Kickstarter Campaign Underway To Fund The Project

This is certainly getting to be a more common story. A company has established a kickstarter campaign to fund development of another UAV product. This one, however, is aimed directly at the aerial video market.

The hexacopter is the C-mi. The manufacturers ... a company called Polyhelo ... say most unique features of the aircraft are that the camera and its gimbal are protected from the elements, that all of the functions can be controlled from a single mobile app, and that images and videos can be shared wirelessly at the "touch of a button."

According to the description of the aircraft on Kickstarter, the housing for the aircraft's integrated 1080p HD camera "automatically extends down from the flyer at takeoff and tucks away upon landing - no snagging during packing or crunching on rocks when landing. The camera enclosure also makes it weather-resistant. Don't let a little snow, rain or desert dust ruin your fun."

There are multiple flight modes, including automated and "follow me."

So far, the project has amassed 121 backers and $106,816 of its $125,000 goal. While there are several lower pledge levels, a person agreeing to offer at least $599 will get one of the first aircraft to be produced, ready to fly. Deliveries are planned to begin in December of this year.

According to Polyhelo, the team "designs and builds software and hardware for open blade multirotor systems and other unmanned aerial systems (UAS). We have experience in spacecraft sensor design and spacecraft instrumentation and our team of electrical, mechanical, and software engineers solve current UAS problems and influence the future of UAS technology."

(Images from Polyhelo)

FMI: Kickstarter campaign