Posted 08.18.2011 at 3:26 pm
10 Comments
SAMARAI in Hypercolor, Single-Winged Monocopter Flight
Clay Dillow
As promised, Lockheed Martin finally put its SAMARAI monocopter drone on display at AUVSI’s drone extravaganza in D.C. this week, for the first time flying it before a public audience as PopSci and everyone else in the air demo area looked on in awe. After all, the thing has just one rapidly rotating wing--it doesn’t really look like it can stay aloft by itself. Seeing, however, is believing.
The name (it’s not a typo) is actually derived from samara, or maple seeds, on which the monocopter design is based. Those seeds, sporting a single wing-like accessory, spiral from their branches and spin their way through the air--a natural development that allows maples to disperse their seeds more widely.
Lockheed’s version is a bit bigger (but sill weighs less than half a pound) and noisier, as you’ll see below. It also packs a camera that remarkably is able to maintain a steady view in one direction, demonstrating its eventual ISR potential (that camera also can turn 360 degrees with no gimbal). If you turn up your sound, you can hear Lockheed’s own Kingsley Fregene, principal investigator for SAMARAI, explaining how it works. What he didn’t explain to us is how he knew that adding a couple of neon lights to the bottom would make this demo so much cooler.
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i really like the quad-copters, however, this seems to be more stable and quieter, with further refinement this may be nearly silent, very cool
That looks fun. So, when does the kit go on sale at hobby stores?
Search on YouTube the Parot AR Drone. its a quadricopter that uses iphone/ipad as controls and has a camera or two on it. very cool. personaly, i like it better.
Ok that is bad @$$. Make a human sized one and I'll be a buyer.
Reminds me of those "Bladestar" toys from Wowee (r) a few years back; they're cool but they only have a rather vague sense of direction.
weak. im sure the government already has anti gravity systems. why in the heck are we still using this dangerous technology?
If you liked Lockheed's copter check this one out. It was created by teachers and students at the University of Maryland.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbuGCgc-JCM&feature=player_embedded
Jedi
Are you serious? You really think the government has a clear understanding of how the antigravitational force works let alone A CLUE how to harness it?
Anti Gravity is what is expanding the universe, IF we could harness it or control it sending a person to mars would be a cake walk.....
yes. the thing is that humanity has already gone to mars and europa. only that they don't want us to know the truth. the truth that life existed once before there. they used teleportation which is the fastest way to travel from one point to another.
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