Competition Tests Student-Built Aerial Espionage Robots 33
Zothecula writes "Some of the most advanced work in autonomous aerial robotics is not done by DARPA, or by massive corporations. Rather, it is accomplished by teams of university students who participate in the International Aerial Robotics Competition (IARC). For the past 23 years, the IARC has challenged college teams with missions requiring complex autonomous robotic behaviors that are often beyond the capabilities of even the most sophisticated military robots. This year's competition, which was held in China and the United States over the past week, saw the team from Tsinghua University in Beijing successfully complete the current mission – an elaborate espionage operation known as Mission Six."
Re:Incredible battery life. Expensive? (Score:2, Informative)
Those aren't batteries. The battery is mounted horizontally under the center of the quadcopter. The oval white shape between the two red pieces of tape marking the front of the robot is a hole in the shrinkwrap tubing of the battery.