Seeing the Good Year Blimp advertising over a sports arena is now almost an expected occurrence.  So is seeing a plane with a banner streaming behind it advertising local businesses along the beach.  We take for granted the hundreds of billboards we see along major highways.  But now the next generation in attention grabbing advertisement is here.  The Drobotron is a 360 degree digital LED air borne billboard, a drone that can advertise your local business such as your real estate agency and properties!

The Drobotron was built by Floridian Bobby Watts, an avid model airplane and drone builder.  He was inspired to build his flying billboard after seeing the reactions he would get from people seeing him and his friends fly their drones. He and his friends would go to Cape Canaveral to watch the launching of space rockets.  They would use their drone to capture videos and pictures of the spectacle of a massive rocket being launched into the sky.  Bobby was astounded when he saw that his simple drone was more engrossing to bystanders than the massive rocket it was filming.  So he decided to capitalize on that and build a drone that could be used for advertising, knowing it would grab attention.

The technical name for the drone he built is the Lumenix 360.  The drone has 8 propellers and is encircled by a 40″ by 10″ LED video display screen which gets it’s power from the drone’s battery.  All together the drone weighs about 30lbs.  The 360 degree content can be customer customized by the onboard computer program.  The LED screen displays full color stills or videos that can be seen in total darkness or bright sunshine from distances of 15′ to 750′.  Though Mr. Watts is a commercially licensed drone operator, the Drobotron is not deemed safe by the FAA to fly over people.  Instead the drone is tethered over a location that has been cleared for safety.  This also allows the drone to maintain it’s battery power.

Watts and his Drobotron had their first major success in front of the Parc Corniche Hotel in Orlando, FL.  It hovered there enticing viewers with the hotel restaurant’s pizza and margarita specials. Vice president of the Parc Corniche Hotel, Chris Demko, said “It’s going to catch everyone’s attention, help them stop in to get a room for a night, or have a meal or a couple drinks at our restaurant.”  Since then it has been used to advertise homes for sale, as a Grand Opening marquee, and even to assist in a marriage proposal.  You can rent the Drobotron for $200 an hour or you can purchase your own for $20,000.

Watts does not see the Drobotron as being a replacement for billboards, sign twirlers, blimps, or banner planes.  He just recognized the fact that there was enough interest in the advertising industry to use a drone as an additional marketing tool.  He also sees the Drobotron being used for other situations as well.  Such as a sports score board or as a way of displaying emergency information.  As Watts said, “This is our first aircraft. We’re working on bigger ones and bigger ones.  So this is only the beginning.”

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