Drone-maker AeroVironment has developed a handheld quadcopter that it says can be carried by soldiers on the battlefield and quickly deployed to get an aerial look at a potentially hostile location.
The drone, called Snipe Nano Quad, has retractable rotor arms so it can be carried in a compact form and unpacked when needed. It weighs just 140 grams (5 ounces).
It’s equipped with cameras that can send a visible or infrared image back to a handheld controller unit. The infrared view provides a way to see the body heat of a person who may be hidden.
The drone has a top speed of around 20 miles per hour and a radio range of about 1 kilometer. It has a battery life of about 15 minutes, and its size means its difficult to spot when in the sky, said the maker.
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Source: News Feed