NASA Astronaut Kicks Off One-Hand Drone Controller

Former NASA astronaut Scott Parazynski has launched a campaign on crowdfunding website Kickstarter with the hope of commercialising a single-handed drone controller.

Drone controllers come in many different shapes, sizes and interfaces from small Bluetooth modules hosted on smartphones all the way to supercomputers that operate military drones. With innovative tech being designed for enhanced functionality, improved convenience or just for the sake of innovation, there is a race for improvement in different components and different equipment used for the drone technology – an attractive gadget for both hobbyists and professionals that operate drones and UAVs.

FT Aviator from Fluidity Aviator is a single handed drone controller especially designed for enhanced convenience in terms of usage. Pilots and operators can easily operate the drone with the controller right after unboxing without much initial setup of the controller or prior integration.

The unique drone controller is compatible with almost all DJI drones, this controller works collaboratively with the native DJI radio, and Fluidity app for both Operation Systems; Android and iOS.

Fluidity Aviator has designed this innovative controller considering the perspective of an astronaut, their patented design takes inspiration from intuitive motion through space and offers convenient usage as the user can pick up the controller and start using it immediately. The FT Aviator controller incorporates four degrees of motion through space; x, y and z axes and yaw of the drone. The integration of four degrees of freedom in a single stick significantly minimizes the steep learning curve of dual thumb-controlled transmitters that take quite some time getting used to. It also removes the awkward interface of these controllers that have to be customized to suit individual operators. Fluid Tech writes on kickstarter, “It intuitively unlocks human potential to fly and capture stunning imagery.”

Features:

• Plug and play: Consisting of a joystick, a base and a smartphone holder, the FT Aviator is a quick-to-assemble controller.

• Freedom to move: Four degrees of freedom allow the operator to fly the drone freely in any position that they want, allowing very easy allowance for aerobatics.

• Focus – focused: Since the controller has just one joystick that rests in one palm, the “cognitive workload” on the pilot or operator is significantly reduced; the pilot can focus on the live footage being captured and  the flight of the drone rather than the operative mechanics.

• Adjust on the fly: The FT Aviator allows the flight controller to be modified mid-flight. This allows the operator to adjust the controls as per their flight priorities.

• Camera control: Built-in controls on the FT Aviator allow the adjustment of camera configurations such as the adjustment of tilt control for smoother video sequences.

The FT Aviator allows a significance improvement over DJI’s standard transmitters; offering a much better experience to users that look forward to smoother flight and convenient control with their DJI drones. Check it out on Kickstarter.