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Small drone with camera hovering outside my window today.

#222
Joe Louvar said:
Way fun - what was the made and model number of the drone that was in the chicken fight video that you posted?
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There's no part number. They're all built from scratch.

And that's the way it should be. the reason so many people are starting to notice these things and freak out is because over the past 1-2 years there have been many off the shelf options that come "ready to fly" and are set up so almost anyone can do basic flight (lift off, hover, move around a little bit, take a few photos). There are many amateur and even pro photographers that are eager to take cool video and photos from the air. The people who have no flight experience are the ones that are a potential problem if they crash or cause property damage. They are not trying to look into your window. Remember that Gopro cameras have a VERY wide angle lens. Even if it was 20 feet away from your window it's not going to see much. It's going to have a nice wide view of the building. Unless your hanging naked halfway out your window you really have nothing to worry about. It would require a large heavy telephoto lens to zoom into someones window not wide angle lens.

I was just posting that video as an example of what is possible. No one should try to fly like that unless you're an expert pilot in a very open area.
 
#223
What do I think? I think you should talk to an attorney who knows the property laws in your state regarding your ownership of the airspace over your property (which, as with most things, varies from state to state). Depending on the answer, you will have several possible remedies/responses available. Personally, I prefer the paintball gun/ destroy the evidence/ look innocent and deny everything solution, myself. :D
 
#224
Inertialsky said:
There's no part number. They're all built from scratch.

And that's the way it should be. the reason so many people are starting to notice these things and freak out is because over the past 1-2 years there have been many off the shelf options that come "ready to fly" and are set up so almost anyone can do basic flight (lift off, hover, move around a little bit, take a few photos). There are many amateur and even pro photographers that are eager to take cool video and photos from the air. The people who have no flight experience are the ones that are a potential problem if they crash or cause property damage. They are not trying to look into your window. Remember that Gopro cameras have a VERY wide angle lens. Even if it was 20 feet away from your window it's not going to see much. It's going to have a nice wide view of the building. Unless your hanging naked halfway out your window you really have nothing to worry about. It would require a large heavy telephoto lens to zoom into someones window not wide angle lens.

I was just posting that video as an example of what is possible. No one should try to fly like that unless you're an expert pilot in a very open area.
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About how much would it cost to build a nice rocket fast drone like the one in the video with no camera (ballpark $)?
 
#228
Febs said:
There is nothing unethical about bringing a cause of action under a statute that was duly enacted by the legislature specifically to allow that cause of action, so long as the plaintiff has a good faith belief that the facts bring him within the purview of the statute.
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I disagree.

Both the plaintiff and his legal representative must have a good faith belief that the facts bring him within the purview of the statute.


Febs said:
The fact that prior cases decided under the statute are unpublished is irrelevant; trial court decisions are frequently unpublished, and if anything, the fact that the decision is unpublished indicates that the case was decided on the specific facts of that case and did not involve any issues regarding interpretation or enforcement of the statute that would apply to other cases.
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It also means there is no citeable case law regarding the statute.

Febs said:
Finally, the fact that there is a hypothetical constitutional challenge available to a defendant does not make it unethical to bring a claim under a statute authorizing a civil claim.
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I agree - as long as the lawyer representing the plaintiff believes the law to be Constitutional. If the lawyer believes the law in question is in violation of the US Constitution or California Constitution, it is unethical to proceed with it.
 
#229
Stewie26 said:
I guess our future privacy rights boils down to the question. Do you want private, police and government camera's checking out your wife, GF or daughter when they are sunbathing in your private backyard?
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Every single one of these drone related laws exempts police and government - so you're already screwed from that perspective. The only question now is what exactly will be legal for private hobbyists and businesses.
 
