Company:Yuneec International

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Short description: Chinese aircraft manufacturer
Yuneec International
IndustryAerospace
Founded1999
HeadquartersJiangsu, China
Key people
Founder and chair of the board: Wenyan Jiang, Larry Liu (CEO)[1]
ProductsElectric drones
Electric aircraft
Unmanned aerial vehicles
Number of employees
1800
SubsidiariesGreenWing International
Websitewww.yuneec.com
Yuneec Typhoon H

Yuneec International is a Chinese aircraft manufacturer based in Jinxi, Kunshan, a town in Jiangsu owned through an off-shore Cayman Islands holding company, Yuneec Holding Limited.[2] Yuneec was originally a manufacturer of radio-controlled model aircraft and marketed its man-carrying aircraft in the United States through GreenWing International.[3] Yuneec produced the Yuneec International E430, the first electric aircraft designed to be commercially produced, although only prototypes were ever built.[4] In the late 2010s, the company moved to specialize in the development and production of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), for the aerial photography role.[5]

History

Yuneec was originally a manufacturer of radio-controlled model aircraft sold under another brands, primarily Horizon Hobby.[6]

Electric aircraft development

The company built the first successful electric powered paraglider that was manufactured in series production, the EPac. Former company owner Tian Yu then turned his attention to an electric ultralight trike, the Yuneec International ETrike. From there he designed a series of electric motors, the Yuneec Power Drive series, the all-composite E430 and the EViva motorglider. Collaboration with Flightstar Sportplanes of the US brought the Yuneec International e-Spyder design to completion, using an existing airframe with new electric power components.[7]

In July 2010, Yuneec's E430 electric aircraft, won the Lindbergh Electric Airplane Prize at the World Electric Aircraft symposium.[4] Yuneec's e-Spyder was the world's first certified electric aircraft, having received the DULV Type Certification in February 2013.[8]

Yuneec constructed a twin engine aircraft, the E1000, For the NASA CAFE Green Flight Challenge. In May 2011, the only prototype suffered a structural failure on its second test flight, with the tail separating from the aircraft seconds after takeoff. Test pilot Martin Wezel was killed in the crash.[9] Details around the cause of the crash remain unclear.

A pivot to consumer drones (ca. 2014–present)

In 2014 the company became a founding member of Dronecode, a non-profit hosted by the Linux Foundation with the aim of providing Linux kernel-based common free software for drone manufacturers.[10][11]

In August 2015, Intel Corporation invested $60 million in Yuneec for a 15% stake.[12][13] Intel and Yuneec agreed to work together on development of future projects.[14] That same month, Yuneec launched Breeze, a drone capable of capturing UltraHD 4K photos and videos.[15] Yuneec announced a retail partnership with Best Buy covering the Typhoon drone series and the Typhoon Wizard controller.[16]

The Typhoon G featuring its GB203 3-axis gimbal designed for use with the GoPro camera was released in September 2015 to smooth and stabilize aerial footage.[17] In October 2015, Yuneec released the Typhoon Wizard, an ultra-lightweight remote control compatible with the Typhoon drone series designed to be used with one hand.[18] Yuneec partnered with Ocean Alliance, a whale conservation organization, in 2015 to create a safer way of collecting health data from whales. Rather than using biopsy darts, Ocean Alliance began using Yuneec drones outfitted with petri dishes to retrieve samples.[19][20][21]

One of Yuneec's drones, the Typhoon Q500+, was seized by the police in June 2016 when its operator was flying it near the White House. The operator crashed a drone on The Ellipse near the White House in October 2015.[22]

Yuneec released the Typhoon H in July 2016. The drone used the Intel RealSense 3D depth camera technology which tracks depth and human motion.[23][15] The SkyView FPV headset was released in August 2016. The headset connects to a drone's onboard camera allowing the user to control the drone from the first person view.[24][25]

In late 2016 the company established a new a research and development center, Yuneec Advanced Technology Labs AG, near Zurich, Switzerland to work on computer vision, obstacle avoidance and flight control software development.[26]

At the beginning of 2017 the company introduced the Yuneec H520, a modular hexacopter drone intended for the commercial market, including fire department, police, construction, surveying, inspection and mapping. The H520 can carry various cameras as payloads and can operate in an encrypted mode.[27][28][29] A version, the Yuneec 3DR H520-G, was developed in conjunction with drone software company 3D Robotics and intended for the American government and military market.[30][31][32][33]

In May 2017, suppliers reported that the company was arrears, but the company said that it was mainly due to the two sides had different opinions on product delivery quality and payment details.[34][35] On the other hand, nearly half of Yuneec's suppliers had not been paid for more than a year. Yuneec has not made supplier payments on time since the second quarter of 2017.[36]

