Published 8 August 2011
A beach ball-size drone can fly down narrow alleys, hover on the spot, take off vertically, bounce along the ground like a soccer ball -- all the time transmitting live images from a video camera; it can travel above traffic or spy on a target through a window -- and can also be used in search and rescue in disaster zones, where it could fly through buildings and even up and down stairways
Fumiyuki Sato with his beachball UAV // Source: xatakaciencia.com
A Japanese researcher working for Japan’s Ministry of Defense has developed a spherical observation UAV that can fly down narrow alleys, hover on the spot, take off vertically, bounce along the ground like a soccer ball – all the time transmitting live images from a video camera.
The drone – or Spherical Air Vehicle (SAF) — is the size of a beach ball, and it is controlled by an operator with a remote control. It is powered by a propeller protected by a spherical shield with large openings for airflow, allowing it to hit a wall or a tumble to the ground without damaging the propeller. Tech.blorge reports that the device’s designer is continuing to work to improve it. The designer says that in the future the SAF could be used as a formidable pursuit vehicle that can travel above traffic or spy on a target through a window.
Its inventor says it could also help in such as search and rescue in disaster zones, where it could fly through buildings and even up and down stairways.
The developer, Fumiyuki Sato, a research engineer at the Technical Research and Development Institute Ministry of Defense, said that “This is the world’s first spherical air vehicle.” Read more
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