Whois & Analysis for ardupilot.org

ArduPilot (also ArduPilotMega - APM) is an open source unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platform, able to control autonomous multicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, traditional helicopters, ground rovers and antenna trackers.

Ardupilot is an award winning platform that won the 2012 and 2014 UAV Outback Challenge competitions.

It was started in 2007 by members of the DIY Drones community.

The first ArduPilot version supported only fixed wing aircraft and was based on a thermopile sensor, which relies on determining the location of the horizon relative to the aircraft by measuring the difference in temperature between the sky and the ground.

Later, the system was improved to replace thermopiles with an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) using a combination of accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers.

Vehicle support was expanded to other vehicle types which led to the ArduCopter, ArduPlane and ArduRover subprojects.

An autopilot is a system used to control the trajectory of an aircraft without constant 'hands-on' control by a human operator being required.

Autopilots do not replace a human operator, but assist them in controlling the aircraft, allowing them to focus on broader aspects of operation, such as monitoring the trajectory, weather and systems.

Open-source software (OSS) is computer software with its source code made available with a license in which the copyright holder provides the rights to study, change, and distribute the software to anyone and for any purpose.

Open-source software may be developed in a collaborative public manner.

According to scientists who studied it, open-source software is a prominent example of open collaboration.

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without a human pilot aboard.

UAVs are a component of an ; which include a UAV, a ground-based controller, and a system of communications between the two.

The flight of UAVs may operate with various degrees of autonomy: either under remote control by a human operator, or fully or intermittently autonomously, by onboard computers.

More emerged during World War II – used both to train antiaircraft gunners and to fly attack missions.

Nazi Germany produced and used various UAV aircraft during the war.

Jet engines entered service after World War II in vehicles such as the Australian GAF Jindivik, and Teledyne Ryan Firebee I of 1951, while companies like Beechcraft offered their Model 1001 for the U.S. Navy in 1955.

Nevertheless, they were little more than remote-controlled airplanes until the Vietnam War.

Robotics is the interdisciplinary branch of engineering and science that includes mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, computer science, and others.

Robotics deals with the design, construction, operation, and use of robots, as well as computer systems for their control, sensory feedback, and information processing.