The Ghost Aeromaster quadcopter drone for aerial photography is displayed at the Thunder Tiger Group booth at CES 2016 at the Las Vegas Convention Center on Jan. 7, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo : Getty Images/Ethan Miller)
Following two years of secretive development, a young Chinese startup focusing in drones unveiled its Hover Camera early this week. Different from many other drones, the Hover Camera can track and film people and objects on sight with its 4K videos and photos via a 13-megapixel camera.
The Hover Camera is the first product of Chinese startup Zero Zero Robotics and has an inbuilt Artificial Intelligence (AI) brain that can track people using face-tracking. The directional forward camera of the drone combines with a bottom sonar enabling it to evade obstacles in its vicinity. However, since the gadget is still not competent to avoid obstacles completely, it is advisable not to used the drone indoors, Tech in Asia quoted the company CEO Meng Qui Wang saying.
Wang recently demonstrated the gadget with its rotors tucked safely inside its carbon fiber mesh bodywork and weighing about half a pound. It easily fits in the palm of one's hand and will cost below $600. During the demonstration the drone, dubbed as Hover Camera, drifted in lock-step with the user. It possesses the aptitude to fly for eight minutes just on a single charge of a removable battery unit, Wang, a graduate from Stanford University, informed.
In an interview with Tech in Asia, Wang said that they consider the drone to be a robot. According to him, while designing the Hover Camera, the team ensured that it can be operated easily only with a single button. According to Wang, the drone hovers automatically when you release it and if one throws it as a Frisbee, the devices starts hovering and remains in place.
The USP of the Hover Camera is not only its AI that identified a user on sight, but it also possesses the ability to track selected targets as well as their surroundings. The drone is a part of a series of inexpensive drones and cars that come with inbuilt learning machines into real-world devices instead of software such as Apple's Siri personal assistant, Bloomberg reported.
Initially, Zero Zero Robotics plans to sell Hover Cameras to chosen beta-testers, in order to support the video footage and content creation. The drone will be sold to the public via Zero Zero Robotics' website from August. However, the company is yet to begin talks with physical distributors.
Watch the Hover Camera in action below:
