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Universal Battery Elimination Circuit (UBEC) $16.45
A UBEC can be an important accessory to an aerial drone. This Turnigy 5 to 7.5 Amp model is a nice choice. However, there are many different UBECs from different manufacturers and with different specifications. You’ll have to match this gift choice to the requirements of the drone it will be installed on.
A UBEC simply drops the supply voltage from the battery down to the 5 or 6V that is needed for the control electronics. Read on below for more about what a UBEC is and what it does.
What it Does
A UBEC provides isolated power for the control electronics like the receiver and servos. There’s probably already a small linear Battery Elimination Circuit (BEC) in the ESC. However, a UBEC has a more efficient switching power supply, resulting is less waste heat and longer battery life. It also ensures that even if the motors go dead, there is still power to the control electronics.
Why it’s Cool
OK. It’s not really very sexy or cool, but it does an important job. Plus, maybe you are looking for a less expensive gift to round out your purchases. Here it is!
The Parrot AR.Drone is a fantastically capable platform, but I wouldn’t call it a complete package. Until they include a remote control or make it compatible with standard RC controllers out of the box, it will remain an iPhone accessory to me.
Kudos for ease of repair and spare part availability.
Fair point! You do need to supply the smartphone or tablet to control the AR.Drone. Parrot has a compatibility tab on their support page, which tells you exactly which devices it will work with.
http://ardrone2.parrot.com/support/
I don’t see the HoverFly kit listed !!! Those are awesome kits !
Yes, that’s a good one to add to the list. Thanks for mentioning it. Hoverfly makes some very nice flight systems, boards and accessories. I almost included the Parallax Elev-8 quadcopter (http://www.robotshop.com/parallax-elev-8-quadcopter-uav.html), which uses a Hoverfly control board.
Interested readers can find out more at http://www.hoverflytech.com.
I really like that tricopter build. Although the component table needs a correction for the speed controller cost – 3 of those will be $23.40 (the table shows $9.40). its still a lot of tricopter for the money. This will go onto my list of new years projects, thanks for posting this.
Whoops! Good catch, Michael. I’ll see if we can get the cost table updated. I’m hoping to make this one in the new year too. Let me know how yours goes!
Walkera has a new model called the Infra X, which is slightly bigger than the ladybug. It has sensors that allow it to avoid walls and the ground. Around $100.00, hard to find, but the videos look awesome.
Nice find. That does look really cool. Did I mention that the market for small quadcopters is evolving at an incredible pace? You should definitely shop around and see what is out there before you buy. Be sure to check for independent reviews so you can be reasonably sure you are getting a quality product.
Aerial Drone Gift Guide