Initially unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were created for military purposes, gradually the development moved to the research sphere, and after that drones became available to a wide range of civilian amateurs and professionals. I write professionally about drones, and today I will talk about the types of this equipment, as well as give advice on how to choose a copter for your tasks.
In the classic sense, a drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle, which is controlled remotely by the pilot. More about drones here: https://cursir.com/.
But such technology can be more than just flying, for example, there are underwater drones, or those that move on the ground. The most widespread are flying copters, so we shall confine ourselves to this category. First of all, you should know that the name of this type of equipment came from the English “copter” – helicopter, helicopter. In this case it is meant that to lift the device in the air are used propellers. Therefore, the full and comprehensive name sounds like “multicopter” – the device with a certain number of propellers. Typology of the most common drones:
- Tricopter – a machine equipped with three (3) propellers.
- Quadcopter – a machine with four (4) propellers.
- Hexacopter – a device with six (6) propellers.
- Octocopter – a drone with eight (8) propellers.
- In addition, the category of drones can include military drones with one or more propellers (or without them), and even radio-controlled models (helicopters).
Dimensions of multicopters
The next point of classification concerns the size of the devices. There are such basic types of Cursir drones:
- Children’s quadcopters (toys) of small size.
- Compact, folding drones with a size of 10 cm or more.
- Full-sized large copters with dimensions of 50 cm and more.
- Special drones (cargo, agricultural, research, etc.). The size of such devices is not limited to certain limits, it all depends on the application. As a rule, these are quite large multicopters.
Classification of drones by purpose
If the number of propellers, size and weight of the copters is chosen depending on their own preferences, then the main criterion, in any case, remains the purpose of this or that model. After all, there are the simplest drones for entertainment and professional devices for aerial photography, cargo delivery, etc. There is no exact typology at the moment, but depending on the technical capabilities I distinguish these types:
- Recreational drones (including toys) giving the opportunity to fly, make maneuvers, get the first piloting skills.
- Amateur drones with a simple camera. This type of drones are able to produce photos and videos in a fairly mediocre quality, which is enough for amateur purposes.
- Professional quadcopters with a high-resolution camera. This category includes a wide range of drones equipped with a quality camera, stabilization system, infrared sensors and other advanced imaging capabilities.
- Sports copters for high-speed flights and competitions.
- Special purpose drones. These are vehicles that are used in highly specialized fields, such as cargo transportation, research, topography, surveying, agriculture, emergency assistance, and more.
How to choose a good quadcopter
First of all, decide for what specific tasks the drone is needed. If this is your first drone and you want to master the skills of management – it is worth starting with simple, budget models. Such a device will allow you to learn the basics of management, to lift and land the drone, to perform basic maneuvers. Keep in mind that such inexpensive quadcopters will have a very simple camera, which will not allow shooting high-quality video and photos. The main emphasis is placed on the flight in real time.
If you are a professional photographer, videographer or other expert who cares about the possibility of shooting super high resolution – choose a professional drone. Look at the lens, iris, sensor type, maximum photo and video resolution, and supported formats. If the cost of such a drone is too high for you, you can opt for a semi-professional model with an optimal price-quality ratio. On the market, there are inexpensive drones, which are inferior to professional drones in terms of equipment, but nevertheless shoot very decent footage. This quality is sufficient for video blogging, shooting events, panoramas from travel, etc.