In September a 2019 Yuneec announced the Mantis G, a foldable drone with gimballed and stabilized camera.[37] The same month the company and Leica Camera AG announced a strategic partnership and presented the Typhoon H3 drone, which incorporates camera software and hardware co-engineered with Leica.[38][39][40]

Aircraft

Summary of aircraft built by Yuneec International
Model name First flight Number built Type
Yuneec International EPac Electric powered paraglider
Yuneec International E430 2009 Electric aircraft
Yuneec International e-Spyder Electric aircraft
Yuneec International ETrike Electric aircraft
Yuneec International EViva 2012 one Electric aircraft
Yuneec International Q500 Typhoon 2015 Electric quadrotor UAV
Yuneec International H920 Tornado 2015 Electric hexacopter UAV
Yuneec International Breeze 2016 Electric quadrotor UAV
Yuneec International Typhoon H 2016 Electric hexacopter UAV
Yuneec International H520 2017 Electric hexacopter UAV
Yuneec International Typhoon H Plus 2018 Electric hexacopter UAV
Yuneec International Mantis Q 2018 Electric quadrotor UAV
Yuneec International H520E 2020 Electric hexacopter UAV
Yuneec International H850 2022 Electric hexacopter UAV

References

  1. ↑ Yuneec International (2019). "Management". corporate.yuneec.com. https://corporate.yuneec.com/management/. 
  2. ↑ "Yuneec Holding Limited". yuneec.de. 20 May 2015. http://files.yuneec.de/Yuneec%20Holding%20Ltd.%20%28CAYMAN%29.pdf. 
  3. ↑ Aviation Week & Space Technology: 60. 23 October 2013. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Nikki Heeren (August 13, 2010). "World's first Electric Aircraft has great potential". Mobile Mag. http://www.mobilemag.com/2010/08/13/worlds-first-electric-aircraft-has-great-potential/. 
  5. ↑ "Yuneec US Website". https://us.yuneec.com/about-us. 
  6. ↑ "How DJI has crushed the consumer drone industry, and the rivals that could still take flight". https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-dji-has-crushed-the-consumer-drone-industry-and-the-rivals-that-could-still-take-flight-2017-02-17. 
  7. ↑ Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2011-12, page 85. WDLA UK, Lancaster UK, 2011. ISSN 1368-485X
  8. ↑ "Yuneec e-Spyder electric powered ultralight or light sport aircraft". Sport Aviation Magazine. http://www.sportaviationmagazine.com/Aero-Expo-Friedrichshafen-2013/Yuneec-e-Spyder-electric-powered-ultralight.htm. 
  9. ↑ "Electric Prototype and Pilot Lost". https://bydanjohnson.com/electric-prototype-and-pilot-lost-2/. 
  10. ↑ "Dronecode - The Open Source UAV Platform". https://www.dronecode.org/. 
  11. ↑ at 13:42, Lester Haines 29 Jun 2015. "Linux bids for UAV world domination by enslaving future skybot army". https://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/06/29/dronecode_linux/. 
  12. ↑ Jack Clark (January 4, 2016). "Intel Buys Ascending Technologies in Further Drone Push". Bloomberg. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-04/intel-buys-ascending-technologies-in-further-drone-push. 
  13. ↑ Michael De Waal-Montgomery (August 26, 2015). "Intel continues drone push with $60M investment into China's Yuneec". Venture Beat. https://venturebeat.com/2015/08/26/intel-continues-drone-push-with-60m-investment-into-chinas-yuneec/. 
  14. ↑ Jack Clark (August 26, 2015). "Intel Invests $60 Million in Chinese Drone Maker Yuneec". Bloomberg. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-08-26/intel-invests-60-million-in-chinese-drone-maker-yuneec. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Dean Takahasi (August 30, 2016). "Yuneec's Breeze is a flying camera that is pretty hard to crash". Venture Beat. https://venturebeat.com/2016/08/30/yuneecs-breeze-is-a-flying-camera-that-is-pretty-hard-to-crash/. 
  16. ↑ Betsy Lillian (October 15, 2015). "Best Buy to Start Selling Yuneec Drones". Unmanned Aerial. http://unmanned-aerial.com/best-buy-to-start-selling-yuneec-drones/. 
  17. ↑ "Yuneec International Unveils GoPro Enabled Typhoon G Drone". Freshness Mag. September 10, 2015. http://www.freshnessmag.com/2015/09/10/yuneec-international-unveils-gopro-enabled-typhoon-g-drone/. 