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#231
aborgman said:
Every single one of these drone related laws exempts police and government - so you're already screwed from that perspective. The only question now is what exactly will be legal for private hobbyists and businesses.
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As of now, the FAA will not allow drones for commercial use without a special operating permit but that has already been challenged in court. As for private operators, I bet the FAA is looking at that also.
They are suppose to come with some recommendations for congress by September of next year. I think the FAA is more concerned about drones interfering with full size manned aircraft than privacy issues though.
 
#233
Stewie26 said:
I think the FAA is more concerned about drones interfering with full size manned aircraft than privacy issues though.
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I expect it will take them a _long_ time just to work through the definitions. When does a "RC model airplane" become a UAV ? I believe many military-class (e.g. Predator) are as big and fast as some aircraft in the FAA's Light Sport Aircraft category. Is an 8-engine 10% scale model B-52 (seen them...) a model airplane, a 'drone', a UAV - or what ? If you start requiring transponders on RC aircraft, you've pretty much guaranteed they'll be BIG RC aircraft. (Do unpowered lighter-than-air craft (i.e. hot-air balloon) require transponders? They didn't used to, and were pretty much the top of the 'right of way' food chain when I went through ground school...)

Case not that long ago where a large scale 'model airplane' entered White House airspace. When a 'model airplane' can carry a kilo of Semtex - then what ? Is it more or less a threat than a C-152 in a world where extremists will die to 'make a statement' ? There are few answers that preserve both security and fun. As already observed, 9/11 pretty much wiped out the model rocket industry...

And we haven't even touched on privacy yet...
 
#235
ArtechnikA said:
I expect it will take them a _long_ time just to work through the definitions. When does a "RC model airplane" become a UAV ? I believe many military-class (e.g. Predator) are as big and fast as some aircraft in the FAA's Light Sport Aircraft category. Is an 8-engine 10% scale model B-52 (seen them...) a model airplane, a 'drone', a UAV - or what ? If you start requiring transponders on RC aircraft, you've pretty much guaranteed they'll be BIG RC aircraft. (Do unpowered lighter-than-air craft (i.e. hot-air balloon) require transponders? They didn't used to, and were pretty much the top of the 'right of way' food chain when I went through ground school...)

Case not that long ago where a large scale 'model airplane' entered White House airspace. When a 'model airplane' can carry a kilo of Semtex - then what ? Is it more or less a threat than a C-152 in a world where extremists will die to 'make a statement' ? There are few answers that preserve both security and fun. As already observed, 9/11 pretty much wiped out the model rocket industry...

And we haven't even touched on privacy yet...
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The FAA will probably define by weight as they do with manned aircraft. Anyway, that would be a good start. One of the problems is a 5 pound UAV or drone can take down a manned aircraft under the right circumstances. They know that from the past accident history of bird strikes. Also, as of right now, the FAA only requires manned aircraft to have a transponder if they are flying within a 30 nautical mile radius of a Class Bravo airport. (Class Bravo airports are the largest airports we have such as, LAX, DFW, SFO, JFK. etc.) So if a hot air balloon or powered aircraft is flying in a rural area away from large airport, no transponder is required by law.
 
#238
Stewie26 said:
Since it has only happened once that I know about, I did not call the police. Actually, my neighbors are much more upset about it than I. If the drone becomes a regular then I will pursue it. With that said, it did get me to thinking about how technology is changing things we take for granted and that alone would make a worth wild conversation here on TBOT. Think about how many more drones will be around in 10 or 15 years used by companies, police departments and government, private citizens, etc. Kind of scary to me.
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Legal statutes aside, I think that with miniature video cameras being pretty much everywhere these days, privacy is a thing of the past.

Even if stricter legislation protecting privacy was passed, the actual enforcement would be too cumbersome for most people and law agencies.

It seems to me that technology has rendered privacy a moot point.
 
#239
Yeah, privacy has been a thing of the past for some time. Your home, your backyard, etc have been viewable from satellites for years. Your government; hostile governments; private contractors and others could watch just about anything you do. It's almost to the point where I could google what you were serving at last Saturday's barbecue, and how well it went over with the guests.
 

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