After enjoying his remote-controlled helicopter, Instructables user Captain Dyson decided to add extra hardware and thus convert the helicopter into something with a level of intelligence. Based around an Arduino, an infra-red distance sensor and modified the control system to allow the Arduino to work with the controls - giving it an example of crash-avoidance technology. As an introduction this is an interesting article and with a little extra work (and less weight) a full object-avoidance system could be created. The Captain takes us through it in the following video:
An interesting experiment and also some good lessons. For complete details, visit the project page. And for more, we're on twitter and Google+, so follow us for news and product updates as well.
If you're new to Arduino and want to have some fun like the lads above, the first step is a solid board for your projects - our Freetronics Eleven - the Arduino-Uno compatible with low-profile USB socket, onboard prototyping space and easy to view LEDs:
