Micro Drone v MM and the rules

[Banstead]

I bought Micro Drone as cheap toy for messing around inside the home and it does work - but drifts a lot.

I had a thought that if the new rules mean; as the MM is under 250g, but would still need to be registered under the new rules because it has a camera, so what would it mean for all the Micro Drones - which also have cameras?

 

[Lastrexking]

I bought Micro Drone as cheap toy for messing around inside the home and it does work - but drifts a lot.

I had a thought that if the new rules mean; as the MM is under 250g, but would still need to be registered under the new rules because it has a camera, so what would it mean for all the Micro Drones - which also have cameras?

I’ll check the latest CAP from the CAA, but I think there’s a mention of 'toy' which is defined by the distance it can fly from the controller being no more than 30m.

Ignore all that. Looking at the CAP, you’d need to figure out the impact it has if it hits someone. The CAP states;


Operators are required to register when they operate an unmanned aircraft that is less than 250g in mass if it:
▪ is equipped with a sensor that can capture personal data (i.e. a camera or ‘listening device’), unless it is classed as a toy, or:
▪ is able to transfer a kinetic energy of more than 80 Joules to a human in the event of a collision (i.e. it may be small and light, but it can be flown at high speed)

The CAP defines 'toy' as '2 Toys are products designed or intended (whether or not exclusively) for use in play by children under 14 years old'.

Link to the CAP here;https://publicapps.caa.co.uk/docs/33/CAP1789 April 2020.pdf

 

[old man mavic]

as long as you only fly indoors then it would not be an issue i think ?

 

[Lastrexking]

as long as you only fly indoors then it would not be an issue i think ?

As ever, the voice of reason! ? Totally agree.

 

[Banstead]

Interesting that common sense should apply to the aviation rules, but I am interested on where this leads.
The operating manual states the minimum age for use is 14 years, but must be under adult supervision at all times. It also states, when flown outdoors it is recommended that high speed mode is selected - presumably to overcome winds.
When I looked at the CAP1789 document above, it stated that to be a 'toy' it must have a 'C0' marking (which it doesn't, as there are no markings on any drones) so it must be classed as legacy, which is the same as a legacy MM - which required UAS Operator Registration. This has gone around in a loop unless I have missed an exit clause somewhere.

 

[Zbip57]

Operators are required to register when they operate an unmanned aircraft that is less than 250g if [...] able to transfer a kinetic energy of more than 80 Joules to a human in the event of a collision...

Anyone interested in knowing where those numbers came from (250g & 80 Joules) should read this document. Unmanned Aircraft Systems Registration Task Force, Nov 21, 2015

This FAA report is the entire basis for the 250g cutoff. Apparently, "an object with a kinetic energy level of 80 Joules (or approximately 59 foot-pounds) has a 30% probability of being lethal when striking a person in the head."

The task force calculated the terminal velocity of an object shaped like a brick, but with a coefficient of drag equivalent to a baseball, when dropped from a height of 500 ft. What would the mass of that object need to be to deliver an 80 joule impact? Tada! 250 grams.

Then, they calculated the probability of actually hitting someone on the head when such an object is randomly dropped from 500' into "a relatively densely packed urban environment" .

They calculated the risk, "based upon the probability of a catastrophic event occurring (i.e., death or serious injury) due to a collision between an sUAS and a person on the ground".

For a mass of 250g or less, that probability is,
"4.7x10-8, or less than 1 ground fatality for every 20,000,000 flight hours of an sUAS".

All of the weight restrictions of subsequent drone regulations are based on those numbers. There was no consideration (none, zero) given regarding potential hazards to manned aircraft. It was entirely based on the hypothetical danger to a person on the ground being hit in the head by an object dropped from 500 feet.

Less than 250 grams is harmless, unless it's carrying a camera. D'oh!