  18. ↑ "Yuneec Announces Launch of Typhoon Wizard". Apparatus Mag. October 14, 2015. https://apparatusmag.com/2015/10/14/yuneec-announces-launch-of-typhoon-wizard/. 
  19. ↑ "6 crazy areas where photography is used outside of the drone". Business HT. November 18, 2015. http://www.businessht.com.tr/guncel/haber/1155043-dronelarin-fotografcilik-disinda-kullanildigi-6-cilgin-alan. 
  20. ↑ Kelsey D. Atherton (November 19, 2015). "Watch This Drone Catch Whale Snot". Popular Science. http://www.popsci.com/watch-this-drone-catch-whale-snot. 
  21. ↑ Hannah Jane Parkinson (April 18, 2016). "Pizza, porn and whale snot: seven alternative uses for drones". The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/apr/18/pizza-porn-whale-snot-alternative-uses-for-drones. 
  22. ↑ Bart Jansen (June 28, 2016). "Man who crashed drone near White House cited for D.C. flight. Again.". USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/06/27/drone-operator-cited-dc-flight/86426322/. 
  23. ↑ Shoshanna Solomon (July 4, 2016). "Intel uses Israeli vision technology in new Yuneec drone". Times of Israel. http://www.timesofisrael.com/intel-uses-israeli-vision-technology-in-new-yuneec-drone/. 
  24. ↑ Brittany A. Roston (August 4, 2016). "Yuneec SkyView FPV headset makes drone operation immersive". Slash Gear. https://www.slashgear.com/yuneec-skyview-fpv-headset-makes-drone-operation-immersive-04450758/. 
  25. ↑ Malek Murison (August 4, 2016). "Yuneec Releases FPV Headset - SkyView". Drone Life. http://dronelife.com/2016/08/04/yuneec-releases-fpv-headset-skyview/. 
  26. ↑ "Yuneec | Greater Zurich Area". https://www.greaterzuricharea.com/en/success-stories/yuneec. 
  27. ↑ "Yuneec H520: 3D-Modell aus der Drohne - Golem.de". https://www.golem.de/news/yuneec-h520-3d-modell-aus-der-drohne-1812-137706.html. 
  28. ↑ "Yuneec provides RTK on commercial hexacopter". January 31, 2019. https://www.gpsworld.com/yuneec-provides-rtk-on-commercial-hexacopter-h520/. 
  29. ↑ "Yuneec, Mobilicom Partner on Commercial, Federal Drone Offerings". March 6, 2019. https://www.roboticsbusinessreview.com/unmanned/yuneec-mobilicom-partner-on-commercial-federal-drone-offerings/. 
  30. ↑ "Unique Drone Solution Poised to Survey Government Infrastructure". https://www.engineering.com/BIM/ArticleID/17614/Unique-Drone-Solution-Poised-to-Survey-Government-Infrastructure.aspx. 
  31. ↑ "L'Atelier d'Architecture Rivat adopte un drone Yuneec H520". https://www.constructioncayola.com/batiment/article/2019/05/28/124575/atelier-architecture-rivat-adopte-drone-yuneec-h520. 
  32. ↑ "Drones Assist With Police Standoff, Crime Scene Mapping". February 26, 2019. https://www.roboticsbusinessreview.com/unmanned/drones-assist-with-police-standoff-crime-scene-mapping/. 
  33. ↑ Kyle, Billy (August 30, 2018). "Ford plant in United Kingdom is using drones to inspect large machinery". https://dronedj.com/2018/08/30/ford-using-drones-to-inspect-machinery/. 
  34. ↑ "昊翔无人机遭遇上门讨债 曾被视为大疆最强对手" (in zh). http://tech.qq.com/a/20170511/038265.htm. 
  35. ↑ "昊翔无人机危机不断：遭遇上门讨债 拖欠公关费用" (in zh). http://www.jiemian.com/article/1315026.html. 
  36. ↑ "Aerial Drone Maker Yuneec Struggling to Recover from 50 Million Dollars of Revenue Deficit". TGDaily. http://www.tgdaily.com/technology/aerialdrone-maker-yuneec-struggling-to-recover-from-50-million-dollars-of-revenuedeficit-. 
  37. ↑ "Interdrone 2019: Yuneec Presents the Gimbal-stabilized 4K Quadcopter Mantis G - a New Top Consumer Drone For Outdoor and Social Media Enthusiasts". https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/interdrone-2019-yuneec-presents-the-gimbal-stabilized-4k-quadcopter-mantis-g--a-new-top-consumer-drone-for-outdoor-and-social-media-enthusiasts-300910665.html. 
  38. ↑ "Yuneec launches Typhoon H3 drone developed with Leica". September 27, 2019. https://newatlas.com/drones/yuneec-typhoon-h3-drone-leica/. 
  39. ↑ Kesteloo, Haye (September 27, 2019). "Yuneec and Leica partner to launch Typhoon H3 with ION L1 Pro camera". https://dronedj.com/2019/09/27/yuneec-leica-typhoon-h3/. 
  40. ↑ Yuneec International (2019). "Yuneec and Leica announce partnership". corporate.yuneec.com. https://corporate.yuneec.com/yuneec-and-leica-camera-ag-announce-partnership/. 

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