You’ve seen drone light shows before. And some of them are truly impressive, with massive numbers of drones morphing into 3D shapes in the sky. Amazing. But now there’s a new type of drone vying to create spectacles in the night sky.
We received an interesting email the other day. It was from Dan Lubrich, cofounder and CEO of a company called Rammaxx. He wanted us to know – especially with July 4 approaching – about their product. They’re called “electric LED rocket fireworks.”
Let’s see what they are.
Lightweight and fast
Most drone light shows involve variations of standard quadcopters, along with lighting and special sauce for programming the show. They also tend to have some sort of Ground Control System or other app/controller that allows the operator to fine-tune the choreography of the display.
And, as you know, some of those displays can be pretty remarkable. When you see hundreds (or even more than 1,000) drones all performing precision movements to create patterns and even morphing 3D shapes, it can be spectacular.
(It can also be spectacular when there’s a fail, as we reported yesterday on a drone show that went awry recently in Shanghai, when multiple drones simply dropped from the sky mid-show.)
Rammaxx
The Rammaxx system is very different from these types of drone shows. You won’t see massive swarms creating 3D images in the sky. Instead, these are short-flight, high-speed drones that can rapidly draw shapes in the sky. If you’re working with a time exposure shot, or have pretty good persistence of vision, you’ll be able to see the kinds of images they can produce.
First, though, a look at the drone itself:
Speed
Unlike the quadcopters that we normally see in drone shows (where you can wait, and wait, and wait for a new figure to be created), these little devices fly short flights at high speeds – up to 80 mph (128 kph). They fly for about a minute with full LED power, and recharge in 30 seconds. And the weight? A mere 90 grams. Here’s what the Rammaxx website says about its product:
Rammaxx was conceived for electronic fireworks and lightshows, making autonomous drone swarms accessible to a broader user base. We designed Rammaxx as an electric rapid ascent rocket able to gain height very quickly, briefly stay at altitude to play a light sequence, and then return to base to recharge for another ascent. Rapid ascent is achieved via powerful motors, a streamlined hull, and guidance fins. Rammaxx can be configured to ascend quickly, and noisily, or to ascend more slowly and quietly. The system can work with one rocket, or with a small swarm of them, creating unique and highly – via App – configurable light displays for any occasion.
The devices recharge wirelessly on the launch pads that are connected via a bus system. You can connect up to five launch pads and have five of these units flying together to create light displays.
A different look
As mentioned, these produce a very different look from a normal drone light show. With a five-second exposure on your camera, you’ll pick up images like these:
Wait, there’s more!
And there is. Check out the Rammaxx video of its “rockets.”
DroneDJ’s Take
This is a pretty interesting product. Undoubtedly there are limitations here due to flight times and the number of drones you can operate simultaneously (as of the moment). But we can see certain applications where these might be a pretty cool addition to an evening’s festivities.
You can find out more about the product (including one of the company’s other planned ventures) right here.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Comments