Skydive pilot building a self launching drone here

[SkydivePilot69 1]

Hi all!

I am a CPL, SEL MEL and LSRM-A + ground instructor. Did a few tens of drops as a skydiving pilot.

Also a software developer specializing in AI and biological-like systems.

And my latest project is a part 103 ultralight based on drone technology to allow any A rated skydiver to self launch up to 10000 ft.

Well the original prototype will be probably a hop'n pop at 3500 for someone 150 lb or lighter.

The idea here is the skydiver will still "pilot" the craft through automation and even when freefalling.

Already submitted a patent on the concept and using my skills as a light sport plane mechanic to create it. I hope to have something ready by next month.

Needless to say I am also preparing a lot of explanations and reliability calculations and projection for the FAA but Part 103 i.e ultralights is fairly broad and probably the best way to get this thing going. And all the technological tools now exist minus the AI software I am creating to ensure quick realignment of the behavior in case of emergency and make sure the thing doesn't collide with the skydiver on the way back.

Attach a few pics.... enjoy.

And I believe skydivers are the lowest hanging fruit to get people in the air in the cheapest most minimalistic way.

This is definitely uncharted territory and I want to give back to the community as I certainly fell in love with skydiving. Although I have fear of heights and will never skydive myself anytime soon

Hope someone will want to try this for that matter. Not seeking to get rich but to revolutionize the field a little bit. Especially in the light of the deadly crashes in Hawaii and other places. Electric drive is a gazillion times more reliable than lawn mower engines, and there is 0 reason to not climb to a few thousand ft in a few minutes.

Edited August 1, 2019 by SkydivePilot69

[countzero 7]

It's a nice idea for taking a single person up.  However skydivers like to jump in groups so we can build formations as we come down. And pretty much all DZs rely on flying tandems to really pay the bills. 

[SkydivePilot69 1]

That's my point... down the line a bunch of these could fly a whole group up and coordinate and even setup a formation from which everyone would detach. I want to use swarm intelligence for this. As always in computer science which follows Moore's law things get twice as good twice as cheap every 18 months and time to provide that to the community.

Which has been stuck with antiquated ways to get to 10000 ft for ages.

[haimehhh 0]

So happy to see this in here, an electrical engineer, who dabbles in robotics, at work and I were talking about this. Keep us updated and let me know when you’re ready to test it!

[sfzombie13 307]

let us know for sure when testing starts and i may travel a bit to take part in a test of that death-trap looking machine.  not the first one, but second for sure.  hell, if i had one of these, i think i would file a notam for the huge field next to my house.