This Week in the Unmanned Systems and Robotics World

Yuneec will offer unlimited manufacturer defect repairs through its new Yuneec Extended Service (YES!) plan. YES! plans, which offer a variety of services from free shipping to non-warranty repairs, are available as a one or two-year plan for the company’s Breeze, Typhoon H and Typhoon H with Intel RealSense UAS. (sUAS News)

In Florida, a recently passed state law has taken the ability to “regulate unmanned drones” away from individual municipalities, basically nullifying an Orlando drone ordinance that was passed at the beginning of the year. The new law allows commercial UAS to fly over things such as wireless communication towers, oil or gas pipelines and power substations. UAS enthusiasts believe that this part of the law could open up the door for package deliveries via UAS in the state. (WFTV.com)

Ohio is looking to convince companies to test out their autonomous vehicle technologies in the state by lining 35 miles on Route 33 with fiber-optic cable, which will be used to communicate traffic conditions, accidents and weather changes to autonomous vehicles using a wifi connection. The highway’s internet is expected to be up and running by early September, and by late summer 2018, the communication between the vehicles and connected infrastructure will start. (Inverse)

A man dressed in a car seat costume that was seen driving a vehicle in Arlington, Virginia last week was purposely dressed that way according to the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. The man and the vehicle are a part of a study being conducted by the institute on driverless cars. According to a statement from the institute given to NBC Washington, “the driver's seating area is configured to make the driver less visible within the vehicle, while still allowing him or her the ability to safely monitor and respond to surroundings.” A Virginia Tech spokeswoman adds that Arlington County officials were a part of the planning for the study. (NBC Washington)

In an effort to gather information for “city planning, engineering, assessment, mapping and solid waste management,” the city of Yellowknife, Canada has purchased a SenseFly eBee mapping drone, which will be used exclusively for taking pictures of the city. Before a flight is conducted, it must receive approval from Nav Canada, and each flight is “filled as a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM).” (My Yellowknife Now)

In Moscow, Russia, the first test site for driverless vehicles has officially opened. The site will allow entities to test their driverless vehicle technologies on a 1,300-foot long track that includes bus stops, crosswalks, road signs and markings, and a roundabout; all of which recreate an urban environment. Testing of driverless vehicles has already begun at the new site, and those working at or using the technology park have taken part in the building of four self-driving buses for a major Russian machine-building company. (Sputnik International)