre-cut panels which you have to mount to the formers. It could be made from carbon fiber and still stay relatively light.


Jeff

iamman711

"This huge B-17 was on display in the pit area. If it flew I wasn't there when it did. The plane was covered in [link=http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://winshiprc.tripod.com/Db17.jpg&imgrefurl=http://winshiprc.tripod.com/dayton_ohio_giant_scale_fly_in.htm&h=275&w=453&sz=27&hl=en&start=10&um=1&tbnid=cGo2IQArNdVytM:&tbnh=77&tbnw=127&prev=/images%3Fq%3Daluminum%2Bskin%2Bairplane%26um%3D1%2 6hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1T4GGIH_en__262__262]aluminum[/link] skin with rivet details and full cockpit detail."

the word "aluminum" sparked my imagination... how about electric planes that are waterproof, won't corrode, and can fly in the rain.

DaveFlynn

Let me combine aluminum and molding. Someone should try this, take some glass or carbon epoxy pre-preg (0.003" or 0.005") and some anodized aluminum foil (0.003") and autoclave some wing sections or something. I wonder how much you could shape it before it wrinkled or tore.

If you try this in your kitchen oven, run the vacuum line out a window or something, the fumes are stinky and toxic.

iamman711

I want to make millions of dollars in this hobby. Any idea how I can get started? I know I just jacked up my own thread by posting this comment, but man I just had to ask.

Edit: Keep the ideas comin' if and when they come to you.

Time Pilot

(double post)

Time Pilot

I've heard it said that if you want to make a million in this hobby, you should spend two.

bdavison

My Feedback: (1)

Find a way to make wheel pants stay on....

JamesDL

Wheel pants suspenders?

iamman711

in 50 years, rc plane that converts from glider to pylon racer (or jet, mach 1 speed) to 4d plane (4d variable pitch propellor) midflight. battery technology allows plane to stay in air forever because atmosphere charges battery. nanolight camera allows multiple camera angles or movable head to telescopic camera. cannot crash plane because satellite-controlled technology allows plane to land itself like in the current unmanned aerial planes in the military.

actually i made this plane. i am selling it for a cool $1,000,000,000,000. any takers