The team over at the flying device Arena has been busy combining two of our favorite toys – quadrotors and Kinect.

Like numerous other hacks, they are using Kinect to monitor their joint positions, mapping a handful of actions to the operator’s movements. once the quadrotor is aloft, it can be directed around the room using the operator’s best hand. The gesture recognition system responds practically instantly, guiding the car in all directions with ease. When the user’s left hand is raised, the quadrotor does a mid-air flip and awaits its next command, while a quick clap of the hands brings the device to rest on the ground.

For the protection of anybody testing out the system, overhead motion tracking cameras are used to keep track of the Kinect’s position, creating an invisible midair barrier through which the quadrotor is not allowed to pass.

If you have a minute, check out the video below – controlling quadrotors looks way much more fun than any Kinect game we’ve come across.