Full-Scale, Battery-Powered Helicopter Flight Sets World Record [Helicopters]

Pascal Chretien did what famed helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky hasn't yet. He designed, built and flew an untethered, manned electric helicopter. This record-setting flight is like taking your toy remote control helicopter, blowing it up to full size and piloting it.

With the backing of French company Solution F, Chretien spent 12 months building and testing his electric chopper. His biggest challenge in this process was overcoming the limited power provided by a battery. If you think about the power difference between a battery-operated device and its gas-powered counterpart, then you'll appreciate the difficulty of this challenge.

In its first public test flight, Chretien's chopper flew 2 minutes, 10 seconds and reached an altitude of one meter. This small, but significant flight went down in the record books as the first liftoff of an untethered, manned electric helicopter. This is just the beginning for Chretien. He hopes to refine his design and attempt a 4-meter liftoff in the future. [Gizmag]

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Griffin Technology announces HELO TC remote controlled helicopter

by Edwin - on August 18th, 2011

Griffin Technology knows that all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, which is why they have decided to go ahead with the release of their HELO TC remote controlled helicopter. What makes this remote controlled helicopter different from the rest that we have seen in the past? For starters, this particular model will be able to be controlled through any iOS-powered device via its touchscreen display. To put it in a nutshell, your iOS device is actually a remote control for the HELO TC – making it an even more indispensable part of your life, no?

Let us check out just what the HELO TC is able to bring to the table. For starters, this will be a twin-rotored, indoor helicopter that has been constructed using a lightweight metal frame complete with a black polycarbonate body. Equipped with a Flight Deck infrared module, you will plug that particular bit into an iOS device in order for it to transmit control signals to the helicopter.

You will be able to choose from two different flight modes – Touch Control, where we suspect most people would have a field day with it since it will rely on the multitouch display in order to control the HELO TC’s throttle and joystick, while there is the Tilt to Steer mode that relies on the iOS device’s accelerometers to get the navigating job done. For instance, if you tilt the iOS device, it will move the helicopter forward, back and side to side. Heck, the app is even able to record and store up to three Flight Plans so that you (or other “pilots”) can repeat a particular flight pattern in a jiffy.

The HELO TC comes with a built-in battery which can be juiced up from just about any USB power source, and that includes your computer’s USB port. As for the Flight Deck module, that will require a quartet of AAA batteries, where it will remain plugged within the iOS device’s headphone jack. Expect to fork out $49.99 for the HELO TC if you’re interested, where it ought to arrive in time for the holiday season.

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